Mustachian opinions on high quality grille $600+

[jim555]

Next thing you will all be saying  you need that $600 pizza oven. 

[jim555]

So you only spend money on needs? The cheapest food to meet your nutritional needs, the smallest shelter imaginable, no vehicles, no money spent on hobbies, no vacations, etc.?

Small shelter is efficient, I don't need a yard, I hate yard work.  Vacations, I'm retired the whole day is a vacation.  My Japanese econobox from 2006 still runs so why do I need a new car?  Food is cheap if you know how to prepare it mostly from scratch and on sale.  ACP Internet is great, 300/300 fiber for $0. 

[Dicey]

Next thing you will all be saying  you need that $600 pizza oven.

Bacchi yes, OP no not yet.

[ender]

I bought a nice grill a few years ago - a Weber, so I know I can basically keep replacing parts and keep it forever - and am very glad I did.

We grill constantly and I also use it as a smoker. I've debated getting a dedicated smoker but the grill does well enough with a little smokebox that I don't think it's worthwhile to do so. Though the temp would certainly be more consistent with a dedicated smoker I'm sure.

It brings me a lot of joy.

[GuitarStv]

Next thing you will all be saying  you need that $600 pizza oven.

The cool thing is . . . if you have a grill of sufficient size, you already have a fantastic pizza oven.  We make pizza on the grill all the time, and it comes out really, really good.  :P

[Cranky]

Our grill is totally for fun!As is our giant backyard! In the Before Times we had people over pretty often, and it was fun to sit out on the deck and eat burgers. The good old days! But we still enjoy the grill.

(We're retired. We paid cash for the grill.)

[former player]

Another reason for not having a grill: being vegan or vegetarian.  To make a grill worthwhile seems to mean eating a lot of meat which isn't great for the planet, the animal or the consumer.

[GuitarStv]

Another reason for not having a grill: being vegan or vegetarian.  To make a grill worthwhile seems to mean eating a lot of meat which isn't great for the planet, the animal or the consumer.

We regularly make grilled mixed vegetables on ours . . . zucchini, eggplant, mushrooms, bell peppers, etc.  Mix with oil, salt, pepper, and maybe some oregano.  It's the only way we can get our son to eat zucchini and eggplant.

[simonsez]

Another reason for not having a grill: being vegan or vegetarian.  To make a grill worthwhile seems to mean eating a lot of meat which isn't great for the planet, the animal or the consumer.

Vegans and vegetarians use grills all the time and not significantly less than those that eat things that had parents, at least in this household.  Kabobs, veggies (grilled asparagus in foil with minced garlic and a little oil or vegan butter might be my fave), pizza, vegan sausages, black bean burgers, etc. 

The grill we use isn't high quality ($150 4 burner w/ side burner from Wal-Mart) but we did buy a good cover.  Have had for 4 years with no issues.  I looked at grills for Father's Day recently and prices have certainly gone up - what I have might be $300ish now.  Anyway, not heating up the kitchen more than needed is nice on occasion plus it's nice to be outdoors and not take up space in the kitchen getting in the other person's way.

[JLee]

Another reason for not having a grill: being vegan or vegetarian.  To make a grill worthwhile seems to mean eating a lot of meat which isn't great for the planet, the animal or the consumer.

I grill tons of vegetables -- grilled carrots are particularly awesome, as are grilled green onions.  We also grill lettuce, mangos, peaches, garlic scapes, bread, and I'm sure some other stuff I've forgotten about.

[UltraStache]

Another reason for not having a grill: being vegan or vegetarian.  To make a grill worthwhile seems to mean eating a lot of meat which isn't great for the planet, the animal or the consumer.

Not convinced vegan/vegetarian is healthier than a meat eater who also eats healthy and lives a healthy lifestyle.  If one must supplement in order to not be vitamin deficient, that doesn't sound like the healthiest diet.

