Outdoor Kitchen

[Mike Davila]

Planning a new Outdoor Kitchen - Any advice?
I currently have 4 grills; A Gas Costco SS Model, small infrared Solaire (was a gift - don't care for it), A Bradley Smoker and a round Weber charcoal grill.

The Weber is the best overall, but I need gas for when I want to grill something quickly without the set-up/clean-up; the Bradley is the easiest smoker to use, but it lacks real chargrilled flavor IMHO.
Want to be able to grill (both gas and charcoal) and smoke; maybe some sort of a wood fired oven or a salamander.

One contractor has recommended the Luxor line for the gas grill, very similar to the Lynx except for the burner - anyone out there have one?

I still want a charcoal device, thinking about a good quality side box grill, so I could smoke or do steaks over charcoal. I considered a pellet type grill, but I don't think that gives me a good non-gas grilling option.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

[Bob Wood]

[Mike Davila]

Works for the hardwood/charcoal grill component; possibly a little more than I need for the wife and I, but it would take care of the large family christmas gatherings.....

[jimmie wellman]

Bob, that looks like the set up at The Hitching Post. I'd love to have one of those.

[keith reame]

Mike,
I have a Weber gas start kettle charcoal grill, A Weber genesis gas grill and a Weber smokey mountain cooker. Although not really for a built for outdoor kitchen, I can cook anything the wifey throws at me. They last forever and although not perfect, my three Webers do a bang up job. I purchased some older ones and rebuilt them and gave them to my sons. They have another 20 years of life life in them.

[Bob Wood]

Bob, that looks like the set up at The Hitching Post. I'd love to have one of those.

That's 'cause it IS the setup at the Hitching Post. I just thought I'd have a bit of fun.

Oh, did I mention I have Frank envy?

[Mark.Ricca]

Kalamazoo just introduced this hybrid:

http://kalamazoogourmet.com/products/hybrid-fire-grill

Don't know a thing about it, but it sounds like it's what you're looking for.

[Tom Moore]

Dont forget a pizza oven, can't live on bbq alone!

[Jeff_Davis]

I can't speak to the Luxor line, but I have a Lynx and I absolutely love it for gas. I went for the quick-sear burner and it is super-hot, fast, and puts a terrific sear on meat.

[John Davis]

Kalamazoo just introduced this hybrid:

http://kalamazoogourmet.com/products/hybrid-fire-grill

Don't know a thing about it, but it sounds like it's what you're looking for.

I don't have the above but Kalamazoo makes a great product. Very expensive but my gas grill is by far the best I've ever owned. Very solid and very, very heavy.

JD

[Mike Davila]

Mike,
I have a Weber gas start kettle charcoal grill, A Weber genesis gas grill and a Weber smokey mountain cooker. Although not really for a built for outdoor kitchen, I can cook anything the wifey throws at me. They last forever and although not perfect, my three Webers do a bang up job. I purchased some older ones and rebuilt them and gave them to my sons. They have another 20 years of life life in them.

I had a weber gas grill with cast iron grates as my first gas grill, really liked it because it got real hot and the grates held the heat. Gave it away to a friend when I got the Costco SS model and while the Costco is pretty good, I miss those CI grates
I'll admit I had not considered going back to a gas weber I'll take a look
Thanks

[Mike Davila]

Re: Outdoor Kitchen
by Tom Moore » Mon Mar 05, 2012 2:21 pm
Dont forget a pizza oven, can't live on bbq alone!

Yeah I'm think inking about some sort of a wood fired oven.
Right now I cook pizza with the dough directly on my gas grill.
With a WF oven I could do the pizza plus roast things like fish.
Any recommendations?

