Add that to its solid warranty and well-regarded customer service, and it’s hard to see a better value. Based on our conversations with Joe Salvaggio of Big Apple BBQ and the many manufacturers at the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Expo, we eliminated kamados and pellet griller-smokers for this guide. Those designs offer attractive versatility, but they’re also expensive—$350 at minimum, and the most popular and best-regarded styles run twice that or more. And Salvaggio noted that wood pellets simply don’t produce the searing heat you need to make perfect burgers or steaks.
Maintaining a consistent temperature is crucial, and the Weber does this better than any other in its price range. You can thank the porcelain-enameled bowl and lid, which are heat retention portable bbq pros, for that. Still, keeping an eye on the thermometer will help you determine if you need to add more coal, wood, or even adjust the airflow using the rust-resistant aluminum dampers.
We were underwhelmed with the performance of the Napoleon 22-inch grill, which is most likely a result of the grill needing more briquettes to really work well. The kettle on this model is pretty deep and you can adjust the cooking grate to two different levels. We wouldn’t advise cooking with the grate at the highest level if you’re looking for a nice sear since it’s too far off the heat. The grill grate on a Napoleon is made of a thicker and flatter cast iron, which is an upgrade from the usual lightweight, stainless steel grates you see on most charcoal grills.
The 22-inch diameter gives 363 square inches of cooking space within the porcelain-enameled lid and base. Both times we’ve tested it, the assembly has been short-and-sweet, and moving it into place was a breeze. From there, it turned out pork, burgers, steaks, chicken, veggies, and even grilled pineapple with fabulous results.
It was also one of the better pellet grills when it came to searing steaks. Due to their comparably simple construction, they tend to cost less than a similarly sized gas or pellet grill. Another powerful draw of these grills is the intense smoky flavor they create in the food they cook. They’re versatile too since they can use either traditional charcoal briquettes or lump charcoal as fuel. Our last test is grilling barbecued ribs, specifically baby back pork ribs. This style of cooking requires strict temperature control over a period of multiple hours.
Meat from the Nexgrill was delicious, with just a bit more flavor than the Weber. Between them, I’d say it largely depends on your budget and what style of grill you prefer portable bbq for other meats like burgers or steak. None of the hood thermometers built into these grills mirrored the temperatures recorded by our own thermocouples and data software.
We then oiled the grates and distributed 10 to 12 six-ounce patties across the whole cooking surface (depending on the grill). While the burgers cooked we kept an eye out for undesirable flare-ups, which can char the meat and create acrid smoke, and examined the evenness of cooking on the different areas of the grates. After about 10 minutes of cooking (five minutes per side, lid open), we compared how well each grill had seared the burgers, looking for any patties that were charred or unacceptably raw, and took a taste.
The Weber kettle grill has been around since the early 1950s, so chances are good you’ve eaten a burger, a hotdog, or a steak cooked on one. As a kid, our family had a gas grill, while the neighbors had a Weber. Their food was always a little bit tastier, so I made the Weber Original my first grill when I got a home of my own.