Vegans/vegetarians as a whole tend to live a healthier lifestyle, more active, don't smoke, don't drink and don't eat a bunch of processed foods.  This contributes more to good health than foregoing all animal products, IMO.  If there were a study that included equally health minded meat eaters that eat balanced diets with lots of fruits and vegetables, no processed foods, lots of exercise, no smoking and low alcohol consumption, I don't think it would show vegan/vegetarian diet as being healthier. 

Hmm, now which grille to get......
 

[ender]

Another reason for not having a grill: being vegan or vegetarian.  To make a grill worthwhile seems to mean eating a lot of meat which isn't great for the planet, the animal or the consumer.

Grilled pineapple is perhaps my favorite thing I've ever made on a grill.

Do vegans/vegetarians not eat pineapple? I guess I'd never survive as one.

[PDXTabs]

Another reason for not having a grill: being vegan or vegetarian.  To make a grill worthwhile seems to mean eating a lot of meat which isn't great for the planet, the animal or the consumer.

Grilled pineapple is perhaps my favorite thing I've ever made on a grill.

Do vegans/vegetarians not eat pineapple? I guess I'd never survive as one.

I've grilled almost as much squash and portobello mushrooms on my grill as meat.

[former player]

So do all you vegetable-loving and fruit-loving grillers fire the grill up without meat? Or are they side-dishes?

I love grilled veg, but the oven I have in the kitchen (with proper ventilation) does a lovely job on them.

Also, why do outside grills need so much replacement/repair?  Are you leaving them uncovered?  Not cleaning them so the grease attracts damp and rust?  I expect my indoor oven to last me the rest of my life, and I've never had one fail on me.

[PDXTabs]

So do all you vegetable-loving and fruit-loving grillers fire the grill up without meat? Or are they side-dishes?

When I was vegan I grilled vegan food. Now that I'm an omnivore I usually have some meat going as well.

As to maintenance, in my experience a Weber gas grill will last more than 10 years with zero maintenance, but obviously being outside isn't great for them.

[JLee]

So do all you vegetable-loving and fruit-loving grillers fire the grill up without meat? Or are they side-dishes?

When I was vegan I grilled vegan food. Now that I'm an omnivore I usually have some meat going as well.

As to maintenance, in my experience a Weber gas grill will last more than 10 years with zero maintenance, but obviously being outside isn't great for them.

The Dynasty grill that that came with my house needed replacement heat plates (the things that hold the ceramic briquettes) - I have no idea how old they were though. The briquettes were also in rough shape so I replaced those as well.

I think most grills see much more wear than ovens due to open flame, grease/oil dripping onto stuff and catching on fire, plus as you said living outside doesn't help.

[caleb]

Are you leaving them uncovered? 

I've always used the cheapo Home Depot ($100-150) grills because I don't cover them and they still seem to last five years or so.

Covering seems like a pain.  If you use the grill in the evening, that means letting it all cool down and remembering to go back outside, likely in the dark, to put the cover on it every time I use it.  It's a small task, but it's one more thing to do.

However, my dad has a Weber Spirit that he only covers consistently in the winter, and it's been going strong for at least 15 years with some burning replacements.  He's mentioned that the body is different (cast aluminum?) so the bottom doesn't rust out like the cheap ones.  I'll probably give it some thought when it's time for a new one.

[YttriumNitrate]

The cool thing is . . . if you have a grill of sufficient size, you already have a fantastic pizza oven.  We make pizza on the grill all the time, and it comes out really, really good.  :P

Having an outdoor heating source like a grill is great for all sorts of things. For about $60 in parts* I was able to turn my Weber grill into a deep fryer on par with some commercial units and that doesn't stink up the house when I make french fries.

**$60 in parts, but $80 in peanut oil to fill it up.

[PoutineLover]

I have a weber charcoal grill that I bought used for super cheap (maybe $40 or so?) at least 8 years ago and it's still in great condition. I don't have a cover, but I'm able to keep it under a sheltered area, and it stays outside all winter. We get lots of use out of it in the summer and it's great for entertaining in the backyard. Don't think I would have paid full price for it, but it has been very worthwhile and I can definitely see the difference in quality compared to cheaper grills I have owned before.

