Wifey wants a barbey .. how to choose one?

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#903111 26-Sep-2013 14:28

Personally I'd go for a cheap 3 burner ($100-150) to start with. Use it, try cooking a few new things, and if you come up against its limits then get another one - hooded/more burners/better quality.

Too many people have flash hooded 6 burner BBQs and only cook sausages on them - you don't want a $1000 white elephant rusting away in your backyard.

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#903112 26-Sep-2013 14:28

dclegg: We bought a Jackeroo from Kmart. At the time it looked like a great set of features for the price. We also had a fella telling us he bought one 10 years ago and it was still going strong.

I got it home, and found that the burners sit down really low. As a result I have absolutely no temperature control because I have to keep the burners cranked up just to cook. And because of this, it is also very difficult to get the flame kissed taste we love on our steaks.

We also purchased the "official" Jackeroo rotisserie for it, but had to drill extra holes in the hood in order to mount it, as it wouldn't mount as is.

Really not impressed with it at all.

I bought a so called expensive bbq (down from $1200 to $800) and it has the same problem, just has trouble boosting the heat.

Personally, I think the american made bbq's are best. But,cost a bomb here.

xpd

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#903113 26-Sep-2013 14:29

maverick: Hand in your Man card !!!!!!,

BBQ's are the sole domain of men it's our last bastion under no circumstances should we ever let our better half's have a say in the make , size or type of BBQ .... shame on you

Noticed Warehouse have sale on the one's the wives will like

Here

XPD / Gavin

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#903230 26-Sep-2013 17:45

I purchased a 4-burner + side burner stainless steel variant from Countdown last year. Good price $279.00 .

Couple of points: The bracket that holds the gas bottle was only screwed to the side of the cabinet - a few full loads of LPG bottles, and would have ripped out. Bolted on a length of aluminium angle bracket on the inside to hold the weight.

Rotisserie cooking is simply awesome, and tasty - tried it first stime last year, haven't looked back

Invest in a rotisserie - BBQ mate ? ( I think - not the cheap one - next model up). And mains powered - battery ones don't have enough continuous grunt.

A see-thru lid would be good - soo tempting to have a quick look under the hood to see how things are cooking .. do that, and you loose the built up temperature ....

Arrange for lighting either side of the BBQ, or find a BBQ with built-in lights. Great for evening / nite cooking.

Invest in a quality BBQ cover

make sure site is level ...

NonprayingMantis

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#903279 26-Sep-2013 19:21

Depends how much you are going to look after it.

If you are going to be like me, very lazy, only clean it once or twice a year, and generally let it sit getting all scabby over winter, then just buy a cheap one from Kmart, as it will only last 2-3 years anyway. No point buying a weber if you aren't going to look after it.

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#903339 26-Sep-2013 20:55

thanks guys ... I think i'm going to go cheap and half nasty as i'm not very good at looking after outdoor stuff ... but I like a decent 4 burner I think ...

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#903393 26-Sep-2013 22:02

We've got a Gasmate 4 burner with a double skinned hood, plus side burner. Its very good.

I'd recommend a hood, a double skinned one stops the outside getting too hot.

Get a cover to throw over it when it's not in use.

EDIT:

I meant add before, one advantage of the side burner is you can cook up non BBQ type food at the same time. It's also useful if the power is off as you can boil water etc.

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ScuL

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#903398 26-Sep-2013 22:20

I see the majority here talking about burners, probably referring to gas powered BBQ's

Although gas powered BBQ's exist, the majority of the ones on sale here in the UK are mainly all charcoal. I have used charcoal grills all my life, is that a rarity in NZ?

Haere taka mua, taka muri; kaua e wha.

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#903402 26-Sep-2013 22:27

I wouldn't say charcoal BBQ's are a rarity but I think gas BBQ's are more popular. There's less cleaning up afterwards

The purists would probably say charcoal are better and there's no denying it that cooking over hot coals has some advantages. Some of the gas BBQ's do have the option of installing briquettes that glow like coals to give the same effect.

