The iGrill is nice but there are better options on the street that we have reviewed. The cooking performance of a gas grill is measure by the BTU rating per hour and is a core element to cooking on a grill. This indicates grill temperature char broil performance when only one or two of the burners are on, to represent a cooking task where the food is placed between or alongside the direct flame. Weber claims their new Infinity Ignition is significantly enhanced, more robust and consistent.
That makes it much easier to install a new tank and unhook an old one, because you’re not scrabbling around a small, dark enclosure to find the hoses and brackets. This design also allowed Weber to put a sturdy shelf under the grill—a handy place to store pans, bags of wood chips, a small cooler, and other stuff you may need while grilling. Plus, one of the side tables folds down, making the grill more compact for storage when it’s not in use (it’s 43 inches wide with the table down). For our 2022 update, we relied mainly on market research and meta-analysis. Most new grills worth considering are still produced by the same companies whose products we’ve tested in previous years. And with each new version of the models we’re familiar with, the most important characteristics—such as quality of materials and construction—are the same.
She grilled skirt steak for three hours straight because the small grate could accommodate only two-ish slabs at a time. However, the fajitas were beautifully seared and perfectly cooked. She was never disappointed with the Spirit E-210’s performance—it’s a top-notch small grill.
One of them, the Spirit S-315, is similar to the Spirit II E-310 (our pick) with regard to the specs, and with a few cosmetic differences—and higher price tag. The S-315 has a slightly higher Btu output than our pick (32,000 Btu versus 30,000 Btu, respectively). But other than those minor variations, it looks like the S-315 would perform about the same as our pick—and wouldn’t be worth the higher price. Next time you cook, brush the cold, soot-covered grills clean, wipe them with a wet paper towel or rag, and then proceed. That goes against the common advice to clean the grates while they’re hot. Salvaggio has found that cleaning hot grates more easily damages the porcelain coating on cast iron, allowing rust to form.
With their acquisition of iGrill digital thermometers, Weber is addressing this issue. Spirit II is “iGrill3 Ready” with a mounting place on the right side shelf for an optional iGrill 3 digital thermometer. This Bluetooth device enables you to place one digital probe at the cooking surface to dial up the correct oven temp, and one probe in your food to monitor internal meat temp. Surprisingly, however, there is no read out on the iGrill 3 itself. Check out Weber’s iGrill 3 video below that shows how to install this optional thermometer on their Genesis II.
We think a three-burner grill is large enough for most needs, with plenty of space to cook for a family dinner or a backyard BBQ. Grills with more burners are usually overkill, and two-burner grills can feel cramped. Gas grills run on either liquid propane (most common) or natural gas—both fossil fuels. Though both are relatively clean-burning fuels, propane emits fewer greenhouse pollutants than natural gas—though the difference is negligible. However, propane is more efficient because it burns hotter than natural gas.
Both sizes have the same features and are available in LP and natural gas models. LP models have Weber’s Fuel Gauge, which estimates your gas tank level by weight. The GS4 High Performance Grilling System features an infinity ignition, high performance burners, stainless steel flavorizer bars and a grease management system. The Genesis E-325s is the only one of our picks that we haven’t physically tested, but we did check it out in person at a few different stores.
The now-discontinued Char-Broil Advantage 3-Burner Gas Grill from Lowe’s met the low expectations we set upon seeing its sub-$200 price. It cooked burgers acceptably, but to get an even cook we had to shuffle the patties around from hot spots to cool spots. Unable to keep a steady low temperature, it burned the barbecue chicken. To this grill’s credit, char broil performance it made a nice indirect-roasted chicken—but then again, every tested grill did. Assembly was a pain, with unclear instructions and multiple fasteners of different sizes and types. And this model’s bizarre design, with a fixed panel running across the front of the grill, means you have to sneak around the back of the thing to replace the tank.