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If those beef skewers aren’t already in the package, it’s not convenient enough for me.
Um, these are hugely popular all over the world. What’s the deal?
I hear you have to microwave those for a coupla minutes before lighting.
Yeah, used these all the time when I lived in London. Most people there don’t have the space to store a big grill that won’t be used 9 months out of the year.
They’re not as wasteful as they sound: The packaging that is left after use crushes down to almost nothing.
I would think those would be pretty useful for tailgating and car camping, if one didn’t do those things frequently enough to invest in a non-disposable mini-grill. Maybe hiking/backpacking too, depending on how heavy they are and how much trash there is to pack out.
Perfect for “tailgating”? Is this a Texas thing? I’m imagining a bunch of teenagers drinking Lucky, smoking pot and doing burnouts down at the quarry. Not the sort of thing that’s usually followed by kebabs on the grill, but maybe the hicks I know need to class it up a bit.
Where can I buy these things?
We got one on a hiking trip we took in Georgia. We had flown down, and we (perhaps wastefully?) didn’t take our grill on the plane with us. There’s about as much aluminum in one of these things as a can or two of soda. Wasteful, I guess, but not really over-the-top.
NOT. CONVENIENT. ENOUGH.
I want to buy disposable effort.
@8 — Ha, think more “football stadium parking lot” and less “hicks on the tailgate of their pickup”. :>
@7: Have you used one? I agree with your sentiments generally, but for these things it is ridiculously overstated. The package consists of a tin-foil tray containing charcoal brickets. Overlaid on this is a fine metal mesh covered by impregnated paper description, which doubles as the fire-lighter. After use all that is left is the metal, which amounts to a couple of soda cans. Completely recyclable I imagine. Do you drink soda?
@9: In England they sell ’em at gas stations for some reason. Here, I have no idea 🙂
@9 http://tinyurl.com/ye6398l
Can we all agree to stop using hyperbolic phrases like, “killing the planet” (@7) and “‘Convenience” is bring death to us all?” It is that sort of boorish, purple language that turns people off environmentalism.
A small hibachi isn’t practical for all people. I would love to have one, but live in a downtown apartment with no balcony or exterior storage and wouldn’t feel comfortable storing a hibachi in my place.
Using a product like this and recycling its metal parts after use, once or twice during the summer months wouldn’t “kill the planet,” nor is it a “‘Convenience’ is bring death to us all.” It’s a good solution for city dwellers that want to BBQ now and again but don’t live in dwellings that allow for hibachis or other reusable grills.
@2 ftw
The company that makes those things probably considers their workers disposable too.
I’ve seen these all over the place: the Harvard QFC even had some last summer.
Regardless of environmental concerns, I’ve tried to use these a couple of times and my biggest complaint is that, because they are in fact made with the equivalent of about three soda cans worth of aluminum (think your basic disposable roasting pan) they’re flimsy as all get-out, and the so-called metal “legs” (thinner in gauge than a wire coat-hanger) can barely hold up the weight of the grill itself: put a few hot dogs or drumsticks, or a couple of small steaks on it, and it’ll start to collapse, which can be very problematic if you’ve already lit the thing and set it on a wooden picnic table for instance.
For the price of maybe three of these things (seems like they ran around $10.00 a piece), you can get a cheap stamped metal hibachi that will last considerably longer, and not dump your burgers onto the ground in a light breeze, or scorch the top of your outdoor table when the whole schmear collapses.
But, for my money, if you want portability, convenience and durability all rolled into one, get yourself one of these bad boys. It’s completely portable, made of heavy cast iron, rather than thin stamped steel, so it holds and directs heat much more efficiently, is a breeze to get started, using the same principle as a charcoal chimney, and is even self-cleaning! (And definitely spring extra $$ for the fireproof “snuff-out pouch”, which will make transporting easier and also save a bit of your unused charcoal.)
This is the second one I’ve owned, and I’ve packed it around for nearly 20 years. Except for losing the knob to the ash tray (which was easily replaced), the thing is pretty much indestructible. For the price of seven or eight of those cheap, one-use-only disposable grills, you can get a mini-grill that will last for hundreds, if not thousands of usages.
@ 15, your comment raises the question… If you don’t have a balcony or any outdoor space, where are you going to use one of these?
@ 18, are you crazy? You would set one of these up on a WOODEN picnic table?
@18, that is the coolest thing I’ve ever seen.
Except maybe this, which isn’t a grill (but is, in fact, saving the world).
@15:
If space/storage issues are your biggest concern, see my post above. When folded up in its pouch this thing takes up less space than a small trash receptacle, so it’s really easy to tuck away in just about any small apartment closet or cupboard.
We used these when I lived in Europe. I think the main reason people use them is that starting cooking fires in parks and on beaches isn’t always allowed.
I really don’t think these are a big deal in any way.
I saw these all over Oslo and Copenhagen when I was there a few years back and, at the time, wondered why we didn’t have them too. I guess it has something to do with the whole ‘two months of daylight/warmth’ thing they have going there. No one owns a proper BBQ. But these are great for picnics in the park. I’ll keep my Webers though.
@19:
Yeah, just like they show on their packaging and advertising and on their web site…
@20:
That IS pretty cool! Too bad they’re not available in the states, ’cause I would totally use that, either for car camping or for outdoor summer cooking – I bet you could whip up a hefty pot of chili on that thing!
@ 24, that’s smart. If it’s on their marketing materials, then it must be okay.
@ 24, further, you can’t tell what those tables are made of under those tablecloths…
This is all you need — an improvement over the metal grid held up by four beer cans we used to use. Takes up no space once you fold the legs. You need a surface you can burn charcoal on, such as sand or concrete:
http://www.walmart.com
/catalog/product.do?
product_id=8586945
@25/26:
Can you say “product liability lawsuit?” I knew you could.
Besides, whatever that picnic table is made of (and how often do you see a heat-resistant picnic table in a public park anyway?) is irrelevant, because I’ll bet dollars to donut holes the plastic tablecloth it’s sitting on in those photos isn’t flame retardant either.
Most hibachis get used a few times and then sit in a garage for years until they’re finally tossed. Just about as wasteful…
@ 28, you’re not a lawyer (that I know of anyway, so correct me if I’m wrong), so don’t take it personally if I disregard your opinion as to whether this constitutes product liability or not.
The original question was, do YOU do this? It kinda sounds like you don’t, but you’re the one who specifically talked about putting it on wooden picnic tables.
@ 19 I would use this, if I used it, at a public park/beach.
@ 21 It isn’t so much a issue of space as not wanting my apartment to smell like a used BBQ!
“Give me convenience or give me death”
Looks like you’ll get both in one handy package!
Used these in Sweden- very handy for a bbq at the park. Just be careful or you will catch the picnic table on fire! (not as much fun as it sounds)
Totally used one of these camping last summer with friends. It can’t touch the ground so we used four empty beer cans to place underneath it.
This makes me want to vomit blood.
Comte @24, then try this. Not as efficient as the Envirofit, but close. These stoves were designed for the third world, where wood and charcoal are major sources of deforestation (which we’re seeing the consequences of in Haiti right now). To be able to boil water and then simmer a meal for an hour with two sticks of wood is a huge improvement over traditional stoves.