Weber 3780001 Genesis S-320 Propane Gas Grill, Stainless Steel

If there's one thing I like just as much as pizza, it's a BBQ. I love to grill, and I finally decided to go and get a nice grill. The Weber S320 definitely qualifies as "nice grill". Compared to the cheapo Char-Broil grill I had before, the difference is night and day.

The S320 is very sturdy, with a welded box frame and liberal usage of screws. The assembly instructions make it easy to put together - you only need a couple basic hand tools. The grills themselves are nice and thick, so they retain heat which assists in searing. A lot of grills nowadays seem to opt for grills made from thin gauge metal. You don't want thin grills, you want THICK metal grills that get hot and stay hot while you are cooking.

Cooking performance is excellent. Yeah, the BTU output rating is lower than some other grills in the $800 price range, but guess what, the grill heats evenly across the entire grilling surface whereas most grills have hot spots and cool spots. Heat it up to about 400 degrees before you start cooking, takes about 3-5 minutes, and you'll be good to go.

The one thing I was skeptical about was the lack of lava rocks. Lava rocks hands down make the most smoke, and smoke is what gives your food that distinct BBQ taste. The S320 has metal bars above the burners that burn off drippings to make smoke. They work well if you let them get red-hot first, which happens if you preheat the grill like you are supposed to before cooking.

The only problem I had with this grill is shipping. It was delivered by "Eagle", and the grill itself was damaged on arrival. Now you have a 200 pound package sitting in your driveway or wherever they "dropped" it (dropped literally, in my case), returning it is something you don't wanna do unless absolutely necessary. The damage to my grill was in the frame being bent, along with quite a bit of scratching on the side of the hood. I was able to fix the bent frame with a little brute force, but my hood is scarred for life.

None of that affected the performance of the grill, so I can't complain too much...but I hope that Amazon takes a closer look at who they choose as their shipping partners. I'm knocking off 1 star because of that - not for the grill, but Amazon's questionable choice in shipping providers. I am disappointed that my brand new grill that I paid full price for is essentially a "scratch and dent". We'll see if Amazon makes it up to me or not.

The reason I bought this bbq was 1) it was rated the best bbq between $500 and $1000 by most all rating bureau's, 2) it uses high quality 302 s/s, 3) has s/s cooking racks which to me are easier to clean, 4) its a very pretty bbq, and 5) it's a Weber, made in the US. The E-320, with colored panels, in my opinon, isn't as nice looking as the s/s unit.

I bought this bbq from Amazon about 10 days ago. It was shipped for free via Eagle Transportation. I think Amazon realized large items shipped UPS were arriving damaged. At least the few large items I previously ordered and shipped UPS arrived that way. The shipping estimate was 10-14 days with the free option. Four days after I saw that the item was shipped I received a call from Eagle's Los Angeles depot asking me when I wanted it delivered. I couldn't believe that ! I told them the next day. They gave me a time frame, 10-1, asking if that was agreeable. At 11 Eagle arrived, off loaded my bbq in one huge box and asked where I wanted it. The box was completely intact and undamaged. I've never encountered that kind of service from any carrier. Cudos to Amazon on choosing this shipper.

Now, the bbq. Weber's Genesis S-320 LP. I'm a very handy guy with a garage full of tools. I unpacked all the parts and had them spread out on a blanket so I wouldn't scratch them on the cement floor. Everyone's greatest dread is the assembly instructions usually done in a foreign country and poorly translated in to English. But, since Weber is made in the USA, I found the step by step numbered instructions very easy to follow. All the little screws, washers, and bolts were nicely packaged and oh my goodness... they were all there. There were no shortages of any parts. One or two extras in a package would have been nice since I usually drop one of something and lose it somewhere under a bench in the garage. Anyway, the bbq went together effortlessly. I had my propane tank filled and used the weight hanger inside the stand which showed the tank was full. Another nice touch.

Now for the good part; using it. I did that tonight for the first time on Mother's Day. I thought that was appropriate. Anyway, I made cheesburgers - one of my most favorite bbq foods. I read the instructions on how Weber thought hamburgers should be cooked; medium heat with the lid down. They recommend always keeping hte lid down to cook and only opening it to turn the food or check to see if it's done. I also used the side burner just because... it's there. I've never had a bbq with a side burner and found it handy but a space hog. The bbq did what it is intended to do very well. It cooked my burgers in record time with the lid down. We also cooked corn on the cob wrapped in tin foil in the grill at the same time. Everything turned out great.

Now, my trivial gripes. The right side table has all the controls. That only leaves a very small amount of space between the control knobs and the bbq as a useable work area. One should be careful placing items in that area because being so close to the bbq it does tend to get a bit warm. I don't know why Weber couldn't put the controls on the front of the bbq leaving two nice sized working platforms. I found that a bit irritating especially when I used the left side burner. I had no place to set down plates, platters, etc. I had to pull up another small table. I don't know how often I'll actually use the side burner. If I don't use it ofen which I probably won't then it's really not an issue.

Did I say gripes? Well that's all I can think of. Overall, I'm very happy with the Weber Genesis S-320. I like it, alot. Would I buy it again if I only wanted to spend around $750?? You bet ! I can see why it's rated highly in all the reviews. And, you get Webers great guarantee and customer service. Go for it...you won't be disappointed.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at: chuxter31@roadrunner.com