Weber 3741001 Genesis E-310 Propane Gas Grill, Black

We bought this recently from a local home supply store (shipping from Amazon, even though essentially free, seemed a bit much). Works very well. Solid.

One point that needs to be made is the choice of grates. Since this is where the meat hits the road, it is an important consideration. Weber offers three choices, although that is not very apparent from this site. All offer pros and cons.

The stainless steel is certainly the spiffiest looking and cleans up well. Wear is not a problem with stainless steel. Low maintenance.

Likewise the porcelain covered cast iron. Not as bright as stainless. You're also supposed to use a special cleaning pad, according to the Weber instructions. I imagine that like an porcelain covered cast iron pot, the porcelain may chip over time.

However, temperature is an issue with these two options. Look to a Cook's Illustrated test of gas grills. They measured the recovery time for these two types of grates as well as cast iron. For the stainless steel and porcelain covered cast iron, the recovery time was slow. This means that the grate's temperature will drop when you place the food on the grill and not recover very quickly. This could be a concern for creating a crust or carmelization.

The cast iron grate is the third alternative (and the one I chose, after much searching). As the Cook's Illustrated test showed, the temperature drop for the cast iron was much less than the alternatives. This makes sense if you ever use cast iron skillets on the stove.

Cast iron has some downsides. You must season it and keep seasoning it for awhile. Again, if you've ever used a new cast iron skillet on the stove, you know that while the seasoning process is a hassle at first, persistence pays off with a virtually non-stick surface after awhile. Cast iron takes a bit longer to heat up (but retains heat longer). Failure to season or leaving exposed to the elements will result in rust (not the end of the world, just wire brush it off and re-season).

I researched grills for about a month until I laid eyes on this beauty. I just got this grill the other day and it took me about an hour to set up by myself. I was extremely impressed with the quality and kept saying wow, as I put it together. This is a manly mans grill and it felt like the toy I always wanted for christmas feeling. My neighbors are all like...wow what a grill, it looks so cool. I just cooked my first steak on it and it was so good I took a picture of how it looked. The grill reached 500 degrees in no time and the cast iron grates seared the meat to perfection. I recommend this to anyone looking for an excellent grill at a great price.

Great grill so far. I've used it about 8 times since getting it about a month ago. Although I'm a novice at gas grills, the one thing I have noticed is almost no flare ups. I've seen people grill with older webers that have a water bottle sitting on the side of the grill ready for the flare ups. I've had none. The grill is nice looking and well built. I plan on having years and years of use out of this grill!

There's really nothing more that can be said to further the reputation of this series of grills. Those of us that own the Genesis E-310 series grill know how well this grill is manufactured, and just how very well it performs its duties. It is, by far, the very best gas grill in this price range I have ever owned or used. A couple of notes:
-The cross-over ignition system works wonderfully (it takes less than 3 seconds to fire up all three burners
-Those who say that their gas grill does not get hot enough to sear meats don't own this grill- I've had it up to 550 degrees on a very cold MN winter day
-That said, it seems to go through a good amount of propane when running all 3 burners on high...but that is probably obvious considering the temps you can obtain when running it on full. (It will be interesting to see if I can get 500 + degrees to sear meats on medium setting on a summer day....). The fuel gauge inside the cabinet is also a handy feature
-As always with this series of grills- No Flare ups, and the flavorizer bars do what Weber says they will, namely vaporize fats and juices into smoke that adds flavor to what you are grilling
-To keep this review balanced, there is one negative- I dislike the tool holders. Although there are plenty, your tools pretty much have to have one of those leather hanging loop things to keep the tools from falling off or even to use the holders (a small price to pay I guess)

Finally, the Genesis E-310 I purchased came in a copper color, something I haven't seen on Amazon, or on Weber's site for that matter. Maybe I missed it, or maybe I got lucky. Either way, it looks pretty darn sharp on our deck when it isn't covered.