I live in a condo and only have a 1-car garage so, while I wanted to have a grill, there isn't much room in the garage (with my car in there) to have a big grill. The Grill2Go is nice because it is much slimmer (in depth from front to back) than pretty much any full-size grill I've ever seen. Sizewise, one of the downsides is that the 2 side trays do not fold down so, if you want to store it with the side trays, it is going to take up additional space width-wise beyond the size of the actual grill assembly. It wasn't a big deal to me, though I WAS used to having fold-down side trays in all my previous grills.
Before writing this review, I used the grill to cook a variety of foods because I wanted to be able to report on how the grill performed in various circumstances. The foods I grilled on 4 separate occasions were: smallish New York strip steaks, thick-cut pork chops, chicken breast chunks with veggies on skewers (aka shishkebob), hamburgers and hot dogs.
What I have learned about using this grill during this time is:
1. It is VERY important to give the grill adequate warm-up time. The instructions say to turn the grill on high and leave it to heat up for 15 minutes. In my experience, I would say that 20 or 25 minutes may be better, especially if, like me, you prefer a nice sear and grill marks on your food.
2. The instructions say to leave the grill on high for 15 minutes after you're done cooking to let the grease and such burn off. The books says that all the gunk is supposed to turn to ash. This was NOT my experience.
3. Each 1-pound propane container is adequate for a 15-20 minute warm-up, approximately a 20-30 minute grill time and a 15-20 minute "burn off" but not much more than that; i.e., don't expect to get multiple grill sessions out of each canister. And it is recommended to remove the canister when you put the grill away (i.e., don't store the grill with the canister attached). NOTE: The grill does NOT come with propane. I was able to find the 1-pound canisters at my local Lowe's.
4. The instructions say that if you're going to be grilling something fatty (i.e., steaks or burgers), you should leave the grill lid UP during grilling to lessen the chances of flare-ups. I did this on my first use (grilling 2 NY strip steaks) and ended up with steaks that were perfectly cooked on the inside and delectably tasty, but gray and bland on the outside--i.e., almost no searing or grill marks. Since then, I have left the lid closed almost 100% while grilling and have found that I had no flare-ups and had much better searing and grill marks.
5. While there is no question that the grill gets hot, I am used to cooking on a charcoal grill and I just don't seem to be getting the sear on this grill that I am used to. Perhaps that is just the nature of gas grills. I haven't owned a gas grill before, but I've eaten food cooked on them at other peoples' houses and never noticed the food looking gray like those steaks did.
6. Today was the first time I tried to warm up food in a pan on the grill. I was trying to heat up a pan of baked beans to go with the hot dogs I was grilling today but, after quite a long while on the grill, the beans were barely even warm, so I had to take them in and put them on the stove. Luckily, I was home and could do that. Perhaps if I had waited until the grill was fully heated first, I may have had a different experience.
7. While the concept of a portable grill that has built-in coolers is FANTASTIC for tailgaters and those who picnic at the beach or park, I found the reality less alluring. The grill is HEAVY, even with the coolers EMPTY! There's no way that I could get the grill into a vehicle by myself. Also, the handle which lifts up (like on a rolling suitcase) to move the grill does not lock into place, so it makes moving the grill really awkward--especially if you are a small person as I am and especially if the grill is HOT and you can't put your hands on it to steady it!
The accompanying video will give you a look at the grill in action.
I give CharBroil an A for effort as I think it is just an awesome concept. But, while I have really enjoyed having a grill again and love its small profile in my garage, the reality is that I would not be able to use it for its intended purpose without at least one other person (if not two), hence I could not give it 5 stars. Further, even moving the grill from the garage to the driveway to grill can be awkward because the handle doesn't lock in place. All in all, 3 stars.
Note: The grill comes partially assembled but still requires a good bit of assembly. Due to the weight of the grill components, my neighbor, who is a retired engineer, put it together for me. He said it took him about an hour. Given the number of pieces and screws, I'd estimate that it would have taken me about twice that time IF I'd have been able to hold up the grill assembly and use the screwdriver at the same time, which I didn't think I'd be able to do.
