Grills

Best Charcoal Grill in the World! Weber OneTouch Gold 22.5 Grill My wife and kids got me the One Touch Gold for my birthday. I have owned my share of charcoal grills over the year...

Weber One-Touch Gold 22.5 Grill Weber One-Touch Gold 22.5 Grill Key FeaturesType:GrillFuel Type:CharcoalCooking Area:397.61 ...

Disclaimer - I am a Weber guy. Not an employee, not a stockholder, but a very faithful customer.

That’s strange, since I’m about the last guy you can rely on for brand loyalty. I’m a difficult consumer - I work hard for my money, and don’t part with it very easily (who said cheap?). I’m always on the lookout for a good value, and looks/style don’t impress me in the least. If you want my money, you’re going to have to get it the old fashioned way - eaaaarn it (in a John Houseman style voice).

As a wedding gift 5 years ago, my wife and I received our first BBQ grill. Not something we asked for, but it seemed decent - a Sunbeam grill. Two years later, after moderate use, it was ready for the garbage. Metal had rusted, wood had decomposed, and the broilers were already not working properly, with hotspots all over the place. Out it went - and in came our Weber Genesis, which assembled in 20 minutes, and has earned our respect from that day forward.

So why is this guy talking about a gas grill if this is a charcoal grill review? Because with a gas grill, there are odds and ends used to sell the grill that convince you it’s a good value. BTUs, side-burners, variable venturi adjustments, flavorizer bars, warming racks - you name it. It’s easy to say ‘hey, this thing has all the features I want - I’m buying it’.

A charcoal grill? Well, it’s a big metal box, with or without wheels. Maybe a rack on the side for utensils. So you’re at risk of walking into your local store, and thinking ‘these things are all the same, and they look alike - I’ll just grab this one here, it’s on sale’.

WRONG. Looks are deceiving, and this is where it’s most obvious. For starters, the Webers are not painted - they have an enamel coating, that’s incredibly durable. Won’t rust, doesn’t chip easily, and cleans like a charm. They’re well known for looking brand new years after you’ve bought them. Then, there’s heat distribution. Well placed vents, and even spacing means that heat gets evenly distributed, and you can control the temperature with the move of a vent.

And that’s just basic stuff - the shape of the Weber is unique, and so is the temperature control (others can imitate, but the results aren’t close). This grill will get you the easy clean up feature that comes in so handy, it’s worth every penny (especially an urban cue’er like me, who doesn’t have a lot of space to work with his charcoal ash). The charcoal pan at the bottom will disengage from the kettle, and let you quickly, easily and neatly remove the leftover ash for disposal.

A big charcoal grate, even heating and temperature control, and easy cleanup. The basic elements of grilling, done right. Top it all off with top-notch support and a great warranty from Weber, and you’ve got yourself a grill that, although double the price of that cheapo grill you were about to purchase, will outlive at least 5 of them.

Further clarification - as per the grill’s title, it’s 22.5″ in diameter, which is 397 square inches, for comparison to rectangular grills. How much food it holds is really relative to what you like to cook. One man’s monster burger is another man’s appetizer, but from the 22.5″ diameter, figure at it’s longest, you can fit 4 burgers comfortable one next to the other. 4 rows of those 4 burgers will get you to 16 burgers, while still having enough space to fit your spatula in to flip.

The grill is covered, and comes with a hook to hang the cover on the side of the grill while not in use. This is incredibly handy, although I’ll give the slight knock that the holder isn’t the easiest thing to use when you’re up to your eyeballs in smoke. Standing a foot away to hook the lid is idea. Both the lid and kettle have phrenolic handles, to resist warping from heat, the elements, and to keep cool to the touch. Both accomplish their mission well.

I’ll be writing some reviews on my other Weber brethren - my Weber Smokey Mountain (used for low and slow authentic BBQ style cooking, with wood smoke for flavor) and my Weber Genesis Gold (my day-to-day gas grill, which can sear up a couple of steaks after a long hard day in no time flat).

In the meanwhile - if you buy this grill - you MUST (daddyfixit’s orders) purchase a charcoal chimney. Quick, even, effortless charcoal lighting, save money on lighter fluid, and save that awful petroleum smell, by using this under $15 item to light your charcoal with a piece of paper. Can’t be beat.

EDIT - It’s been mentioned that it’s not clear that I’ve actually used this grill. Apologies for the confusion (probably leading from my discussion of the Genesis Gold, which was my introduction to Weber products and encouraged me to buy this). I’ve owned this for a little over two years now, and have used it heavily. With proper care (a grill cover can’t help, but isn’t necessary - regular cooking and cleaning is), it has maintained the same appearance that it had when I first assembled it, and I’ve had no problems with it in this time.

Also - the reference to a charcoal chimney - you can find it on Weber’s website here -%26gt; http://www.weber.com/bbq/pub/grill/accessory/chargear.aspx, Weber item 87886. It can also be purchased through Amazon, or anyone who sells Weber products. It’s a miracle of modern science (actually, it’s just a round metal can, but that doesn’t sound as cool), and I would not grill with charcoal without one.

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