[Mike Davila]

Post Number:#9  by Jeff_Davis » Mon Mar 05, 2012 2:23 pm
I can't speak to the Luxor line, but I have a Lynx and I absolutely love it for gas. I went for the quick-sear burner and it is super-hot, fast, and puts a terrific sear on meat.
Jeff_Davis

I was a cook at a Steak & Ale in High School and starting off in college. The grills were a lot like the lynx with the cast brass burners which will last a lifetime, had the lava rock but cast iron grates. The Luxor is very similar to the lynx but has SS burners. I need to look at the BTU output, one item I liked the Luxor has a separate burner for the smoke so you can "cold" smoke. The Luxor also has a quick sear burner option. What size do you have? I was looking at the 42" model.

[Mike Davila]

Post Number:#7  by Mark.Ricca » Mon Mar 05, 2012 10:49 am
Kalamazoo just introduced this hybrid:

http://kalamazoogourmet.com/products/hybrid-fire-grill

Don't know a thing about it, but it sounds like it's what you're looking for.

by John Davis » Mon Mar 05, 2012 3:14 pm
Mark.Ricca wrote:
Kalamazoo just introduced this hybrid:

http://kalamazoogourmet.com/products/hybrid-fire-grill

Don't know a thing about it, but it sounds like it's what you're looking for.


I don't have the above but Kalamazoo makes a great product. Very expensive but my gas grill is by far the best I've ever owned. Very solid and very, very heavy.

JD

I'll look into both - JD does the gas grill get really hot for searing?
Still want the true smoking component, that's why I'm thinking the sidebox may make sense. Build in the gas grill but the sidebox could stand alone.

[John Davis]

I have a searing burner and, yes, it gets hot. It is by far the hottest burner I've ever had on a gas grill and I've had a few grills. I have a smoking box and it works but it isn't a smoker though.

[jimmie wellman]

Re: Outdoor Kitchen
by Tom Moore » Mon Mar 05, 2012 2:21 pm
Dont forget a pizza oven, can't live on bbq alone!

Yeah I'm think inking about some sort of a wood fired oven.
Right now I cook pizza with the dough directly on my gas grill.
With a WF oven I could do the pizza plus roast things like fish.
Any recommendations?

We have an Earthstone and use it regularly; I think it's a Model 90.

http://www.earthstoneovens.com/resoven_modular.shtml

[Paul Bacino]

Mike,

Consider making one of these portable Planchas!! Stainless Steel



Best thing I added to my outside grilling!!

Paul

[Jeff_Davis]

Post Number:#9  by Jeff_Davis » Mon Mar 05, 2012 2:23 pm
I can't speak to the Luxor line, but I have a Lynx and I absolutely love it for gas. I went for the quick-sear burner and it is super-hot, fast, and puts a terrific sear on meat.
Jeff_Davis

I was a cook at a Steak & Ale in High School and starting off in college. The grills were a lot like the lynx with the cast brass burners which will last a lifetime, had the lava rock but cast iron grates. The Luxor is very similar to the lynx but has SS burners. I need to look at the BTU output, one item I liked the Luxor has a separate burner for the smoke so you can "cold" smoke. The Luxor also has a quick sear burner option. What size do you have? I was looking at the 42" model.

In a rare moment of control, I went with the 36" plus a side burner. I looked at the 42", but was able to talk myself back into control! As long as an entire marine regminet doesn't show up at the same time, I should be good! I've never attempted any cold smoking, but otherwise, the Lynx has performed perfectly. The cast-brass bruners were a big plus in my decision for the reason you noted.

[Mike Opdahl]

