Good Sturdy GAS Grill With High Heat?

[Count Porcula]

My grill is a $100 Pit Boss from Amazon. Great for the money, but not great. Now that my wife is moving in, I think I should get a real grill.

I had a DCS a long time ago, and it seemed pretty tough. I would like something similar. Stainless that really is pretty stainless. Parts that don't rot through in a year. I want serious heat, too. I rigged the Pit Boss up with a turkey fryer regulator because the factory regulator was useless. I never grill steaks because the gas grills I've used don't even begin to get hot enough, and I don't want to deal with charcoal ashes. I will not eat a light brown steak or burger.

Truthfully, the grill probably wouldn't see any steaks, because I fry them in butter, but I would like to be able to do burgers, sausages, and vegetables.

I don't need a giant machine with a lot of weird features. I just want tremendous heat and a grilling surface at least as big as a Weber kettle's.

Is there anything good out there, or will my dreams be crushed yet again?

 

[gmc2003]

I think chopsaw and civilsmoker both use Webers with fantastic results.

Chris

 

[normanaj]

My little Weber Q 1000 gets screaming hot.The 3200 is of decent enough size but you'll be paying north of $500.The Qs have no weird features,they actually are just grills.

 

[6GRILLZNTN]

My first grill was a Weber gasser back in the day. It would get to over 700° no problem. I know you said you didn't want to deal with ashes, but I would still consider a Weber kettle with the ash catcher on the bottom. A few swipes with that fan blade thingy on the inside bottom, and then dump the pan. Takes no time. For the price of a good gasser, you could buy a kettle, a vortex, and some other goodies. Also consider the chore of refilling that propane tank, or doing the exchange route. I'd rather deal with a little ash cleanup, and get charcoal pretty much anywhere. If you ever consider doing low and slow, that gasser ain't gonna do it. It can certainly be done on a kettle. Having said that, I do a have a portable Weber gasser for car camping, or if I'm lazy after work and want to grill a quick burger, braut, etc.

 

[Count Porcula]

I just looked at DCS prices. I paid about $1000 for the one I used to have. I just saw a DCS for about 10 grand, including tax and delivery.

I feel like I should have myself drug-tested.

 

[civilsmoker]

https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/new-2022-weber-genesis-e-435.314047/

As Chris mention I have the newly designed Weber and I’m a huge fan of it…..the sear station will get crazy hot, ie make sure you have a long sleeve or you will not have any hair on your arm….

They have a stainless steel grate version but I’m also loving the porcelain covered CI. I have been using a brass welding brush on it since I got it and the porcelain seams near bullet proof. The sear station is polished smooth so it cleans up very easily.

Just a couple recent examples of it in use:
https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/korean-short-ribs…-again.321211/

https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/ny-steak-week…-x2.321163/

https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/pineapple-gochujang-glazed-rib-chops.320545/

https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t...-blackberry-reduction-a-picture-story.314107/

I have used the crap out of this already and am very impressed and I don’t miss my grill grates for a presentations sear. The sear plate does near perfect. It compares to the commercial grills I cooked on in the kitchen back in the day…..

 

[BrianGSDTexoma]

My old Silver B gets screaming hot but never been ably to get my Weber e410 very hot. I think it just to big. A smaller one might work better. OK for chicken and such but I like it hot when doing steaks. I think Rich has got his working pretty good. If you could find an old Silver B they are great. I have had mine for many many years now. Could not even guess how old it is. Those things hold up great. Just got to get good flavor bars.

 

[chopsaw]

Mines an older Genesis 310 with 16 ga after market flavor bars and heat defectors . Changed the way it cooks for sure . Puts a nice sear on stuff .
I have started to use my SmokeFire for steaks . It gets screaming hot and has an open design . Just does a fantastic job on steaks that the Genesis has become a 2nd choice .
Strips from the SmokeFire

Couple small test steaks from the Genesis . These were cooked SV
then just a quick sear on the gas grill .

 

[1MoreFord]

A set of GrillGrates will do wonders to make most gassers searing machines.

 

[Count Porcula]

I still can't get over the $10,000 grill. I spent $1000 on an old-fashioned water-hogging commercial washing machine, which is a pretty complicated device, and somehow I'm supposed to believe a grill is worth 10 of them? When my tenants need washers, I spend $400-$600.

A washer has a tub, a cabinet, lots of electronics, valves, a transmission, a motor...a grill has a cabinet, a wire grill, and a couple of burners.

 

[Count Porcula]

The Weber 325-S grills look like they will work, but they offer two types: stainless grate and porcelain plus cast iron.

Seems to me like stainless has to be the way to go, but on the other hand, the cheaper grates have a 10-year warranty.

 

[chopsaw]

Civil mentions to different grates in post 6.

 

[oregonrider]

In 2001 I bought a Weber Genesis Silver C. When parts wear out I replace them… flavorizer bars, burners, igniters. I bought full coverage Grill Grates a few years ago. I flip a couple of them over & cook some stuff on the flat side. Last night I grilled burgers on the grates while grilling onions on the flat side. Then I put the burgers on the flat side, tossed on cheese & grilled the buns next to them.
I keep wishing that the damn thing would die so I could buy a new one. The only thing I don’t like about mine is that the burners run lengthwise. I can’t run one side cooler. The new ones run front to back so you can set part of the grill at a different setting.

 

[gmc2003]

My el'cheapos burners run west to east. It's about the only good thing about it.

Chris

 

[normanaj]

Can't stress it enough if you want a simple grill that is built like a tank and can get screaming hot and has no useless features then I highly recommend a Weber Q. The 3200 completely meets your needs and budget.

 

[Count Porcula]

I just saw a video comparing the Weber S-335 to the Napoleon Prestige 500. The Napoleon has a lifetime warranty and an infrared burner that supposedly sears meat better than the Weber searing area. That infrared burner sounds like what I'm looking for.

 

[civilsmoker]

If you are looking for a dedicated hard sear station then infrared like the Napolean is pretty hard to beat. The weber searing area is more of area vs station but I happen to prefer it that way because I can uniformly sear a bunch of stuff. I love my Weber E-435 because of the fire box design and how it tames the flame ups. The Napolean is basically the same design as the older Weber's. I haven't see the Napolean's in person but they do look like a nice grill!

Just for grins and giggles I just had to post this one.....if money wasn't an issue, I would have this grill!!

 

[Count Porcula]

I watched a couple of videos showing the Napoleon infrared thing in action. Not that excited. I like burgers that are dark brown outside, almost crunchy, with medium centers. I don't know if this grill can do it.

I think a steel griddle would work on it for steaks, though.

I like steaks fried in butter better than anything, so a griddle is important.

 

[chopsaw]

I like steaks fried in butter better than anything,

I agree . It certainly changed the way I like my steak .

 

[Count Porcula]

I once had an Internet foodie make fun of me for frying steaks. What a moron.

I decided to try the Napoleon. I like the warranty, it comes with a rotisserie, and that infrared thing fills me with hope.