RSS
Top 10 Coolest BBQ Grills (And Then Some!)
Summer is nearly here, and with it comes the great American culinary tradition: barbecue!
BBQ is both a rite of summer and a rite of manhood (yes, BBQ is associated with male cooking, probably because any sane woman would not go near the combination fire, meat and beer). In some parts of the USA, BBQ is not just food, it’s a religion. The fastest way to start a fight is not to talk politics, but to argue about the virtues of wood vs. charcoal vs. gas. Even the word itself is kind of controversial: is it barbecue, barbeque, bar-b-q, or BBQ? Just don’t bring it up with a purist (or the one cooking your burger!)
There’s no argument, however, about the popularity of BBQ. The Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association (yes, it’s a real organization – actually it is just one of many dedicated to barbecuing) did a study called "The State of Barbecue Industry Report". The 2005 study[pdf] stated that 4 out of every 5 US households own a grill – in fact, 1 in 5 own more than one grill. And not surprisingly, "the primary griller (male) in the majority of households considers themselves to be average or above in terms of cooking skills".
A central object in the BBQ world is the grill (or the smoker, or the pit depending on who you ask). These BBQ grills come in all shapes and sizes, but we’re not here to talk about the grills you can pick up at your local home improvement store. We’re talking about cool and unusual ones; if you’re looking to feed your closest hundred or so friends at your next backyard party, this is the list for you!
So, without further ado, let’s check out our picks for the Top 10 Coolest BBQ Grills.
10. Grills to Go!
|
Grills to Go makes grills that get up and GO! The one above is the 12 ft. model that uses wood for fuel – it comes complete with the company’s distinctive "red wheel" that moves the grill up or down over 36" so you can fine-tune the cooking temperature. And oh, it also comes with standard installed tail-lights and removable hitch. |
9. Nexo Fireplace and Grill
 |
Is Nexo a fireplace or a BBQ grill? Why, both of course! This awesome outdoor fireplace is designed and built on the Danish Island of Mors by master craftsmen from "steel-reinforced, pumic-stone refractory core covered with beautifully colored sandstone rock or with stucco." Think about it this way: it’s the BBQ grill that your wife won’t complain about lookin’ ugly in the backyard! |
8. Backwood Smoker’s "The Competitor"
|
It’s easy to mistake this Backwood Smokers unit as a safe, since, … well, it kind of looks like one. That is, until you open the behemoth to reveal 8 shelves at about 20"x20" a piece to give a total of 22 square feet of cooking surface! This model shown above, aptly called "The Competitor" (yes, men compete with each other to see who has the best grill) can cook 135 pounds of Boston Butts or 21 Slabs of St. Louis-style ribs at once. A steal at $2,445 list price. |
7. The Bar-B-Q Shack
|
Is it a mobile home that comes with a BBQ grill or is it a BBQ grill that comes with a house? Who cares? It’s awesome and you absolutely gotta have one! Actually, it’s a Bar-B-Q Shack Concession Trailer with a Cabin and 4 ft. Smoker, built by Southern Yankee Bar-B-Q. The 8′x20′ unit comes with:
|
6. Superior Welding’s BBQ Swing-A-Way Grill
|
Superior Welding Services’ tailgate BBQ grill is guaranteed to make you the center of attention at tailgate parties. Plus, the grill is convenient to use: no need to pull out the grill or smoker out of the back of your truck – just park your car and start cooking! The unique Swing-A-Way Receiver Hitch also allows you to swing this tailgate barbecue grill away from your car and prevent it from blistering your paint job. |
5. Traeger’s Novelty BBQ Grills
|