[GuitarStv]

The cool thing is . . . if you have a grill of sufficient size, you already have a fantastic pizza oven.  We make pizza on the grill all the time, and it comes out really, really good.  :P

Having an outdoor heating source like a grill is great for all sorts of things. For about $60 in parts* I was able to turn my Weber grill into a deep fryer on par with some commercial units and that doesn't stink up the house when I make french fries.

**$60 in parts, but $80 in peanut oil to fill it up.

That's a lot of fried food!

[lutorm]

Next thing you will all be saying  you need that $600 pizza oven.

No, but that's the kind of thing I would make myself when I no longer have to work and have free time. (In fact, I'd probably have welded together my own smoker in that case, too. But it would have been stainless and thus actually have cost more than the one I bought... ;-)

[Just Joe]

Anyone use an electric grill outside? Like a gas grill but uses electricity.

[Dicey]

The cool thing is . . . if you have a grill of sufficient size, you already have a fantastic pizza oven.  We make pizza on the grill all the time, and it comes out really, really good.  :P

Having an outdoor heating source like a grill is great for all sorts of things. For about $60 in parts* I was able to turn my Weber grill into a deep fryer on par with some commercial units and that doesn't stink up the house when I make french fries.

**$60 in parts, but $80 in peanut oil to fill it up.

Dang, that's impressive! Do you drain the peanut oil and reuse it?

We don't eat much fried food, but DH loves the occasional deep fried turkey and we do have an extra BBQ that came with the house...

[YttriumNitrate]

Dang, that's impressive! Do you drain the peanut oil and reuse it?
We don't eat much fried food, but DH loves the occasional deep fried turkey and we do have an extra BBQ that came with the house...

Yes, the peanut oil is drained, filtered, and stored in a dark/cool location. I do almost exclusively french fries (i.e., no breaded foods), use 100% peanut oil, and use a fairly low final temp (~330F) so the oil lasts a really long time.

That's a lot of fried food!

Absolutely. French fries done right take about three days to make (1: Potato soak, 2: Cook, 3: Clean-up) so if I'm making them, half the block is eating fries that day.

[EngineerOurFI]

First responding to the massive amount of naysaying about getting a nice grill:
Propane/gas grills honestly gross me out.  I feel like I can taste the propane/gas sometimes and the smell of it when cooking is just unpleasant to me.  I don't enjoy briskets done on these types of grills in the slightest.  I have similar issues with charcoal grills that use briquettes and liquid starter fluid - just not a fan of the taste of the meat/result when doing briskets, etc.  So for me lump charcoal is the only option.

I like meat.  If someone offered me $40,000 per year for the rest of my life to become vegan, I would turn them down in a heartbeat because I know I couldn't do it.  Considering I'm currently wearing tennis shoes at the office that are probably ~12 years old and have holes in them and driving a car that's over 100,000 miles and my breakfast was quaker oats made using the hot water from the office coffee machine.....this should be pretty telling as to the enjoyment I get out of eating meat.  If they offered $150,000 per year, I'd probably *try* to do it but I honestly would likely cheat/give up within a couple of years.  So for me the whole argument here about vegan being better for the planet is kind of missing the mark that some people just really enjoy eating meat.  I'll give up a heckuva lot of things for the planet long before I give up meat.  And switching to vegan is really, really hard for many people.

I live in a hurricane-prone area.  Typically our hurricane plan revolves around the fact that I can have a brisket in the fridge ready to go and if the power goes out, slap that on the grill and 24 hours later have 11 lbs of meat ready to share with my family and the neighbors behind me.  The neighbors behind me have a generator and can keep their fridge going so they'd have sides available to eat with the brisket.  It's worked out quite well for the last few hurricanes/major outages.  And I save on garage space for not having a generator.  And I'm not one of the guys in line for an hour trying to get gas before a hurricane hits.  And I don't have to have my non-existent generator serviced/repaired like other neighbors.  And my home insurance pays me to refill my fridge with a simple insurance claim and no deductible for this claim (and, no they haven't raised my home insurance premiums due to this).  So this method works out pretty well for me to mitigate/manage the risks of power outages during hurricanes.  Such cookouts are common in this area.

