We are moving and our new house will have nice covered patio. My Weber gas grill is getting long in the tooth and we saw lots of houses with built-in outdoor kitchens, so that got me thinking it might be time to upgrade. I could go with a custom island and get exactly what I want, but the expense puts me off that a bit. So I was looking at larger units that have a side burner. Ideally what I would like is to have a conventional burner on one side and a sear burner on the other, but so far I have not been able to find a unit like that.
So Max Good or anyone else, is there such a thing?
Also, almost all of the built-ins we saw were Summit brand and I don't see any of those in the ratings. Any experience with their products?
If not cooking outdoors, I am cooking on the stovetop with my 14" carbon steel wok, 12" CI skillet, or in the oven with my two Lodge CI pizza pans, or two dutch ovens. I've also got a nifty Lodge carbon steel grill pan that rocks for veggies outdoors.
Summit is the high end Weber, and the only Weber still made in the US. Look for Weber gas grills in the reviews and you will see the Summit 400 and 600 series units reviews in both standalone and built-in models. They all have platinum or gold reviews from Max.
I had a nice Summit with a side burner. Great grill. However, the side burner was to close to the body of the grill limiting the size of the pots you can use. Take note of this when shopping and bring pans with you to test it out. I wanted to cook lobsters and the pot would not fit. I think a side sear burner would be fine but the flare ups will scorch your grill. If budget allows have separate side burner and separate sear burner. I did this with my outdoor kitchen and couldn't be happier.
I have a Weber Summit S-670, and love it. It gets used weekly and is a bit over 10 years old now (I replaced the burners just before 10 years when they were still under warranty). Luckiest deal I ever found online. It will go to volcano temps if I let all the burners rip, so I've almost never needed to use the extra sear burner in it. Love the rotisserie for spinning yard birds!
My opinion is to get a grill that has 100% replaceable stainless steel parts. Especially if using drop-ins.
There are many reputable brands if you look online. Weber is not the only choice.
My biggest DIY challenges were the design of the space, and safety. Cost of drop-ins were higher, but the construction was much less expensive so that washed out. I also got exactly what I wanted.
If I ever did it again (doubtful), I would design a hybrid where the kitchen counter has a ‘appliance’ space to roll-in a standalone grill of some generic dimensions, similar to an indoor kitchen. IMHO it would be more flexible with less worry re: gas/fire safety as stand-alone grills are built to specific standards. Cleaning and maintenance would be easier b/c the unit could be rolled out when needed.
Like Old Glory , I will always have a drop-in side burner with plenty of space on both sides. 👍
John "JR"
Minnesota/ United States of America
******************************************** Grills/Smokers/Fryers Big Green Egg (Large) X3
Blackstone 36" Outdoor Griddle 4-Burner
Burch Barrel V-1 Karubeque C-60 Kamado Joe Jr. (Black) Lodge L410 Hibachi Pit Barrel Cooker Pit Barrel Cooker 2.0
Pit Barrel PBX
R&V Works FF2-R-ST 4-Gallon Fryer *******************************************. Thermometers
FireBoard (Base Package)
Thermoworks ThermaPen (Red)
Thermoworks MK4 (Orange)
********************************* Accessories Big Green Egg Plate Setter
Benzomatic TS800 High Temp Torch X 2 Bayou Classic 44 qt Stainless Stock Pot
Bayou Classic 35K BTU Burner Eggspander Kit X2 Finex Cat Iron Line FireBoard Drive Lots and Lots of Griswold Cast Iron Grill Grates Joule Water Circulator
KBQ Fire Grate Kick Ash Basket (KAB) X4 Lots of Lodge Cast Iron Husky 6 Drawer BBQ Equipment Cabinet Large Vortex Marlin 1894 .44 Magnum Marquette Castings No. 13 (First Run) Smithey No. 12 Smokeware Chimney Cap X 3 Stargazer No.10, 12 ******************************** Fuel FOGO Priemium Lump Charcoal Kingsford Blue and White B&B Charcoal Apple, Cherry & Oak Log splits for the C-60 ************************************************* Cutlery Buck 119 Special
Cuda 7' Fillet Knife Dexter 12" Brisket Sword Global Shun Wusthof ********** Next Major Purchase Lone Star Grillz 24 X 48 Offset
I would focus on the getting grill with the sear burner on the side. You can always find a portable butane or propane side burner to put on your grilling space.
I have these and they are 20 years old, this year. My Dad bought these for the chefs for my high school graduation. I still use them today. I take them camping, grilling and when ever I might need them. Very handy and efficient. They kick out some serious heat too.
I have a Summit that i purchased 11 years ago. No regrets or complaints. I haven't had to replace any parts, it just runs great. I do use the grill consistently year round which includes snow storms ,winds and extreme cold temperatures.
Cooking gadgets
Weber Summit Charcoal Grill Center
Weber Summit Platinum D6
Blue Rhino Razor
Dyna-Glo XL Premium Dual Chamber
Camp Chef Somerset IV along with their Artisan Pizza Oven 90
Anova WiFi
Thermometers
Thermapen Mk4 - ThermaQ High Temp Kit - ThermaQ Meathead Kit - ThermaQ WiFi - ThermoWorks IR-GUN-S - ThermoWorks Signals & Billows - ThermoPop -ThermoWorks ProNeedle - ThermoWorks TimeStick Trio x2 - and a Christopher Kimball timer - NO, I do not work for ThermoWorks...I just like their products.
Other useful bits...
KitchenAid 7-qt Pro Line stand mixer
A Black & Decker food processor that I can't seem to murder
A couple of immersion blenders, one a "consumer" model & the other a "high end" Italian thing. Yes, the Italian one is a bit better, but only marginally
Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus 8-qt + accessories like egg-bite & egg holders
All-Clad pots & pans, along with some cast iron...everything from 7" Skookie pans to 8.5qt Dutch ovens
Weber GBS griddle, pizza stone, and wok
Knives range from Mercer to F. Dick to "You spent how much for one knife? One knife?!" LOL
I still really like the Summit Platinum D6 that I purchased back in 2005. It’s been a great grill with zero issues over the years.
Having said that, and seeing some of the shortcuts that Weber has taken over the years, if I were to replace it I would have a long look at a Napoleon. I’d probably consider a few others, as mentioned here, but the Prestige Pro that I saw a couple years ago really grabbed my attention. It also includes a lifetime warranty on major components & 15 years on the rest vs the 10 years that Weber now offers.
Ok, how about this: a grill with an infrared sear burner under the grate next to the regular area, with a conventional side burner (and rear rotisserie)? Webers have something like that but the sear burner is not infrared and they recommend a longish warmup. Don’t want to have to hold the meat while the burner warms up.
I really like the configuration of the Lynx Sedona that can do this, but there’s no side burner unless I build an outdoor island. I also like that their sear burner can be dialed back to normal heat. Can anyone else’s infrared burner do that?
You shouldn't worry too much about pulling meat off the grill while you wait for the sear area to come up to temp. It might be about 5 mins+, which would be an allowable time to allow your meat to rest before you become a human flip machine on the sear action
I have the Napoleon 500 RSIB. I really like it! I agree with Old Glory that if a side burner is needed, a separate one would cover lobster pot to pot of beans.
I was gonna comment the same. I destroyed a stainless steel pan with the napoleon side sear because i wasnt keeping an eye on it. That thing is a beast
Comment