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The most helpful favorable review
The most helpful critical review
91 of 92 people found the following review helpful:
Cuisinart upgraded the Griddler, and it's better than ever
I bought a G4 Griddler from Amazon in 2005, and used it a couple of times a week (at least) until it had to be put out to pasture in 2010 due to failure of the non-stick coating on the plates. (The coating started to bubble and peel, and no one wants that in their food...) I loved it. (See my review of the Cuisinart GR-4 Griddler Stainless-Steel 4-in-1 Grill/Griddle and...
Published 6 months ago by S. Harrison
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24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
Grill works great, BUT......
The grill works great, BUT, the non-stick finish was peeling off one of the grill plates after just one week of use!!! I sent several emails to them regarding this, and despite their pat "we will respond shortly", I never got ANY response!!! I went on-line to register this product as soon as I got it, and was expecting a response AND a new grill plate, but got neither...
Published 1 month ago by Karen
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91 of 92 people found the following review helpful:
Cuisinart upgraded the Griddler, and it's better than ever, February 27, 2010
This review is from: Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler (Kitchen)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
I bought a G4 Griddler from Amazon in 2005, and used it a couple of times a week (at least) until it had to be put out to pasture in 2010 due to failure of the non-stick coating on the plates. (The coating started to bubble and peel, and no one wants that in their food...) I loved it. (See my review of the Cuisinart GR-4 Griddler Stainless-Steel 4-in-1 Grill/Griddle and Panini Press) It was still working great, but replacement plates were not available.
I was elated when offered the opportunity to review its smarter younger brother, the GR-4NAM Griddler. I could hardly wait for it to get here and run it through its paces.
At first glance, the GR-4NAM looks virtually identical to the G4. However, closer inspection reveals that it has been totally redesigned, and for the better.
Improvement: The grease catcher used to be a little cup that had to be set under a spout on the side of the bottom plate. If it was positioned incorrectly, (or forgotten about), greased dripped out on the counter. The grease catcher is now integrated into the Griddler as a drawer-like device that can be pulled out to clean, and then put back in place for the next use.
Improvement: The original G4 had two sets of plates - one flat set, one ridged set (for paninis). There is now one reversible set of plates (ridged on one side, flat on the other), and therefore no need to find a storage place for the plates not in use. The new plates have a good substantial weight. I don't have the old ones here for comparison, but the quality of the plates certainly was not cheapened.
Improvement: It used to be a little tricky to put the plates in place and to remove them. There was also a difference between the top plate and the bottom, so you had to be careful not to try to put them in the wrong way. The plates now have an identical shape, so they are interchangeable, and the release buttons activate a spring-loaded mechanism that pops the plate loose for easy removal.
Now, to see how it cooks: The Griddler takes about as long to warm up as a good-quality waffle iron. Just when you start to get impatient with it, it's ready.
The first thing that I cooked was a no-no in the eyes of Cuisinart - a bone-in, skin-on leg and thigh chicken quarter. Too thick, they say. HA! says I, because I am a bit of an anarchist. I marinated the chicken in olive oil and rosemary, heated the Griddler to Medium. I cooked it on the panini plates because I love those little fake barbeque stripes across my food. It worked just fine. (I should have taken a picture, it came out looking beautiful. But I was hungry.)
Word of warning: Do not cook thick or fatty meat on High - you will get grease spatters all over the place. Medium works just fine in such instances.
I discovered from my old Griddler that when cooking meat it's best to turn off the heat before it's done, and let it finish cooking with the residual heat in the plates. That way the meat does not get overdone.
For clean-up, I let the plates cool down, and then put a wet paper towel across the bottom plate and close the lid and let it sit for a while. The dampness softens anything that is stuck to the plates, and then it can be easily washed off with a sudsy sponge or dish wand.
Today for lunch, I made myself a sandwich with sliced sourdough bread, cooked sliced chicken breast, fresh grated parmesan cheese and dried basil. I followed the panini directions in the small cookbook that comes with the Griddler. Well, I sort of followed the directions... Cuisinart recommends brushing the outside of the sandwich with olive oil. I prefer to use melted butter on panini because it makes the sandwich crisper.
I preheated the Griddler on High, placed the sandwich inside, and applied light pressure for about 30 seconds, and then let it cook. The directions say to cook panini for about 4 -5 minutes, but my sandwich was ready to eat in 2 minutes. Maybe the butter makes the bread brown faster than olive oil.
In any case, it was beautiful - evenly browned, crunchy and delicious, and I did take a picture (see product images).
How durable will the GR-4NAM be? Good question. From everything that I can see so far, Cuisinart has only made the Griddler better. But time is the real test of quality. I will report back from time to time regarding durability.
