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I know, it's so not-STW but in my defence I do have a charcoal one I use most of the time. Just looking for something fairly compact that we can chuck a couple of steaks or lamb chops on rather than waiting for the charcoal one to be ready.
I've had one of these for a while and quite frankly, hated it: https://morsoe.com/en/product/outdoor/outdoor-fireplaces/morso-forno-gas-uk
And nope, I didn't pay 400 quid for it!
Issues I don't like and want to avoid in future are:
1. It weighs an absolute ton - pia to carry out of the shed every time I want to use it.
2. Main issue is I don't like the heavy cast iron grill directly over gas rings. It's more like cooking on a griddle than the wire shelf of the charcoal BBQ. Looking around, lots of gas barbies seem to be this style??
Any thoughts and recommendations?
Broil king ftw. They have really good burners with a ridged metal cap so the fats fall on to that and then vapourise giving you a proper BBQ flavour.
It's not the charcoal that gives flavour on a charcoal BBQ it's the fact that the coals get really hot and vaporise meat fats. Only a good gas BBQ can replicate this, lots of cheap ones just don't get hot enough, hence the feeling that you are cooking over a gas ring!
I bought the absolute cheapest Outback BBQ. Was the old version of this https://www.outbackbarbecues.com/collections/gas-barbecues/products/excel-onyx-gas
and far far cheaper. I wouldn't pay anything like £200 for it either.
It's light, borderline flimsy, but I have been really happy with how well it cooks. If you use really lean food it isn't as good. Make sure you use chicken thighs, sausages, steaks with fat etc. and it gets flamey if you want.
With lid down it will hold 250c nicely and generally stuff tastes BBQy.
I bought it purely as my charcoal BBQ is a faff for quick outdoor grilling and we rarely used it. Since having the above we haven't used it at all. When I do a brisket/pork shoulder though I will probably use the charcoal for the first hour or two then when burnt out swap to the gas to leave low and slow (much less faff!).
I’ve got a big one (bishop/nun/etc). Broilking five burner. Fantastic. It has gas burners, then things over it to collect grease etc and burn it to make the flavor. If that makes sense? They do smaller ones. Seems pretty similar to Webber, bit cheaper maybe.
Weber Q Series - pick which ever size suits your needs.
I have a Q3200 - easy to use/move & great for quick (lid down) cooking.
I've a weber q1200.... i think it's the smaller one they do, but is brill.
Bought a cast iron flat plate, which replaces half the griddle grill.
really good for fish and veg.
I wouldn't go back to charcoal now... (minus ten man points for that comment)
DrP
Recently bought a 3-Burner Weber and have been very happy with it but from my research Napoleon and Broil King are both equally good high quality options with good spares support etc.
Few recent threads on this topic:
https://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/broil-king-bbqs/
https://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/dadsnet-gas-bbq-purchase-advice/