Ah, the novelty grills – what’s not to like about theml? Like all standard Traeger grills, the company’s novelty lines come with Autostart, EZ-drain grease system, and a variable thermostat control. With 371 square inch of cooking space, you can grill to your heart’s content. With two models to choose from (the Lil’ Pig and the Longhorn Steer), all you need is money. Lots of it, apparently, since they’re $1,495 each! And what is it with pigs and BBQ? Apparently, the irony of cooking pork in a BBQ grill shaped like a pig is irresistible to artists like Joel Haas, who made this Barbee Q. Piglet:
|
4. Kamado Ceramic BBQ Grill
 |
Kamado’s Ceramic Barbecue Grill is probably the most artistic and beautiful BBQ grill we’ve ever seen (and yes, it’s from California). The hand-made Kamado grill was invented by Richard Johnson, an American pilot who came across a ceramic rice cooker in Japan in the 1960s. He claimed that this method of cooking makes for better flavors of smoked, broiled or baked food. Today, you can order a Kamado grill in various tile colors (so it’ll match your decor, of course!), using various fuels such as wood, charcoal, gas, or electricity. |
3. HEMI-Powered BBQ Grill
|
Tim Kowalec built this HEMI-powered BBQ grill for Chrysler’s "What Can You HEMI?" contest in 2005. Tim’s "manly man’s barbecue grill" featured a 5.7-liter V-8 HEMI engine, and can cook 240 hot dogs in 3 minutes! |
2. Gator Pit’s Texas Legend
|
The Texas Legend Smoker and Grill is so big that two adults can stand up in the upright smoker – now that’s big. Texas BIG. This behemoth of a BBQ grill, built by custom builder Ritch Robin of Gator Pit, is roughly 30 feet long by 8 feet wide by 10 1/2 feet tall. It has approximately 27,500 square inch of cooking space. Check out the mind-blowing specs:
Texas Legend construction photos | completed photo & gallery of other pits. |
1. Lynx Professional Grills
|
It’s. Just. So. Pretty. Oh. So. Pretty. And its the one I want for Father’s Day, OK? Yup, that sums it up – this mouth-watering, budget-busting, jaw-droppingly beautiful backyard set from Lynx Professional Grills has a 42" grill with access doors, double burner, storage drawers, warming drawer, and beverage area with outdoor refrigerator, ice machine, and coctail pro (a bar area with sink and faucet). If you have to ask how much, you simply can’t afford it. |
[Update 6/8/06] What did we tell you about BBQ being the object of passion? People have been writing us because apparently, we missed a lot of cool grills, so in the spirit of catching up, here are a few more awesome BBQ grills:
The Ultimate Smoker and Grill.
 |
Trace Arnold designed a true monster of a BBQ grill: The Ultimate Smoker and Grill. The 55-feet long grill is the size of a tanker and is hauled by a semi. The wood-fired grill is huge: 48" by 120 ". It can cook 2,000 pounds of barbecue, 200 steaks, or 1,000 hot dogs at once. The lid is 20 feet long and goes up and down using a hydraulic system. And of course, the entire rig comes with 48-in flat screen TV with satellite hookup and Bose Entertainment system. Best of all, you can rent it for $5,000 a day plus $3 per mile traveled (excluding the cost of food). Link – Thanks DrinkKing! |
Texas Lil’s World’s Largest Transportable Smoker.
|
Did you think that last one was huge? Think again: David Klose built this transportable smoker called Texas Lil’s Monster Smoker. The smoker is 57 ft. in length and 60" in diameter. It has 90,000 sq. in. cooking surface and weighs 25,000 lbs. |
The King of Barbecues Grill.
|
And how could we missed David Klose’s The King of Barbecues grill? Uber-Review writes:
Link – via Uber-Review |
David Klose’s Baby Carriage BBQ Pit.
|
That last one was too hi-tech for you? How about yet another one by that talented guy David Klose: a Baby Carriage Pit:
Link | If you like that, you’ll like Klose’s cookers that look like a Continental Airplane, Beer Bottle and Chuck Wagon. David Klose, you’re awesome, dude! |
BBQ Under The Hood!
|
This gives new meaning to the words "check under the hood" – unfortunately, it doesn’t exist (yet, we hope!). via The BBQ Report |
Texas Six Shooter BBQ Grill.
|
This awesome 6 foot 11 barbecue pit shaped was built by Joe Wood of Weimar, Texas:
|
Handgun BBQ Grill.