Right now, I'd say this looks like an excellent buy.
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40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
Great Griddle, January 7, 2010
This review is from: Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler (Kitchen)
Improvements over previous model are the reversable grill plates that snap in and out very easily and now you do not have 2 extra plates to store somewhere. The grease catch pan is integrated into the bottom and removes very easily for cleaning. Cleanup is a snap: take off the 2 grill plates and they wash and cleanup so easy I don't bother putting them in the dishwasher. Clean the drip tray and you are done. Fast & easy.
I disagree with those that say it is great for cooking small meals or for a small family. It cooks the meat so fast, you better not walk away. First thing I cooked were good sized hamburgers & they were at 180° in 5 minutes. The next 4 were perfectly cooked at 4 minutes. Used the Sear setting per the instruction book with the grill preheated. New York Strip sirloins were done in 3 1/2 to 4 minutes on the Sear setting. Fast cooking & the meat is eye appealing with the grill marks on both sides. Batch number 3 will be pork chops tonight.
Granted, it doesn't quite do the job my Weber grill does outside, but when it is 15 below zero, the Griddler is very nice to have for indoor winter usage.
Great indoor grill, cooks fast, easy cleanup... I highly recommend it.
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24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
Grill works great, BUT......, July 11, 2010
This review is from: Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler (Kitchen)
The grill works great, BUT, the non-stick finish was peeling off one of the grill plates after just one week of use!!! I sent several emails to them regarding this, and despite their pat "we will respond shortly", I never got ANY response!!! I went on-line to register this product as soon as I got it, and was expecting a response AND a new grill plate, but got neither!! I will never purchase a Cuisinart product again because of their piss-poor customer service.
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21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
Cuisinart makes high quality products & this is another one!, January 25, 2010
This review is from: Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler (Kitchen)
I have been looking for a quality multifunctional griddle and was ecstatic when I found this one! A lot of options packed into this griddler and getting 40% off sealed the deal.
Pros:
-compact when closed therefore easy to store.
-heats quickly and evenly.
-makes the best paninis I've ever had; crisp on the outside.
-grilling inside when the weather outside is bad is a huge plus.
-can grill open or closed depending on how much I need to make and the type of food.
-the lid conforms to the thickness of the food.
-easy to clean.
-drip tray catches every bit of grease.
-because of the multiple options it replaces several older and bulkier appliance I had.
Cons:
-can't think of any.
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19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
OK, but Inconsistent Heat, Redundant Knobs (and other details/puzzles not in the description), February 25, 2010
This review is from: Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler (Kitchen)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Edited to add: Two problems: This griddle is frustrating when grilling meat, because the temperature cycles up and down too much and at times is too cold, due to the thermostat clicking on and off. Additionally, it has hot spots and cold spots, the distribution of the heat is not uniform. So I am lowering my rating from four stars to three. Other than that ..... [9/5/10]
There are lots of details about this grill that are not given in the description, including a few puzzles. Overall, this is a fine and useful grill. I like the reversible plates and found them easy to flip and clean. It seems well balanced and easy to manipulate, and doesn't seem to take too long to heat up.
However, from what I can tell, both side knobs do the very same thing!!! When on the Griddle setting, the left knob is labeled from 200-425 degrees. When on the Panini setting, the right knob is labeled from Warm to Sear. But why not just have a single knob, that ranges from "200/Warm" to "425/Sear"? I think by having lot of knobs, it is giving the impression that it is some sort of advanced subtle piece of gourmet foodie equipment that does more than it actually does (more costly to manufacture, more to break, and an insult to the consumer). This grill is nothing more than a hot surface with a temperature dial !! (Actually, before I tried it out, I thought the different settings were for single grill / double grill. I mean, why heat up both sides if I am just using one side with the lid up?)
The product description was vague on some aspects of how to use the grill, so here is what I figured out:
- when turned on, the center knob shows a red light, and both sides are heated (no single side setting - I suppose if I only want a single side, a frying pan on the stove is easier);
- the side knobs have a green light when the surfaces are near the desired temperature setting (within 20 degrees of top temp when first heating, and once heated, the green light is on when the temp is about 10 degrees from target);
- once target temperature is reached, the temperature can drop over 20 degrees (green light off) before the heat clicks back on and target temperature is reached again (green light back on);
- the lid pivots on an axle across the center of the lid (where the handle attaches), so that the lid can be level no matter how high the food is (within reason), or sloped if short food is on one side and tall food on the other;
- the actual cooking area is a bit smaller than there overall stated dimensions, the griddle is 8-7/8 by 11-1/4 inches; the grill area is less because the ridges don't extend as far (1/2 to 1 inch away from the edge).
