What to Look for in a Barbeque
 

Well, now that my first spring in the new house is almost upon me, I need to go and buy a Barbeque. However, I have no idea what to look for in a barbeque. What is a good level of BTU's? What is a good brand name?

Can anyone help me in what I should look for, or in a link to a site that can help me shop for a barbeque?

The best barbecue is tomato based. A lot of people are fans of mustard based, and some people swear by vinegar based...oh, wait...you are talking about grills.

Carry on.

Yeah, of course SkyDog would say charcoal. He's black. Why it always got to be about color?

:D

He's from Canada. Be nice. ;)

Try to get one with a side burner. Comes in very handy.

Other than that, BBQs are like TVs. Get one as big and mighty as possible without making your wife leave you.

Does anyone else besides me get the two Blades on the board mixed up?

Anyone else besides me not now there were two Blades on the board???

I would look for one that does not have an exploding glass view window.

I think there is a Blade and a Blade6119 or something along those lines. I too have been confused by this. People with similar names confuse me. Luckily for me, the only name that is even CLOSE to mine is Honolulu Blue.

Charcoal makes the food taste better, to be sure. But there's no beating the convenience of lighting up the propane and grilling right away. If you're going to use it regularly, and you don't figure on having time to wait for the charcoal to start (and to clean it up afterwards), go with a propane grill.

Don't spend a lot of money if you're not going to keep it out of the weather and generally take good care of it. There's really not much difference.

Meat. That's what I look for in a barbecue.

And lots of it. Man, I think I should have a BBQ today. It's 50 here. That's good enough for BBQ'ing, right?

SI

If you want to spend some extra cash, try getting a smoker. One of my friends got one as a wedding gift, and it is incredible, especially if you use natural charcoal with it. Otherwise, if time and ease of use are factors, go with a propane grill.

serveral things to look for
1. Go with natural charcoal, rather then the preprocessed stuff.
2. Use a starter box when lighting your charcoal, makes it much easier and faster.
3. get a grill with heavy duty cast iron grills, rather then some wimpy ones. They retain heat better, but are generally just beefier.
4. get a grill with a door on it to add charcoal. This makes it much easer to add more charcoal mid-cooking, especially if you plan on cooking larger items like whole chickens or turkeys.
5. a charcoal that has an adjustable charcoal tray makes it easier to adjust the heat then one with adjustable grills. Another suitable alternative and my favorite is one with adjustable airflow.
6. Don't get a charcoal with a glass window. The window will get foggy quickly and become worthless. It will also eventually crack and/or shatter.
7. Get a fire extinguisher also. Some states have laws regarding this, and your better safe then sorry.
8 Don't get a bigger charcoal then what you plan on using. A bigger grill will just take more charcoal to heat the air inside the grill. My parents own a huge smoker, and it is not really worth it too even use because it burns so much wood.
9. get a charcoal cover. Otherwise your charcoal will rust after a few years. Or store it indoors during the offseason.
10. Keep the ashes out of the grill. They will cause it to rust quick.
11. These tips mostly pertain to charcoal, the only way to grill.

What he said. I also commonly refer to him (Blade6119) in HT forum and chat as Blade becuase I am too lazy to type out the numbers.

ROFL!

Airhog, I salute you as being a man's man. Anyone who can dish out that many detailed grill tips... :)

SI

50 is easily warm enough. I grilled steaks on Christmas Eve and it was below freezing.

If you end up going the propane route, I'd recommend Weber. I've had one for several years and love it. They come in various sizes and prices, of course. You can always add flavor chips to add "smoke."

When I went down to Houston for Thanksgiving, and my dad did steaks the day before. Then again, it wasn't exactly cold. It was much cooler than expected at 45ish, tho. Unseasonably cold, even.

SI

I use my charcoal grill 2-3 times per week approximately March-November, and probably once a week during Dec/Jan/Feb. I use an electric fire-starting element (not sure what the real name is). You just set the coals on that sucker, plug it in for 8 minutes, and the fire is going, with no lighter-fluid taste to deal with. Even as much as I use my grill, I have only had to buy new elements twice in the 5 1/2 years I've had my grill.

That's pretty slick... but propane is definately cheaper and easier (from a clean-up standpoint).

We're talking food, man. The only consideration is taste! Anything else is secondary.

Then you are in charge of the cooking and I'll be in charge of the eating...

Well, thanks for the advice...I really did not think that this would be a discussion between Blade6119 and me...I know I don't post a whole lot, but I didn't think I was THAT obscure!

:D

Make sure it will put an imprint of your favorite team on whatever you are grilling (like the one on the "King of Queens"). Who wouldn't want a steak with the Niners Logo on it!

me

Look for the jackass who wears the "kiss the cook" apron.