The Traveler’s single 13,000 BTU burner — which wraps around the entirety of the grill — gives off some serious heat. The grill is powered by small 1-pound liquid-propane tanks, which can be purchased for around $6 at stores that carry sporting goods and camping gear. It can also be hooked up to a larger-sized propane tank with the purchase of a separate adapter.
Through Bread Pay™, we offer easy and affordable financing options so you can pay for your purchase over time. In other words, you don’t have to be The Rock to unfold the grill and get it upright (but reading the directions wouldn’t hurt). As we’ve come to expect from Weber, The Traveler weber portable gas grill is a very intentionally built grill that checks all the boxes in terms of quality. Greg Baker is an award-winning chef, restaurateur, and food writer with four decades of experience in the food industry. His written work appears in Food & Wine, Food Republic, and other publications.
If the controls weren’t precise enough, there are two digital thermometer probes so that you know exactly when your meat’s internal temperature has reached the perfect point. There’s no need for piezo buttons, a lighter, or starter fluid with this grill because the ignitor is electric. The Roadtrip is a bulky grill compared to many of its rivals in this review, and it relies heavily on wheels for transport. Weighing in at 47 pounds, it’s not very fun to transport it much further than in and out of a truck bed. The weight and bulk definitely detract from its overall portability.
The Char-Broil Grill2Go X200 Portable Gas Grill is a solid compact grill for remote cookouts because it’s rugged, lightweight, and easy to carry. It’s not as good as our Weber picks at searing food, but it heats evenly and is easy to use. They’re commonly constructed from thin porcelainized steel with thin wire-rod grilling grates. This simple construction is what makes them budget friendly and lighter weight. And with proper care, a charcoal grill should still last for many years.
It has a small footprint, and you can clear it away when it’s not in use. Just be sure you’re allowed to cook with an open flame where you live before you pick one up. There is an integrated drip tray at the unit’s base for grease collection. It’s easily accessible, simple to remove and replace, and can be washed with soapy water. Secondly, it only has 5 or 6 inches of space between the grate and the grill lid.
Either that, or carry extra fuel canisters that take up space and create more waste. Smaller grills in the 100- to 150-square-inch range are suitable for one or two people, maybe three in a stretch. First, assembly is a non-issue, as it consists of lining up the grates after taking the grill out of the box, and it took longer to unpack than to make it ready to cook. The cast aluminum body, top, and cast iron grates are built to last, and the included Flipkit turns the two-piece top and bottom into two hibachi grills that double your cooking area. Performance-wise, it cooks consistently across the grates without hot or cool spots. While it is one of the heavier grills we tested, the wheels make moving the grill around a simple task.
But like any gas grill, you can add a smoke tube or foil packet of wood chips to add a hint of smoke to anything you are grilling. Firstly, because it only has a single burner, you cannot create an indirect heat zone. So you can only really grill things with direct heat, you cannot weber portable grill slow roast on it. I did find the outer edges on the left and right were slightly cooler than the middle section of the grill, but it’s not a big issue as the grill is so spacious. You could even say this is handy so you can move things around a bit to speed up or slow cooking.
Cuisinart is better known for kitchen appliances than grills, so it makes sense this petite model is designed with an eye toward food prep, not just grilling. It packs up neatly, with a wooden lid that doubles as a cutting board. It’s made for use with a small propane tank (and does not come with an adapter for larger tanks), which can be stored underneath the firebox when packed up. One tester noted that the cast iron grates produced enviably golden-brown sear on a steak, although the surface of the grill did not produce consistent heat, which resulted in burning in some places. Unlike most of the charcoal models reviewed here, the Masterbuilt features a charcoal hopper and fan to regulate its temperature, similar to a pellet grill. While it’s 52 pounds, it’s easy to move for such a heavy grill, thanks to its stand and wheels.