- the closest the griddle plates get to one another is about 5/8 inch, so that is the thinnest something could be pressed;
- the ridges of the grill plates get to about 1/8 inch from each other;
- there are grease outlets on the hinge side of each plate for grease to drip into a little grease drawer, and the plates have a very slight slope towards these outlets (1-3 degrees), but this slope is so slight that grease doesn't flow that easily, and you might need to slightly prop the non-hinge sides if you are interested in getting grease to flow (as in the Forman grill);
- the handle is some sort of non-metal that doesn't get hot when the stainless does;
- only the lid is stainless steel on the top, while the bottom and a few other components appear to be some sort of hard material that could be a high temperature plastic;
- the cord is only 35" long.
Finally, when I measured the temperature of the griddle with my surface grill thermometer, I got rather cooler temperatures than what was said on the temperature setting. My grill surface thermometer may not be calibrated correctly, but this was farther off than I expected, though it certainly felt hot enough to cook effectively. But also, the Panini setting has a cooler low and a hotter high than the Griddle knob, which demonstrates that each dial does have its own thermostat (and which are not calibrated the same, unless there is a design purpose I haven't figured out to have one knob heat the appliance hotter & cooler than the other knob).
I haven't used any folding grill/griddles like this since I was a kid, so I cannot compare to others, but overall, this is a fine grill/griddle which I look forward to cooking lots of different things with.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
Excellent for a small meal, March 16, 2010
This review is from: Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler (Kitchen)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
This is my first experience with any kind of electric "floating top" griddle. I find myself pleasantly surprised. You should note that the advertised "200 square inches" of combined cooking space means two grills of 11" X 9" each. It really isn't as large as it sounds. I could fit 3 large burgers on there, and 2 pancakes at a time on each grill plate.
Pro:
It is a nifty design, and very tasteful in stainless steel and black trim. You won't be ashamed to show this unit off in the kitchen.
The grill plates are detachable and reversible. A handy scraping tool is provided to help clean the "ridged" griddle side.
The center knob sets either the grill or the "grill panini". I'm not sure I see any difference in operation - the "grill" options allows one to set the temperature by degrees while the other sets it by high, low, etc I really liked the fact that the temperature knob in use is red when warming, and then goes green to indicate that the unit is at the correct temperature.
I liked the grease catcher design - it slides out easily and cleans up well.
The grill plates are very easy to clean. I did not try the dishwasher, since I believe that non-stick will do better when washed by hand. I liked the simple buttons to release the plates - it was easy to use (if a bit hard to push) while holding the plates securely.
I found the grill to be very versatile, functioning either as a top-and-bottom or, when folded out, as a larger grill.
Con:
The grill takes a while to warm up, plan on about 10 minutes or so to get to 300 degrees.
I found two places on the non-stick grill plates that had small nicks where the non-stick had gotten rubbed off (out of the box). The places were not on the cooking surface area, but it makes me wonder about long term durability. One should plan on being careful when cleaning, and of course ALWAYS use plastic utensils.
I wouldn't trust the "grill" degree settings to any large degree. From what I can tell it is within maybe 30 degrees one way or the other of the set temperature.
I'm not sure anything could be done about this, but when you raise the grill top after "top and bottom" cooking, if you don't lock it into place (it swings down so as to be at any desired height above the food), it will drip grease onto the counter. I think the drip pan is designed such that if it is locked it will catch most of the grease - provided you lock the top. But if there is LOTS of grease on the top, it will drip. Considering gravity, most of the grease should come from the bottom. But I still had to clean a couple of drops of grease from the counter, and once I had to remove some from the heaters under the bottom grill plates (after the hamburgers).
To get the top to swing freely, you have to jar it a bit. Doing this when it is hot is a challenge, and I found myself using an oven mitt or plastic utensil. I realize that one could unlock it while cold, but I warmed it while closed (I think it is faster), and the top tends to lock in place if there is no food between the top and bottom.
Use:
I tested panini, hamburgers, and pancakes.
Panini. The griller makes a very good panini. I still need to experiment some to see what temperatures works best, but it does a good job: the marks come out well and the sandwich is heated nicely. The top is not unduly heavy, and you may find that you need to exert some pressure on the handle when closed to get the desired depth of grill marks.
Hamburgers. This was simply outstanding. I took 3 frozen hamburgers (1/3 lb sirloin) out of the freezer, put on some spices, warmed the device up to 350, put the burgers on, and closed the lid. Eight minutes later the hamburgers were done, jucy, and very tasty. The grease went into the catcher like it should. Also, there was not very much steam - it was much less messy than cooking in cast iron, for example, and I think a lot of that steam stayed in the hamburgers.
