Weber Performer Deluxe Charcoal Grill, 22-Inch, Touch-N-Go Gas Ignition System, Black

This is the best grill. We purchased a previous model more than 10 years ago and are just now replacing it. I love grilling with lump coal but hate the lighter fluid taste. This grill has a self lighting feature that is just perfect. We have smoked, grilled and roasted everything from veggies to wild game in this kettle.. using lump coal, charcoal and even just a wood fire. The counter top is metal on this one. The previous one was plastic but held up very well. There is also a bin to hold charcoal and smoking chips. This grill looks good, works like a charm and is of excellent quality. It was easy to put together and is pretty light considering how well it is made. The footprint is easy to accommodate and it will grill up enough for a big party. I would say this grill is worth every penny and would definitely purchase it again.

I started with charcoal grilling on a Weber kettle and always loved it but wanted more work space. The Performer Deluxe has work space in spades, and I love it! This is a well known grill, so I won't get too wordy. As a summary for those with short attention spans, just buy this grill, I can't see you regretting the purchase, there is just so much to love. And now for the pro/con list:Pros:Huge work surface is my favorite feature. It is no longer plastic, but a texture painted metal and very sturdy. Plenty of room to have plates laid out ready to receive burgers, franks, etc.. You can have your foil/paper laid out, plop your pork butt, ribs, brisket onto it, juice it, wrap it up, and back on the grill in moments. No walking to a work surface, it's right there!Much more stable than the kettle. I always worry about the kids knocking the kettle over, but this thing is solid as a rock. I don't worry when rolling it with lit charcoal like with the Kettle.Weber customer service. Have a problem? Weber will make it right. Mine came with a broken leg support. A short call to Weber and they sent me a new one.Weber build quality. This thing is built really well, and well thought out too. They are always improving little details. For instance, the lid on this model now sits more upright when put in the holder so that it doesn't get in your way as much as the previous model. I would still have liked to see a lid hanger on the inside of the lid, more on that in the Cons section.The hole in the center of the grate and hinged sides give you all the access you could need to your fuel grate during a cook. I use the snake/fuse method when smoking and not having to take the grate off to extend the snake is really nice.Push button lighting of your charcoal! This is a much larger benefit than I thought it would be. No more bits of burning paper and ash flying around, no more lighter, matches, torches, whatever...just turn the dial, push the button, and you have flame on your charcoal. It lights the charcoal faster and more thoroughly than the paper method does too, so you reduce your startup time by a good 5 minutes. If you grill as much as I do this adds up. And if you are one of those people that use lighter fluid then stop reading this and BUY THIS NOW.The ash pan is a must have, especially if it is windy where you live. Keeps embers and ashes from blowing around.The fuel bin is a handy spot to store charcoal and a spare propane cylinder.Excellent warranty.Cons:Screws for lid holder protrude into the kettle in a way that can interfere with grate removal/replacement. Not in a big way, but still can be annoying.Hooks for tools on the front aren't as useful as the hooks on the handles of the kettles. Still, I have tried to figure out what I would do differently and couldn't see a better way of doing it.No lid on fuel bin. Seems like a no-brainer to me. Spiders and such won't get in if there is a lid, this doesn't have one. You can use a bin liner and a bungee cord as a makeshift lid if you want.No hook on inside of lid. It's not a bid deal since you have the great lid basket, but it seems like they should have left the classic hanger hook on the inside of the lid so you could hang it low if you wanted to. I asked Weber why they removed it and the nice lady said she didn't know.The bottom shelf doesn't give you much storage space as there is a bin, tools hanging, and the ash pan taking up most of the access to the shelf. It is good for keeping accessories like rib racks and such on, but not super useful because of the limited access.Still no markings on the bottom vent slider to show how open/closed the vents are. You would think this would be easy for them to do, and since you can't see your vents a lot of the time it would be very handy. Just use a sharpie and mark 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100 percent open on the metal. Then you will have a very good idea of how your vent is set when you cant actually see it. Because of the shape of the vent lobes the markings won't be linear, but it's easy enough to eyeball.Larger and heavier than the Kettle. Not easy to take to the lake like the Kettle. But really, portability is what the Smokey Joe excels at, so just buy a Joe and use it for travel.Overall, my cons are small and almost nitpicks. The fact remains that this is the best grill I have ever used, bar none. You can grill, braise, broil, smoke, and cook low and slow. I've made some amazing food on this grill, and I'll be doing it for years to come since this grill is built to last.

Sturdy, solid, heavy. The bin keeps the charcoal neat and always on hand. Larger wheels roll, effortlessly. Easy to maneuver. Plane Jane, cheap, Weber, charcoal baskets make it a breeze for anyone to use. Upgrade your grates when you want to branch out from the “GBS”, some people prefer smoker tubes, snake methods, Slow n Sears, inserts; don’t get caught up thinking about all the additional accessories; you’re going to overwhelm yourself. Do what you know, learn what you want to know, then do what you know you want to do. The various combinations of accessories and add-on’s, hacks, mods, customizations, the list goes on. Just get a good, wired, 2 temp probe setup; one for the temp at the actual grilling surface, the other for a piece of meat. The temp at the top of the lid, where the built in temp gauge sits, is very different form what is present on the cooking grate.These 22 and 26 inch kettles allow for varied cooking styles and methods. The feature set is increased with with the addition of a few of the accessories that people are trying to push. I use a Vortex, Weber baskets for short, low, small jobs; I even smoked a brined and spatchcock turkey, on a single Weber basket, with only 4-5 briquettes lit in one corner, loaded a 1/4 or so of a Weber chimney, after the initially, lit coals had greyed over and were ready to cook. Close the lid and wait for it to reach your low temp range, keeping in mind to wait 10-15 mins for the temp to respond to the changes you made. It doesn’t take much fussing with the dampers to find the range you need. Toss in a chunk or 2 of some mesquite and apple, pecan, hickory and cherry, and oak. Don’t overdo it with the smoke! There is a such thing as too much smoke.I’ve read that some reviewers claim temp management is difficult due to the additional hole in the bottom half, for the propane burner. I’m in breezy FL and haven’t had any issues whatsoever.Please get a good wired temp probe set. STOP lifting the lid to check on things. Manage the fire, control the heat, KNOW the current temp of the meat your cooking, and know it’s target temp, keeping in mind that the heat will continue to rise some for up 10-15 minutes later. Leave the lid be, leave it.The lid holder is only, slightly improved, yet it makes a world of difference in the position of the lid. It is more straight up and down, and out of the way, offering more access to the grilling space.Propane lighting feature will be a plus for some. I may find a use for it one day. I used it to do my initial burn, upon completion of the burner test, after install.I was missing several parts when the package arrived. Neatly packed, sealed, not pilfered. I messaged Amazon and they offered to send a replacement, but it’d take some time. I called up Weber, and the rep registered my warranty, after I detailed the parts needed. Said the parts would be shipped out in 2-3 weeks; Weber was updating warehouse management software. My parts arrived a few days early. Now, this is the grill I’m going to use for a very long time.

3rd one I've owned over the past nearly 40 yrs. I would not have anything else.