The Bottom Line
Pros
- Solid construction of cast iron and stainless steel
- Full feature gas grill with side burner and rotisserie
Cons
- Body uses low quality 430 stainless steel
- Large amount of problematic electronics
- Limited distribution in many areas
Description
- Four 12,500 BTU 304 Stainless Steel tubular burners
- 493 square inches of primary cooking area for a total grilling space of 707 square inches
- 50,000 BTU maximum output from the main burners
- 15,000 BTU rear mounted infrared rotisserie burner with full rotisserie kit and motor storage
- 15,000 BTU side burner under a flush mounted cover
- Mixed enameled coated cast iron and heavy gauge 430 stainless steel body
- Heavy porcelain coated cast iron cooking grates
- Mounted flexible LED grill light
- Large capacity storage area with two drawers
- Sold through Costco Canada, Home Depot Canada and specialty BBQ retailers
Guide Review - Vermont Castings Signature Series The Chef VCS4008 Gas Grill
Vermont Castings Gas Grills have been discontinued. Parts and support have also been discontinued.Vermont Castings have been making great gas grills for many years. Over the years they have made slow changes to these grills that include poor quality stainless steel and distributed manufacturing. The 2008 models are the first to be assembled in China from Canadian parts and are not of the same quality as previous models.
This model is one of the larger and more expensive (sells around $1,000USD) of the Vermont Castings Signature Line. Available in a number of colors this grill is big (500 square inches primary cooking space) and powerful (50,000 BTU output from the main burners). It also boasts a good side burner and a wide and powerful infrared rotisserie burner with a full rotisserie system (there's even a place to park the motor in the cabinet when you are not using it). There is a flexible mounted LED light on the side table and illuminated control panel for night time grill.
The body of this grill is made from heavy duty porcelain coated cast iron end caps and stainless steel hood. The body of the unit is low grade, 430 stainless steel but heavy gauge and pretty well constructed. The overall quality of the components is a little weak but what would you expect in a grill with these features for this price.
Not all stainless steel is created equally. While the stainless steel used on Vermont Castings grills is not a good grade it is a good gauge and finish. This means that while inferior in quality this stainless steel isn't the worse on the market and with a 10 year warranty you shouldn't have problems with it for many years.