Pancakes. I found that the griddle loses it's heat very quickly when I put on the pancake batter. This resulted in one side of the pancakes being sort of brown speckled, while the other side (after the grill had reheated and I flipped the pancakes) was solid brown. I don't think this is an error or problem, because the nature of these kind of grill plates is that they transfer heat rapidly. At the same time, I noticed that the temperature knobs stayed green (indicating at temperature) instead of going to red (indicating heating). But overall it did a good job on the pancakes.
Summary: For two people, this can be quite a time saver and very useful for quick cooking. It appears to be a quality device with nice features and great design. Recommended.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
CUSINART GR-4NAM GRIDDLER, January 24, 2010
This review is from: Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler (Kitchen)
I purchased this for a Christmas gift. It is well made and it cooks great but....
As other reviews complained about,the drip tray was not designed to catch any drippings, you'll have more on the counter than the tray. I am very surprised that the price Cuisinart charges for their products that they would have better Q&A testing before the product is put on the shelves. As for Amazon, I give them a 5 star for their reliability on shipping the product on time and in perfect condition.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
I use this all the time!, April 19, 2010
This review is from: Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler (Kitchen)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
I waited to review this product because I wanted to try it with several different foods. So far I have tried it with steaks, pork chops, boneless chicken breasts, and Panini's. All of which came out great. I did notice that with the meats, you need to season lightly because if the heat is too high, the seasoning will get dark or burn. The steaks came out with beautifully seared grill marks, and they stay very juicy. The pork chops I brined first, and they came out very juicy as well.
The good thing about using this grill with the pork chops, is that they don't curl up when you are grilling, because of the fact that you have the top grill to press it down. So now I always use this to make pork chops. The boneless chicken breasts came out great too. I usually pound them to make them even, then season them lightly and grill them. I think they come out perfect in just five minutes. I usually grill about 5 at a time and put them in the refrigerator, and use them to make chicken salad or just slice them up and put them in a regular salad to add some protein. They always come out great. The Panini's however, are out of this world. I find that if you brush melted butter on top of the Panini bread, they come out fantastic. Better then any Panini I've gotten in any restaurant.
The grill itself does heat up very quickly, which is a good thing, and I didn't have any problems with fat running off the grill like some other people have, and I use it all the time.
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13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
Very handy for cooking small meals, December 31, 2009
This review is from: Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler (Kitchen)
When my husband deployed I needed to find a quick and easy way to feed myself and my children. A friend of mine had a griddler and I decided it might be the answer. It was!!! I was able to grill chicken, turkey, steak, and even fish. And while it doesn't hold a candle to the flavor of a good old charcoal grill, it was quick, tasty,and easy to clean. I was able to grill the veggies on this (namely asparagus) and had only one kitchen item to clean. To be honest, I haven't tried the griddle plates, only the grill plates.
My kids were well fed during his absence and this healthy style of cooking allowed me to lose 25 lbs before he returned. I am a fan!!!
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Exceeds expectations, June 7, 2010
This review is from: Cuisinart GR-4N 5-in-1 Griddler (Kitchen)
I'm a single guy living in NYC and was looking for an easy-to-use appliance to make quick, delicious food. I could not be more pleased with this purchase. With a bare minimum of prep, I've made delicious paninis, burgers, steaks, ham and eggs, and pancakes, among other things.
The designers thought of everything when putting this together. The reversible non-stick cooking surfaces on either side are easy to switch and simple to clean. The top adjusts simply to any thickness for whatever you may be cooking, whether a flat panini or a thick steak, and provides and even heat on both top and bottom.
My favorite thus far has been to take a whole wheat sandwich roll brushed with olive oil, add a few basil leaves, roasted peppers, sopressata and provolone, and within 3-4 minutes I have a truly delicious panini cooked perfectly throughout. Once when I was stuck with no bread, I improvised and piled cheese atop roasted peppers and roast chicken pieces on the flat surfase and closed the top. The cheese melted and browned beautifully and when it came time to take my creation off the griddle, it didn't stick at all to either surface and I was left with a beautiful bachelor's special. I've also open the griddle completely and cooked fried eggs with salami and pimentos on one side and pancakes on the other (again, neither stuck at all and everything was simple to flip).
The only complaints I have are as follows:
- When it heats up, the whole unit gets quite hot (except for the handle) so you just need to be careful not to accidentally touch the top/sides.
- The edges to the removable cooking surfaces are not quite raised high enough so really juicy foods may drip/splatter over the edge a bit (it helps to ever-so-slightly tip the unit back so that the juices run towards the drip spout)
Other than that, I really appreciate the quality of the unit, the size/design, the ease-of-use and the price. Strongly recommend.
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