The line up of Gas Grill at Home Depot for 2011 relies heavily on Char-Broil, Brinkmann, and a couple of specially equipped Weber Grills. Prices range from $99USD to $900 and offer a number of features. Amongst these grills you will find one with a built in smoker and a number of Char-Broil's infrared gas grills.
The Brinkmann CorporationThis is about as basic a gas grill as you are going to get. For about $100 you get two burners in a metal box. That's it. Of course the advantage is that this grill has few parts to fail. Of course this grill lacks quality as much as it does feature. The burners are lightweight, poor grade metal and will probably only last a year or two. On the other hand, for the price you can get a grill for the season that will do a decent job of grilling burgers and hot dogs. Don't expect it to cook well. The heat is low and uneven, but you can't beat the price.
Brinkmann Corp.This basic unit offers you a full feature gas grill at a discount price (around $150USD). The four burner design gives you lots of versatility in your cooking. With the addition of a side burner you can do virtually anything but rotisserie. This grill is, however, limited in durability thanks to is reliance on low quality materials and lightweight construction. All stainless steel parts, including the tubular burners at 400 series stainless. The knobs and handles are plastic. Aside from this, the grill is a basic unit with little else which is actually an advantage, less to go wrong.
Char-Broil LLC.This is a typical $200 Char-Broil gas grill. Offering 4 main burners and a simple side burner, you get a basic function grill for a low price, but don't plan on it lasting very long. The lightweight cooking grates, burners and burner covers won't take a lot of punishment and will start to corrode early. If you are only interested in a grill with limited cooking performance and don't plan to keep it long then this isn't a bad investment, I just wouldn't want you thinking that this is the last grill you will ever own.
Brinkmann CorporationThis basic unit offers you a full feature gas grill at a discount price (around $200USD). The four burner design gives you lots of versatility in your cooking. With the addition of a side burner you can do virtually anything but rotisserie. This grill is, however, limited in durability thanks to its reliance on low quality materials and lightweight construction. All stainless steel parts, including the tubular burners at 400 series stainless. The knobs and handles are plastic. The "features", like the bottle opener and flip up front panel are more gimmick than gadget. There are certainly better grills out there.
Char-Broil LLC.This is the bottom of the "stainless steel" grills. For around $270 you can buy this Char-Broil grill from Home Depot that features the Char-Broil side burner/oven with griddle. Unfortunately, this grill uses the lowest quality stainless steel and metal as thin as you can buy. The question is, why would you want to buy this grill. I can bend the lid with my hands so this is as fragile grill as you can find. Like many Char-Broil grills it looks good on the showroom floor, but won't last. Keep your receipts and fill out the product registration card.
Char-Broil LLCChar-Broil found success with what they call "Urban" grills. These 2-burner gas grills are perfect for small spaces. The Red urban uses the same RED technology Char-Broil introduced in 2008. By heating a metal U-shaped infrared emitter the grill works by completely separating the flame from the food. This technology can generate high temperatures with less fuel consumption, making it a more efficient way to grill. This 2-burner unit gives you 300 square inches of cooking space and does it for around $270USD. The downside is the limited lifespan of the U-emitter.
The Brinkmann CorporationOver the years several companies have attempted to blend the convenience of gas with the flavor of charcoal. Recently there have been a few side by side grills. Basically this version is two grills, one gas and one charcoal mounted together on a single cart. Add in a side burner, albeit a weak one and you have what would appear to be a complete package, and all for about $300USD. Sound too good to be true? Well it should. The real question is, do you really need this 5 foot long, 120 pound all in one grill or would you be better served with separate grills. The truth is that this grill isn't that well built.
The Brinkmann CorporationThis is the gimmicky grill of 2011. The Brinkmann Zone has a standard side burner. Nice. It has a full integrated rotisserie system. Good if it works right. And a lighted cutting board. Really? Add all this to a standard 3-burner gas grill for around $330USD and you get a grill loaded with stuff except quality. This is because manufacturers like Brinkmann and stores like Home Depot believe that consumers would rather have gadgets than quality, flash instead of ability. Also, this grill is greatly underpowered.
Char-Broil LLC.For 2011, Char-Broil has made some design changes to its RED line of infrared grills, largely to address the long preheat times that this grill suffered from. The boosted output of the main burners will heat the grill faster. However, this still leaves the problem of the central component, the infrared U-emitter, not being able to take the heat. While this grill can produce some impressive heat and grill up some great steaks, issues with design and the quality of components limit its lifespan. I just want you to be prepared for that.
Weber-Stephen Products CompanyIf you want a smaller, dependable grill then this is a good one. If you need more cooking space then you probably need a different grill. With two burners you don't get a lot of versatility when it comes to indirect grilling and the 350 square inches of primary grilling space make it one of the smaller full sized grills. Since this grill also has no extras you will get a grill and nothing more, though a rotisserie kit is available. While limited in size and function this grill is perfect for a small space and the person who really just needs to be able to grill up some chops or chicken pieces.
