Just keep in mind that the grill is bulky to carry, especially when the grates are inside, so it’s not the best option if, for instance, you’re hiking out to a campsite. When we cooked fish and steak on this grill, the food developed beautiful golden brown sear marks, and the fat rendered out nicely, weber charcoal grill as well. Neither food stuck to the grill’s porcelain-enameled cast iron grates, and the drip tray underneath the grill body made clean-up easy. However, we did notice that the grill’s instructions are quite sparse, and while compact, the unit is bulky to carry around due to its heavier weight.
Weber has a great reputation for reliability, and when we surveyed Wirecutter readers about their grills, Weber owners were overwhelmingly satisfied with their choice. As long as you clean your grill properly and shield it from the elements, it should last many weber charcoal grill years. Weber doesn’t make a grill cover for the Jumbo Joe, but a contractor garbage bag or a woven poly tarp should do the trick if you want an extra barrier from the elements. We appreciate the stable tripod base, which keeps the grill steady on uneven ground.
At 20 pounds, the Grill2Go X200 is also 10 pounds lighter than the Weber Q 1200, even though it fits the same amount of food (six burgers, or a whole cut-up chicken). Grilling with charcoal does have some downsides that make it less convenient, especially with a portable grill. Briquettes are bulky and messy, staining anything they touch with soot and ash. Plus you have the added chore of snuffing out hot coals and emptying ashes after grilling.
The Weber Q 1200 is flare-up resistant and excellent at maintaining consistent heat. It’s constructed from quality materials, has some nice extra features, and is reasonably comfortable to carry (although heavy). Before testing, we pored over other professional reviews, such as those at Meathead’s AmazingRibs.com, and analyzed online customer reviews of dozens of models. The large grilling area fits up to 15 burgers or 20 sausages so that the entire meal is grilled, and everyone gets to eat, at the same time. If you are looking for a specific model/item, please call to inquire.
Lesley Stockton is a senior staff writer reporting on all things cooking and entertaining for Wirecutter. Her expertise builds on a lifelong career in the culinary world—from a restaurant cook and caterer to a food editor at Martha Stewart. She is perfectly happy to leave all that behind to be a full-time kitchen-gear nerd. Even after loading the Jumbo Joe grill with a full chimney starter’s worth of red-hot embers (about 90 briquettes), we could still tamp down the temperature to medium heat. We couldn’t do that with the 14-inch Weber Smokey Joe Charcoal Grill, where the single vent and the lack of airflow caused the coals to extinguish while we were cooking.