|
While we’re on the subject of handgun-shaped grill, take a look at this 19-ft long grill made by Spook and J.W. Holtman in Lubbock, Texas, who said "Heck, it’s Texas, what did you expect?" Link [Flickr] |
Redneck Pool Heater.
|
Grills aren’t just for cookin’ meat, especially if you’re a redneck! You can use it to heat up your pool as well! Todd Harrison and his daughter Veronica Harrison (who’s in 8th grade!), modded a gas grill into a working pool heater so he can use his pool in winter (with only $28 cost in propane!):
|
Normally you can’t swim in our pool until June because it’s just to cold (68F – 75F). I like swimming in about 80F to 85F myself, if it’s sunny and warm out. I created a prototype heater coil that seemed to work for its size. I then create a large heater coil out of 180 feet of copper tubing that connects to my pool pump using a garden hose and fits inside the grill. The hose runs from the pump through the grill heater coils and then into the pool. I heated my pool from 68F to 89.4F in 48 hours using 3.5 tanks of propane.Q BBQ.
|
Bucking the trend toward ever-increasingly large BBQ grill is the Q BBQ – a grill that looks like the "cross between the Starship Enterprise and a jet engine":
Not surprisingly, the Q BBQ won the Bronze Award in the 2003 Industrial Design Excellence Awards. Link |
The Table Is The Grill!
|
With Cook-n-Dine flameless cooking grill/table, you can cook and eat at the same place, literally! The center of the table heats up to form a cooking pit – you simply place your food and cook it there without the use of any pots or pans (the heated portion will turn into a concave pit). The price? $1,600 – worth it considering you will have fewer dishes to wash. Link – via Appliancist |
Austin-Healey BBQ Grill.
|
That old vintage Jaguar Austin-Healey not running anymore? Let’s turn it into a grill! (This is not the automobile "grill" you’re used to seeing, huh?) Found at Classic Jaguar |
Jeppe Utzon BBQ Grill.
|
The Jeppe Utzon barbecue by Electrolux was created by the grandson of the legendary Jorn Utzon [wiki] (the guy who designed the Sydney Opera House). This stylish, minimalist BBQ grill is the perfect outdoor accessory for your ultra-modern house. Link – Thanks Andy Hansson! |
Real Grill’s Submarine BBQ Grill
 |
No, that’s not a submarine – that’s Real Grill’s TRG 500 BBQ grill! This custom made oh-so-shiny grill boasts 46 square feet of cooking area with 3 available fuel sources (gas, wood, and coal), diamond plated doors, and … a fire extinguisher! |
SmokinTex’s Pro Series Electric Smokers
|
SmokinTex’s Pro Series Electric Smokers look like small dishwasher but they cook like a champ. According to the company, these smokers are so easy to use (just load ‘em up with meat, shut the door, and set the temperature – that’s it!). The food is slow-cooked "gently" over a real wood smoke. |
Southern Pride’s Commercial Ovens
 |
Unless you’re a restaurant, or you always have really, really hungry friends at your backyard barbecue, you probably don’t know Southern Pride’s ovens. Well, here it is: the XLR-1600-4. I’ll skip the technical details to focus on what’s important – its cooking capacity:
I dunno – maybe it’s just *too* small. |
J&R Manufacturing’s Smokemaster
|
For over 30 years, J&R Manufacturing, Inc. has been making custom heavy-duty wood-burning BBQ pits. This one above is their Smokemaster E Series, a "very serious barbecue machine" and convection oven. According to the company, Smokemaster is very efficient due to its air and smoke control system. The machine can cook over 500 pounds of meat per load, at an energy cost of only 3 cents per pound! |
Grand Hall’s Monster BBQ Grill
|
Not satisfied with a regular grill, BBQ enthusiast Alex Komarnitsky got this super-sized "beta model" Grand Hall (which he said is not yet released to the public). The monster grill has ten 20,000 BTU primary burners, a 30,000 BTU infrared burner, and a side burner (yet another 20,000 BTU) for a total of 250,000 BTU cooking capacity. With almost 2,000 square inches of cooking surface, you can surely feed a hundred people (or probably four us fat Americans) at the same time! |
The Big Green Egg.