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#903473 27-Sep-2013 08:11

Disclaimer - I work for Mitre 10 MEGA in Hornby, Christchurch. Just thought it was best to get that out of the way.

I am also a BBQ Owner - I have 1x Weber, 1x Charmate, 1x $1000 SS BBQ, and a charcoal Smoking cabinet.

I like to BBQ - Lots! And definately prefer the charcoal method.

The BBQ you are looking at is Brand New this season, and I have only had a quick cursory look at it.

The Meteor Brand is owned by Mitre 10 - And backed up by us as well - No issue with parts etc, and that is part of their Deluxe Range.

I would probably say it leans towards the slightly advanced user as it has an Infared Sear burner as well as gas burners.
Which may get a Newbie BBQer into trouble.

Also my recomendation for all Newbie BBQ chefs is go purchase a rotissire - Rolled Pork Roasts are amazing cooked this way.
And are so simple - 90 - 120 minutes done - very little chance of failure.

Mains powered are best for lack of noise and maximum torque, but I used a battery model for many years without to much hassle.

But if you have any other questions just let me know

BTW - My Dad owns a MATADOR from that other hardware company - the retro looking creme one and he is very happy with it, and has no complaints.

Keen to help - Cheers Shane

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#903486 27-Sep-2013 08:36

I've got a Weber Q. It's great in that it's small enough to be portable, big enough to cook a fair bit of stuff at once, and it cooks things very quickly as it's designed to be used with the lid down so it contains more heat.

Downside is they're quite a bit more expensive than your regular 4-legged multiburner job. The build quality is pretty good though.

I've got this one:

http://www.webernz.co.nz/ProductPage.php?pc=k566024

Only agents in Wellington for the Q's is Four Seasons in Miramar. The website lists several in AKL though.

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#903490 27-Sep-2013 08:40

ScuL: I see the majority here talking about burners, probably referring to gas powered BBQ's

Although gas powered BBQ's exist, the majority of the ones on sale here in the UK are mainly all charcoal. I have used charcoal grills all my life, is that a rarity in NZ?

Kiwis like to use their BBQ very very often - almost every day in the summer - cooking dinner after a day at work, for example. This makes charcoal quite impractical as you have to fiddle about getting it lit and wait ages for it to get hot.

From my experience in the UK, most BBQs get used only really at weekends so its not as much of a problem to set it up ahead of time.

But charcoal is definitely better, albeit harder to get the right temp

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#903594 27-Sep-2013 10:31

is there a difference between gasmate and gascraft?

it seems people recommending me the gasmate are pointing to the gascraft (warehouse)?

Klipspringer

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#903598 27-Sep-2013 10:46

NonprayingMantis: Depends how much you are going to look after it.

If you are going to be like me, very lazy, only clean it once or twice a year, and generally let it sit getting all scabby over winter, then just buy a cheap one from Kmart, as it will only last 2-3 years anyway. No point buying a weber if you aren't going to look after it.

This is what makes the charcoal weber amazing.
All I do after a bbq is empty the ash. No cleaning involved.

Next time I have a bbq, the flames from the charcoal generally burn off any old grease or oil. Once the grill is hot, all thats needed is a wipe with some paper towels. Then add your meat.

NonprayingMantis:
Kiwis like to use their BBQ very very often - almost every day in the summer - cooking dinner after a day at work, for example. This makes charcoal quite impractical as you have to fiddle about getting it lit and wait ages for it to get hot.

From my experience in the UK, most BBQs get used only really at weekends so its not as much of a problem to set it up ahead of time.

But charcoal is definitely better, albeit harder to get the right temp

I use a weber chimney starter to get it going quickly. It gets the charcoal going in about 10minutes. Well worth the wait.

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#903601 27-Sep-2013 10:51

Wondering how you guys clean the grill itself on the weber?

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