Also, having a grill enables me to effectively utilize the space in my house very efficiently when hosting major events.  By putting some kind of meat and/or side out on the grill while my wife is using our single-oven we are able to host very large events with 20+ people in our average-sized home and still have everything come out hot and ready at the same time.  So hosting Thanksgiving, Christmas, Poker Parties, whatever is pretty easy.  Without a grill, my wife would probably have wanted a bit larger of a kitchen and a dual oven, etc. in order to host such events.  So I would call the grill a fairly mustachian option to allow us to stay in our home quite a bit longer (if not forever).

As far as the grill that I have:
I have a Large Big Green Egg grill which I bought used.  I honestly don't remember the exact price as I bought it a number of years ago - maybe $500?  Works well, got it at a great price, and does a great job with all variety of meats ranging from chicken to steaks to briskets or burgers and also works well for asparagus, veggies to go with fajita meat, etc.  Uses lump charcoal which I consistently find results in best-tasting end product.

And this grill will *absolutely* last much, much longer than the gas range in our kitchen or really any of our appliances.  This grill very likely will work for decades.  Meanwhile my range has already had to be repaired twice, my dishwasher finally went out after multiple repairs and repair attempts and my washer/dryer also similarly had to be replaced last year.  Let's make sure we take all of those repairs and replacements into account when talking about the overall effect on the environment.

[Gronnie]

Another reason for not having a grill: being vegan or vegetarian.  To make a grill worthwhile seems to mean eating a lot of meat which isn't great for the planet, the animal or the consumer.

All false statements based on bias and propaganda.

edit: Ok I guess maybe the middle one isn't false perse, but I do think that being eaten when not the top of the food chain is part of the natural order

[Dicey]

Another reason for not having a grill: being vegan or vegetarian.  To make a grill worthwhile seems to mean eating a lot of meat which isn't great for the planet, the animal or the consumer.

All false statements based on bias and propaganda.

edit: Ok I guess maybe the middle one isn't false per se, but I do think that being eaten when not the top of the food chain is part of the natural order

Ha! I've been a vegetarian for 30+ years, and I had the same thought.

[ATtiny85]

I have only used a 22 inch Weber kettle charcoal grill. Except when camping when it’s all campfire all the time.

Have been around folks using sort of the normal gas grills, and have gotten some good chow off them. I do like the start-up speed (though it can be done faster https://youtu.be/UjPxDOEdsX8) and the temperature control can come in handy for some dishes.

The Big Green Egg and similar definitely seem interesting, but I plan to stick with the kettle until, well current plan is forever.

The idea way back in the start of the thread to keep an eye out for used is excellent.

[GuitarStv]

I do think that being eaten when not the top of the food chain is part of the natural order

I mean . . . I sorta agree with you on this one, but would say that if you're not hunting the meat down in the woods and slaughtering it yourself the 'natural order' part of it kinda breaks down.  Like . . . there isn't very much natural about driving to a grocery store, picking some meat sitting on styrofoam/wrapped in plastic and paying for it with your credit card before heading back to the grill.

:P

[Gronnie]

I do think that being eaten when not the top of the food chain is part of the natural order

I mean . . . I sorta agree with you on this one, but would say that if you're not hunting the meat down in the woods and slaughtering it yourself the 'natural order' part of it kinda breaks down.  Like . . . there isn't very much natural about driving to a grocery store, picking some meat sitting on styrofoam/wrapped in plastic and paying for it with your credit card before heading back to the grill.

:P

Can't really argue with that other than to say human intelligence is a part of that natural order.

[Dicey]

I do think that being eaten when not the top of the food chain is part of the natural order

I mean . . . I sorta agree with you on this one, but would say that if you're not hunting the meat down in the woods and slaughtering it yourself the 'natural order' part of it kinda breaks down.  Like . . . there isn't very much natural about driving to a grocery store, picking some meat sitting on styrofoam/wrapped in plastic and paying for it with your credit card before heading back to the grill.