 |
When we first saw this BBQ, it seemed like a large dinosaur egg that the Flintstones would adapt to grill meat! If you think this one looks like the Kamado (see above) – you’re right:
|
Keg-a-Que.
|
What do you get when you cross a BBQ grill with a beer keg? A Keg-a-Que, the perfect BBQ grill for all beer lovers. The best thing is about this grill is that it’s only $49.95, so have more money to buy meat, and of course, beer! Link – Thanks Ray! |
Piet Hein Eek’s Sleek BBQ Grills.
|
If modern’s your thing, then you’ll like Piet Hein Eek’s Grills. Link – Thanks SMQT! |
Pyromid Stove.
 |
No, that’s not the Mars Rover – that’s the Pyromid Stove, "the world’s most portable grill" according to the manufacturer. The grill folds to less than one inch thick when not in use and can be set up in seconds. Moreover, the grill reaches temperatures up to 1,100 degrees °F in less than 10 minutes using only 9 briquettes! |
Magma Boat BBQ Grill.
 |
Just because you’re cruisin’ on your boat, it doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy barbecuin’, thanks to Magma Boat BBQ grills. The company makes charcoal, gas, and combination grills for your boat, with optional boat stabilizer. |
Evo Circular Flattop Grill.
 |
If you like Benihana, then you’ll probably like the Evo Professional circular flattop griddle, er grill. This model sports a 30" cooking surface, and two independently controlled burners for a combined rating of 48,000 BTU. |
Tool Box Grill.
 |
What do you give for that BBQ-loving DIY weekend warrior? A grill that looks like a toolbox, of course! But don’t let this unassuming grill from Hans Plads fool you: it is built from heavy duty, 20-gauge steel and sports a large cooking surface at only 19-lb. weight. |
Bradley Digital Smoker.
|
BBQ Grill goes digital with Bradley’s Digital Smoker:
The perfect BBQ smoker for the nerd in you! Link |
Muscle Car Grill
|
Muscle Car Grill builder Steve Barker used real car parts to make this V8 engine grill!
|
Afterburner – C Fridge Conversion.
 |
No, it’s not just a rusty old fridge – it’s actually a bbq grill! The inside had porcelain on steel inner liner, fiber glass insulation, and an "Afterburner" gas conversion kit. |
The Supreme – Diamond Plated BBQ Grill
|
Outdoor Culinary Supply’s shiny grill called "The Supreme" is all decked out in diamond plate! Link – via Fark |
Talos Outdoor Cooking Suite
|
Got a spare $35,000? Then you can get the Talos Outdoor Cooking Suite by Frontgate. This sprawling behemoth of a grill has a 42" grill with 800 square-inch of grilling area, 16,000 BTU ceramic infrared rotisserie, 2 side burners, a warming drawer, searing station with griddle, bartender module and sink. |
Old Smokey
 |
Ah, a classic: the Old Smokey charcoal BBQ grill, perfect for camping! |
Gusto Ultra-Portable Wood BBQ Grill
 |
Gusto ultra-portable bbq grill by Woodflame uses cubes of hardwood as fuel! |
Oasis Fire Table
|
With Oasis Outdoor Furnishing’s fire table, the table is the bbq – or if you want, the fire pit or the ice bucket. Link – via Fark |
Kalamazoo Sculpture Gas Grill
|
Kalamazoo’s Sculpture Gas Grill undulates its way to beautify your garden while kicking butt with a 50,000-BTU gas grill. Link |
Cobb Portable BBQ Grill
 |
The Cobb BBQ Grill and Cooking System was an innovation that came out of Africa. The first Cobb grill was designed for rural africa, with fuel of dry corn cobs! Later units use charcoal briquettes … It has an insulated plastic base that remains cool to the touch even while the internal temperature reaches over 500 degrees! |