Just got done building my outdoor kitchen, here are my recs:
1. I own a Lynx grill--one of the first ones ever made (almost 20 years old). Aside from about $500 in repairs/replacements over the past 15 years (briquets every 3 years, a couple of broken knobs, redid the spark wiring this year) it works like new. You can find them used on ebay & CL, and they last forever. Mine has the 2 side burners which I REALLy like, and use all the time. Also, in the construction converted from propane to NG & it is 1000x easier to live with.
2. Wood fired oven just adds a whole new element to the outdoor experience. We use ours about 2x a week. Basically every get together becomes a pizza party, plus the steaks cooked in WFO are about 10x better than the grill. Prior to WFO I was using the cast iron skillets in the Lynx (gets up to about 650-700 degrees) & was getting a decent result, but cooking at 800-950 degrees is just better. You can buy a pre-cast WFO from Forno Bravo (their forums are the Beserkers of the WFO world) or have a contractor build your own. Go bigger---we did a 44" internal & it easily handles 2-3 pizzas + side stuff with ease.
3. I did go with a sink & water for the outdoor kitchen & it is a huge improvement--a must have IMHO.
4. Ditto with cabinet/storage areas---just makes it easier.
5. I skipped the outdoor fridge--just budget/room & couldn't find one with good dependability at a decent price.
6. Lastly, back to the Lynx, I've taken to cooking all of my fish on my old pizza stone---just produces a better, moister end result vs tossing it on the grill.

[dennis.coronado]

I don't use my Weber 660 since I bought a Green Mountain Grill (pellet grill). Weber will go up for sale after I get a chance to clean it.

[Mike Davila]

by jimmie wellman » Tue Mar 06, 2012 12:09 pm
We have an Earthstone and use it regularly; I think it's a Model 90.

http://www.earthstoneovens.com/resoven_modular.shtml

I have to get an oak fired oven, the model 90 weighs 1200 lbs! I'll look into this one further
Thanks Jimmie,
Mike.

by Jeff_Davis » Tue Mar 06, 2012 2:35 pm
In a rare moment of control, I went with the 36" plus a side burner. I looked at the 42", but was able to talk myself back into control! As long as an entire marine regminet doesn't show up at the same time, I should be good! I've never attempted any cold smoking, but otherwise, the Lynx has performed perfectly. The cast-brass bruners were a big plus in my decision for the reason you noted.

Jeff,
I'm thinking a 36" wouild work too, except for the annual family invasions, and the wine consumption is always valuable for a distracting tactic if I dont have enough space.

by Mike Opdahl » Tue Mar 06, 2012 4:08 pm

Just got done building my outdoor kitchen, here are my recs:
1. I own a Lynx grill--one of the first ones ever made (almost 20 years old). Aside from about $500 in repairs/replacements over the past 15 years (briquets every 3 years, a couple of broken knobs, redid the spark wiring this year) it works like new. You can find them used on ebay & CL, and they last forever. Mine has the 2 side burners which I REALLy like, and use all the time. Also, in the construction converted from propane to NG & it is 1000x easier to live with.
2. Wood fired oven just adds a whole new element to the outdoor experience. We use ours about 2x a week. Basically every get together becomes a pizza party, plus the steaks cooked in WFO are about 10x better than the grill. Prior to WFO I was using the cast iron skillets in the Lynx (gets up to about 650-700 degrees) & was getting a decent result, but cooking at 800-950 degrees is just better. You can buy a pre-cast WFO from Forno Bravo (their forums are the Beserkers of the WFO world) or have a contractor build your own. Go bigger---we did a 44" internal & it easily handles 2-3 pizzas + side stuff with ease.
3. I did go with a sink & water for the outdoor kitchen & it is a huge improvement--a must have IMHO.
4. Ditto with cabinet/storage areas---just makes it easier.
5. I skipped the outdoor fridge--just budget/room & couldn't find one with good dependability at a decent price.
6. Lastly, back to the Lynx, I've taken to cooking all of my fish on my old pizza stone---just produces a better, moister end result vs tossing it on the grill.

Mike,
I think this settled it; for built-ins a Lynx plus a wood oven, and I’ll find a side box grill/smoker for the pork butts and whole turkeys. Also doing the sink, we are calling it a dry sink for permitting reasons. The wife wants a fridge, I don’t think we'll use it, but not arguing at this point though.

Is there a make for your oven or was it something custom?
Jimmie's looked pretty good, and i have not really been researching ovens.

To all of those who responded,
Would really like to thank everyone for their input - truly what makes a board great.
I'll see what the pain is and will post some pics when she's done.

Thanks again everyone.