:P

Same can be said of vegetables.

[Gronnie]

Sorry for the derail - we can probably get back on topic :)

I vote for buying a nice, used Weber -- can get pretty much any part you can possibly need and plenty of aftermarket options.

[GuitarStv]

I do think that being eaten when not the top of the food chain is part of the natural order

I mean . . . I sorta agree with you on this one, but would say that if you're not hunting the meat down in the woods and slaughtering it yourself the 'natural order' part of it kinda breaks down.  Like . . . there isn't very much natural about driving to a grocery store, picking some meat sitting on styrofoam/wrapped in plastic and paying for it with your credit card before heading back to the grill.

:P

Can't really argue with that other than to say human intelligence is a part of that natural order.

I don't think anything that was listed requires much human intelligence.  I bet with the right modifications to the car, a smart dog could be trained to do all of them.

I do think that being eaten when not the top of the food chain is part of the natural order

I mean . . . I sorta agree with you on this one, but would say that if you're not hunting the meat down in the woods and slaughtering it yourself the 'natural order' part of it kinda breaks down.  Like . . . there isn't very much natural about driving to a grocery store, picking some meat sitting on styrofoam/wrapped in plastic and paying for it with your credit card before heading back to the grill.

:P

Same can be said of vegetables.

I always give vegetables a sporting chance to run, but they're so damned apathetic that it's hard to respect them.

[Dicey]

Sorry for the derail - we can probably get back on topic :)

I vote for buying a nice, used Weber -- can get pretty much any part you can possibly need and plenty of aftermarket options.

Dunno, @GuitarStv's last response made me lol, so I think the meander was entirely worth it. For the record,  we've already given the OP our advice. We're just hanging around, waiting to see what he decides to do.

[UltraStache]

The idea of buying a used Weber and cleaning/fixing/repairing it appeals to me.  Under normal circumstances, it's what I probably would have done and I would have enjoyed doing it. Buuuuuut, I've been stretched to the limit for months due to traveling for work, preparing to move, sell a house, pack, purge, clean, paint while trying to figure out a new place to live in a crazy market for both renting and owning, and ultimately buying a new house but not closing on it until ten days *after* my previous house sold which meant renting a furnished house for a month to live there for 10 days.  I have soooo much to do in the new house.  We moved without taking a single day off work.  A household of 5.  I just want to grille a damn hamburger. 

So I bought a Weber Spirit E330 3 burner grille with sear zone.  $750.  Saved 12% between military discount and rewards card, so $660 plus tax.  Still need a cover and a couple propane tanks.  The next version down without sear zone was $550 before discount.  So I paid $200 extra for the sear zone feature, although it does come with a side burner that is of dubious benefit for me. 

I wish I could have gotten lucky and found a great barely used Weber grille for $35 that came with four full propane tanks, a cover, a bunch of fancy grille tools a freezer full of beef.  But the ones I was finding near me, although likely a good value, needed parts replaced and plenty of work to get cleaned up/refurbished enough for me to be happy with them.  I just got a $30,000 pay raise so f_ck it.

[ender]

You'll love it!

[UltraStache]

First use of the grille today for burgers and brats.  Quick and simple and worked great.  It was quite windy today so I used the sear zone feature to help keep the grille hotter.

[habanero]

Anyone use an electric grill outside? Like a gas grill but uses electricity.

Not enough power, generally. The ones I've seen can put out 2kW and that isn't much compared to a gas or charcoal-fired grill. A Weber Spirit for example is about 10kW.

Due to the limited power they are also pretty small, so if space permits I'd go for a regular grill.

[ATtiny85]

Anyone use an electric grill outside? Like a gas grill but uses electricity.

Not enough power, generally. The ones I've seen can put out 2kW and that isn't much compared to a gas or charcoal-fired grill. A Weber Spirit for example is about 10kW.

Due to the limited power they are also pretty small, so if space permits I'd go for a regular grill.

Yeah you have to get creative.

https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/do-it-yourself-forum!/diy-electric-grilling-cheaper-faster-and-better/