Barbi Portable Barrel BBQ
|
Feeling too manly? Well, this pink portable barrel BBQ should take you down a notch! Link – via Random Good Stuff |
Weber Smokey Joe Grill – Simpsons Edition
 |
This cute little grill is the Weber 10898 Smokey Joe Charcoal Grill, The Simpsons 10th Anniversary Limited Edition Grill. Not available anymore, I’m afraid (D’oh!): Link |
Bonus: Liquid Oxygen Lighter
|
OK, it’s not a grill that’s interesting here: it’s the way it’s lighted. You’re looking at George Goble of Purdue University lighting the 60 lbs of charcoal with 3 gallons of liquid oxygen:
And oh, this goes without saying: don’t try this at home. Please, or this may happen. |
USB Grill
|
Take 6 PCI USB cards with 5 ports each, connect the 30 USB cables to a hacked USB cup warmer and you get … a USB grill! Link | Translated Page – via Make and TechEBlog |
Monster Pitt
|
Texan grill maker Pitt’s & Spitt’s made this cute train engine BBQ pit for the TV series Monster House (the "Ghost Town" house). Link – Thanks George Shore! |
Santa Maria
|
This grill from Diamond Charcoal Island Grille is actually a new kind of charcoal barbecue unit that starts up fast with a blower and then has a garbage dispoal unit built into the bottom so you can just wash down all the ashes away! Link – Thanks Ryan Guy! |
Bruce BBQ Grill
|
Got a balcony? Then this "Bruce" BBQ grill (that looks like those flower pots hanging off balconies) is perfect for you. Link – via Random Good Stuff. Update 1/5/07: Grilling on your balcony may be illegal or cause you to lose your apt. lease – Thanks Don! |
Locomotive BBQ Grill
|
This German locomotive BBQ grill is awesome! It sold on eBay for over $12,000: Link – via smidigt |
Classic Holden Monaro GTS Grill
|
A classic Holden Monaro GTS, reincarnated as a barbie! Link – via Born Rich |
Chevy V8 Grill
|
This Chevy V8 grill may not crank out 500 HP, but it does produce 60,000 BTU! Link – Thanks Trent Whatley! |
RUB Restaurant’s Mobile Barbecue Pit
|
When Andrew Fishel, the owner of New York restaurant RUB, wanted "the sickest, baddest thing in the world," he commissioned Orange County Chopper (of the American Chopper TV show fame) to create a mobile BBQ pit. |
Dragon BBQ Grill: “Guardian of the Feast”
|
This is one awesome BBQ grill: a dragon-shaped welded steel grill and smoker called "Guardian of the Feast" by Ed McBride. Link – Thanks SteelisAlive! |
Motor Head Grill
|
Here’s the Motor Head grill by FAB Grills: Link – Thanks Russ Freeman! |
|
Is that a 55-gallon drums or a BBQ grill/smoker? Actually, it’s both! Steve Stealey of Steve’s Services – BBQ division in Carthage, Mo. came up with the idea of using a steel drum as a smoker and BBQ grill when he was on his way to a cooking contest, lost his cooker in transit, found a used barrel and the rest is history. Link – Thanks Steve! |
Got any more? Leave a comment and let us know!
DrinkKing
SMQT
Bobby
cokekiller
Katrina
Jim in Tampa
Charles
Fredrik
Jasmine Filter
Kent
unbiased opinion
Egger
Joey
george
Ron's Dad
Moni-Q
1 Lucky Texan
Richard
Chad
Dave
Dana
Tom Heeney
rich oland
Brian
Richard L. Stephen
Lindsay
Steel
TeaMan
slim
Donald Sammis
Cyr
Guillaume
Onetrack
in new jersey
Automobies
best deals
List Of More Games
dallas texas
Arizona
IN__
Pierre
Connecticut
tabs
NYC
Ark
Md__
Alaska
Helena
WI__
RB
BudMeister
Jordan W
Bobby
Brian Wymore
Simple Gifts
Dave Zier
Sara McCormick
Lamme
Marc
guillermo
Jeff not the regular Jeff
JMINTER
gordo
charles
michael stout
mike hershewe
Michael Johnson
sweetpea_26
Ribbs McCoy
Brick
View more: 
