I'd love to hear your thoughts on the Louisiana Grills Backyard Pro (CostCo ~$700)

[timmer79]

I found my way to this site after buying "Meathead" recently. My family loves barbecue but I'm only an aspiring meat smoker at this point. I have a friend who loves his Louisiana Grills Backyard Pro. A review online (https://www.bbqdryrubs.com/louisiana...costco-review/) said that it is essentially a Louisiana Grills 900 Series that has been fitted with a side smoker box. Reviews at Costco are overall very positive except for a couple of lemons which were easily returned: https://www.costco.com/Louisiana-Gri...100386742.html.

People says it's a good value, too. I have a family of seven and we entertain 15-25 people with regularity so I like the idea of having a lot of capacity. I also like the precise temp control and probe that kicks into a warming mode when it reaches the set temp.

Here's another positive review of the similar LG 900: https://www.simplymeatsmoking.com/pe...ew/#tab-con-10.

I'm new to the site and think I did everything I was supposed to with regards to searching the site and forums to make sure that there aren't reviews already posted.

Any thoughts would be very much appreciated!

Thanks!

[Keiferr]

Don't know anything about the cooker but welcome to the Pit!

[Fire Art]

I also know nothing but welcome from Jackson Wyoming

[Nate]

Welcome from Indiana

[timmer79]

I'll update my question: if you haven't heard of this smoker, does it seem like a good fit for me? Thanks for the warm welcome!

[RonB]

Welcome to The Pit.

[Mosca]

I don’t know anything about that particular product, nor about pellet grills/smokers. But I do know that just about anything can work, or can be made to work. And Costco has a good reputation. If you run into problems, The Pit here is a great resource. If you want it, go for it.

[Nate]

To be candid I don’t see Louisiana popping up much in the pit for pellet smokers. I know there are some owners but the "most popular" in the pit seem to be:

High end:
Yoder
MAK
BlazNGrillworks

Mid Range:
RecTec
Grilla (gaining in popularity)
Green Mountain Grills
Traeger

I’ve probably missed a couple but those are the ones that come to mind that get the most comments, questions, etc... there are other brands of pellet cookers that pit members own from least expensive to the most. Hopefully a Louisiana pellet Cooker will see this and jump in. Or maybe Max Good has some more info.

[Thom Emery]

I saw one at Costco yesterday Interesting design
Not sure what to think of the extra doors
I thought it was a smoker next to a safe at first
Hey its Costco if it sucks take it back,
at that price its a value
My PG 1000 is one of the very early models assembled by Louisiana
We have had minimal problems with it

[Troutman]

It all depends upon your budget. Some of the models mentioned above are quite a bit more but with that you get more. I've seen the Louisiana pellets and I wasn't overly impressed with their build. I have no idea how well they do or don't cook however. My suggestion is to get with your buddy and really quiz him on how well it holds temperatures, if he is satisfied with the smoke profile, how long he has been cooking on it and the resulting meats he has cooked.

Like anything else in life, you get what you pay for. Buy up to what you can afford, I believe there is better value out there. Good luck !!

[au4stree]

I know nothing about those grills, but do know Costco will support it, they have a reputation for doing so. I owned a Traeger for 10 years, it was a terrific cooker, won some competitions with it....BUT. They are mechanical and about year 7 started giving me issues. It got to the point where just about everything on it was replaced at some point, but, to Traeger's credit, they didn't charge me for many of my issues (hot rod, blower, thermostat, etc). The convenience of set it/forget it was my largest draw, prior to that i was using a stick burner and was constantly fiddling with vents to keep steady temp.

If you can afford it and want the convenience, go for it, Costco will back you.

[Max Good]

Louisiana makes good products and they really load up the bells and whistles for Costco. As others have pointed out, if you are unhappy with your purchase, Costco will take it back.

[timmer79]

Thanks for the thoughts!

Nate : From what I've read, Louisiana Grills is comparable to Traeger in terms of build quality, having a 5-year warranty, etc.

Thom Emery : That's helpful feedback. And the doors on the right are an attached smoker box that increases capacity and/or can be used at lower temperatures (and therefore, I believe, be used for cold smoking).

Max Good : I did read a number of your reviews for other products and appreciate your work! For what it's worth, it might be worth reviewing the LG Backyard Pro because it seems like people are buying it at CostCo because they (at the least) think it's a good deal.

Thanks again!

[Max Good]

Louisiana and Pit Boss are on my mind.

[timmer79]

Wow, I'm impressed with all of the feedback! Several people replied while I was writing my last post (including you Max Good )! Thanks so much!

[EdF]

That's just the kind of place this is. Enjoy!

[JGo37]

That's the way we roll here - welcome to the PIT!

[LA Pork Butt]

EricJason I think you first should ask yourself a few questions. What kind of cooking do you want to do most - grilling, roasting, smoking low and slow? How many people will you typically cook for? How often will you cook? How does the weather where you live affect your ability to cook? How much tIme do you want to spend tending your fire? What is your budget? There is no perfect cooker out there? Some are clearly superior in a partIcular type of cooker category, so first I would be clear as to the typ of cooker I need and want. The link you posted appears to show different type of cookers. I cook on a Kamado which I love for how it meets my needs while others in the Pit prefer cookers with different characteristics.

[Huskee]

Most likely this fella is a spammer. 3 posts today, all sharing the same outside link in different channels here. Deleted. If he's for real he can come back and explain that he's a real person with good intentions here. Thank you for taking the time to answer though, you are very helpful!!

[LA Pork Butt]

Huskee thanks for the update.