Grill Maestro

The first step of your barbecuing career, before you do anything else, is to buy your first charcoal grill. Like a good beer or a fine woman, the perfect charcoal grill is all up to your own personal preferences and needs. Some like their beer (and their girls) a little hoppy, some like them bitter, it’s all a matter of taste. However, there are some characteristics that all grills have in common and I’ll explain what you need to look for.

Size: The diameter of the grill will limit how much food you’ll be able to cook at any one time but it also forces you to use more charcoal to keep all the areas nice and hot. You can keep a family happy with a grill about 18″ in diameter (as long as you get the fire started quickly!) but if you’re hosting friends on a regular basis, you might need a larger grill.

Construction: Don’t be cheap, get a sturdy grill because you’re talking about extremely hot coals and extremely taste steaks. Don’t be cheap and buy a bargain grill (for more reasons than construction, but this is a good one) with crappy construction - if you spill hot coals all over your deck or lawn, you’ll wish you shelled out a little bit more for a grill with better legs.

The Grate: The grate is key because you want a nice steel or chrome-plated aluminum grate that is nice and thick. The material its made from will ensure its durability (if you maintain it) and its thickness will contribute to how much heat it’s able to retain and use to cook your meats. You want it to feel sturdy when you wiggle it, not shifty like a screen window.

Warranties: A typical warranty is about 10 years but you’ll probably not have to use it if you buy a reputable brand. Be sure to read the details of the warranty because they will differ across brands. Some are more forgiving of the environment you put them in (like next to a swimming pool where chlorine can eat away at the grill) while others are not. If you kick the grill and dent it, don’t even try to bring it in.

Hope that little guide of what to look for in a grill was helpful, if you have any other things you look at when buying a grill, do let me know!