[Mike Davila]

Finished the outdoor kitchen. First grilled meal was tonight on my birthday.
Special thanks to Jimmie (earthstone wood oven) and Jeff and Mike (Lynx).
Still curing the oven.
If I could figure out how to I would upload a pic.

[Charlie Fu (Online)]

what'd you end up doing? any photos?

[Mike Davila]

what'd you end up doing? any photos?

Can't figure out how to upload photos.
When I click the upload attachments the file name area is grayed out.

[M Hudson (Online)]

Mike I know your done, but the fec line of pellet smokers are by far the best going. I have owned a variety of both traditional grills, smokers, and pellet grills, and my fec100 makes them all pale by comparison.

If I wanted more grilling and less smoking a fec 1000 would be my choice.

[Mike Davila]

Mike I know your done, but the fec line of pellet smokers are by far the best going. I have owned a variety of both traditional grills, smokers, and pellet grills, and my fec100 makes them all pale by comparison.

If I wanted more grilling and less smoking a fec 1000 would be my choice.

Does it smoke well?
Not quite done, I need a good way to truly smoke. I also was considering a salamander but I'm on the fence due to the relatively high cost (around $2K).
Also I want to see how a pork butt comes out in the oven. Was able to get hickory and pecan wood.

[Mike Davila]

what'd you end up doing? any photos?

This is truly driving me crazy. I can post but in the preview its upside down so I saved the pic upside down, reposted, and yes in the preview still upside down. I can assure you it stands upright!

image.jpg (48.14 KiB) Viewed 687 times

[Mike Maguire]

Sweet!!I'm a little dizzy though

[Charlie Fu (Online)]

what'd you end up doing? any photos?

This is truly driving me crazy. I can post but in the preview its upside down so I saved the pic upside down, reposted, and yes in the preview still upside down. I can assure you it stands upright!

image.jpg

mike, I'm lucky I have an ipad to flip around . It looks gorgeous!

[Jeff_Davis]

Truly stunning Mike. Nice job! Enjoy.

[Bob Wood]

Looks better like this.

image.jpg (46.97 KiB) Viewed 605 times

[Mike Davila]

Looks better like this.

image.jpg

THANKS BOB

[Nola Palomar]

Great looking outdoor kitchen, here's mine too.

My girlfriends and I made pizza in my Wood Fired Oven (at the far end of the patio) last night. As far as impromptu parties, it is great. I may fire it up again today for some bread. I have a bar cooler outside that is always filled with wine, beer, water and beverages for the kids.

Patio 2 with notes.jpg (25.83 KiB) Viewed 547 times

Patio 1.jpg (33.24 KiB) Viewed 547 times

[M Hudson (Online)]

Mike I know your done, but the fec line of pellet smokers are by far the best going. I have owned a variety of both traditional grills, smokers, and pellet grills, and my fec100 makes them all pale by comparison.

If I wanted more grilling and less smoking a fec 1000 would be my choice.

Does it smoke well?
Not quite done, I need a good way to truly smoke. I also was considering a salamander but I'm on the fence due to the relatively high cost (around $2K).
Also I want to see how a pork butt comes out in the oven. Was able to get hickory and pecan wood.

The fec 100 is only a smoker. I personally believe it to be the best going. Automatic temp control. Perfect smoke, and large capacity. I do everything from pork bits to jerky, to sausage in mine.

It's not inexpensive, but I believe it will last 20 years and cookshack really stands behind them.

I tell you how much I like it, I am on my second one. I sold my first one after convincing myself I could find a more multi purpose unit that was just as good. After playing with my multi purpose unit for a year and being constantly disappointed, I bought another fec 100

[Mike Davila]

Great looking outdoor kitchen, here's mine too.

My girlfriends and I made pizza in my Wood Fired Oven (at the far end of the patio) last night. As far as impromptu parties, it is great. I may fire it up again today for some bread. I have a bar cooler outside that is always filled with wine, beer, water and beverages for the kids.

Thanks Nola, I'm looking forward to using it.
Do you do anything other than pizza and breads?