While the Weber is nearly perfect in its simplicity, I do wish they had given this premium model bigger, better wheels. As is, it requires some effort to roll the grill through the grass into storage or when the kids need the yard for a soccer game or water fight. A minor complaint for sure, but I think it is an easy and obvious fix. I set up the grill in under 15 minutes, and three or four of those were spent taking it out of the box. It is an absurdly simple process that requires a hammer and a Phillips-head screwdriver.
Weber’s grills under $100 tend to skew that idea, though, by not delivering on the engineering, the materials, or both. So, if you want quality and longevity, you should probably go with a high-grade model. The Original’s bottom damper also serves as part of the ash management system, scraping spent ash into a detachable unit at the bottom for easy disposal. Other drawbacks were the grill’s clumsy lid and inaccurate temperatures on the dome thermometer. The grates are just 27 inches from the ground, nine inches shy of the standard kitchen-counter height.
The Weber Original Kettle Premium Charcoal Grill’s design makes controlling the heat simple. You open and close the lower vents with a long handle mounted above the ash box. The handle slides easily and stays cool to the touch—no need to put on gloves or use a towel. Finally, after all our tests were done, we did routine maintenance—emptying weber genesis 2 the ash catchers, brushing the grates, and washing out the grills. Those designs offer attractive versatility, but they’re also expensive, and kamados especially have difficult learning curves. And Joe Salvaggio of Big Apple BBQ noted that wood pellets simply don’t produce the searing heat you need to make perfect burgers or steaks.
However, its grates sit a full 7 inches higher than the Weber model’s, so it was less tiring to work on. The Napoleon grill’s four legs, versus the Weber grill’s three, make this grill more stable and allow for a nice, big shelf underneath. No matter what you slap on it, the Weber can cook it—hot and fast or low and slow. I’ve thrown pork, burgers, steaks, chicken, veggies, and even some pineapple on the Weber with fabulous results. You can even use the Weber to slowly smoke more traditional barbecue by adding a little wood to the fire. Because the grills we tested include gas, charcoal, and electric models, we put them through separate testing scenarios.
We can help you find the Weber grill that will keep you and your family cooking for years to come. To boot, the app boasts scores of recipes to keep your menu fresh and your family excited about trying new foods. Not to beat a dead burger, but the aforementioned thermometer really did help me manage my fire better. The Weber also features a hook on the inside of the lid, which you can use to hang the lid off the side of the grill.
The 363-square-inch cooking area can easily handle a pair of whole chickens or about 10 to 13 burgers, depending on how large you make your patties. Any more than that and the grill can get overloaded, making it difficult weber genesis 2 to cook everything evenly and to flip the patties. The Performer also has Original’s top and bottom damper arrangement, which allows high-heat cooking and serves as an excellent smoker in low-heat applications.
Tim Heffernan is a senior staff writer at Wirecutter and a former writer-editor for The Atlantic, Esquire, and others. He has anchored our unequaled coverage of air purifiers and water filters since 2015. In 2018, he established Wirecutter’s ongoing collaboration with The New York Times’s Smarter Living.
In the end, these issues were minor, as the E-325s topped our list of the best gas grills. Topping our list of best charcoal grills is none other than this classic Weber grill. Weber is one of the most trusted names in the grill industry, and its Original Kettle Charcoal Grill is a worthwhile investment. The circular grill has a convenient cleaning system that lets you sweep ash into the catcher below for easy disposal, and it features a heat shield that prevents the handle from getting too hot. There’s a large damper on the lid to control airflow, and the grill is mounted on two large wheels for increased portability. The premium model adds a couple of upgrades to the nearly 70-year-old design.
She is perfectly happy to leave all that behind to be a full-time kitchen-gear nerd. Hinged sections on opposite sides of the grate let you access the entire charcoal bed below. The Napoleon grill we tested had hinges on opposite sides of the grate, too. But the PK Grill had a hinge on only one side, which proved inconvenient. All the grills we tested featured simple, thin-wire grates that worked well, with no notable sticking.