When your goal is heavy socializing and entertaining, you need a kitchen outside in which to cook, grill and visit friends with ease. An outdoor built in bbq grill is just the ticket to outfit your open air kitchen in style, but be prepared to set a substantial budget anywhere from $3,000 to $10,000 or more! The good news is an outdoor kitchen with the grill and other amenities drives up resale home prices should you have to move and sell your house.

If you are in on the ground floor of building your home, it is the perfect time to draft some plans to include an outdoor kitchen gas grill. If you are buying an existing home, it is still a strong possibility that you can have that outdoor kitchen, as long as you have ample space such as a large patio or yard space in which to construct one. Keep in mind though that an outdoor built in bbq grill will be stationary and cannot be moved if you get tired of its location so plan carefully.

Mostly Gas Options

For the most part, the outdoor built in bbq grill will likely be using gas for fuel – either propane from a tank or natural gas directly piped in from the same source your home uses. Natural gas is the optimal choice as you would not have to worry about refilling a tank and it is just a few dollars more in the scheme of things.

The propane fuel options for the outdoor built in bbq grill is a good and safe choice, especially when natural gas is unavailable. You do have to worry about occasionally refilling the propane tanks but it is not totally inconvenient as you can do it at most grocery or home improvement stores near you. Propane does also allow for some spontaneity in cooking over electric and charcoal fueling methods.

Alternative Grill Options

Your outdoor built in bbq grill could also use electric power to cook your food and it is rather easy to use as there is no lighting of a fire or pilot light. In addition, you can select a particular temperature to cook something in many cases so meats and vegetables turn out perfectly without burned food to worry about. Of course, you would not be able to use your electric grill if there is a power outage.

The hardest part about buying and building an outdoor built in bbq grill is deciding on the fuel source for heating and cooking the food. Once you decide between gas and electric, you can go about creating a space for it and building an island, counter or other workspace around it.

There is just something about grilling outdoors that makes food for every family get-together and party taste great. The outdoor barbecue grill is likely the best invention according to many men (and some women too) but there are some choices to make when you shop around for one. The decision for an outdoor bbq grill usually boils down to the fuel or energy source that cooks the food – gas or charcoal.

Taste Preference and Presentation

Some people prefer the taste of food cooked on an outdoor barbecue grill that uses wood and charcoal as their taste buds savor the smoky flavors. The slight charred pattern of the meats and vegetables grilled on a bbq grill using wood and charcoal is also favorable by a percentage of the grilling population.

The outdoor barbecue grill that uses propane gas is preferred by a large percentage of people who don’t like to light charcoal and wait for the coals to be ready for grilling. With a gas outdoor barbecue grill, you just turn on the gas and light the flame so it provides you with a quicker, more spontaneous grilling scenario if your eating plans are last minute. It should be pointed out that the taste of food barbecued over a gas flame rather than a charcoal one is distinctly different with no smoky tastes that some barbecue aficionados seem to enjoy.

Other Factors to Consider

Where you store you outdoor barbecue grill will likely dictate the type you get as some do not have strong weather-resistant finishes to prevent rust. If you have a covered patio area or plan to cover your grill to protect it against the elements, you could choose one that may be fancier but not have as much in the way of weather resistance.

Another factor to consider is the space available to use and store your outdoor barbecue grill. If you live in an apartment with a small balcony or patio area, you likely will not be able to manage one of those larger grills with the extras like a smoker, burner and other accessories. A smaller outdoor barbecue grill that does not look like a mini-kitchen is probably the best bet.

Budget, of course, is another factor to consider when selecting an outdoor barbecue grill for your grilling pleasure. The gas grills that look like miniature kitchens with the extra burners, smoker attachments and more would be perfect if you are big into entertaining family and friends and can afford a hefty price tag. For more laid back gatherings with less frequent grilling, a charcoal and wood based outdoor barbecue grill could be just the ticket – and less expensive too. If price is not an issue, then let your taste buds and desire to grill be your guide when you choose gas or charcoal grills.

You have everything you need for your Labor Day outing. You have food, drinks, yard games and maybe even a pool. Everything’s going to be perfect. However, you can’t decide on just one thing: Whether a gas barbeque grill is superior to a coal burning grill? They must be better, right? They cost more. However, when it comes down to which is better, there’s no right answer. Everyone has their preference. You could hear arguments from both sides and you’ll likely never come to a conclusion between them because both will have great points. You have to decide if a gas barbeque grill is for you, not for anyone else.

Faster And More Efficient

The first thing people will tell you about a gas barbeque grill is that it heat faster, cooks faster and it cooks more thoroughly and efficiently than if that meat is cooked on a regular, coal burning grill. You don’t have to wait for it to warm up. You turn a lever and it’s hot. That’s why many people love gas grills. It’s frustrating trying to light a charcoal grill with a lighter only to find it won’t light, and it does take an awfully long time to heat. But then again, some people out there say they can taste the difference in the meat cooked with a gas barbeque grill and they prefer regular coal any day.

Does It Taste Different?

It may be that the taste that these people deem is different is all in their heads. Just like a natural gas grill, a gas barbeque grill is using a gas that is tasteless and odorless. However, an odor is accompanied by the gas artificially in order to detect leaks. This odor is so miniscule, though, that it’s unlikely to affect the taste of the meat itself. It very well could alter the taste of the meat, however, as anyone who has ever used hickory charcoal or some other coal that’s designed to give meat a different taste can attest to. Some taste a difference and some don’t, and you’ll likely find both camps equal in number.

The fact is, there is no right way to choose between a gas barbeque grill and a regular coal burning grill. Both will cook the food adequately, one may just do it a little faster than the other. It call comes down to convenience and money. Do you want the convenience of being able to turn the flame on and off at will, instead of waiting for it to cool down as the embers burn themselves out, as well as having the freedom of being able to adjust the temperature? If you want to spring for the extra money, the perks are well worth it. But if you’re more of a traditional type of person and you prefer your coal, there’s nothing wrong with that at all. The food still tastes great no matter what type of grill it’s cooked on.

If you’ve recently moved into a house, or are suddenly having to use a grill that uses natural gas instead of electricity, you may find yourself wondering why anyone would choose to use a natural gas grill at all. When you turn the knob on a natural gas grill, it clicks as it sparks the flame. Your first instinct might be to wonder whether or not having that type of open flame, next to a gas source, is such a great idea. To you, natural gas grills might seem dangerous, and primitive. You would rather use an electric grill that doesn’t have such an open flame. But once you use the natural gas grill, you may change your mind.

Like Outdoor Grills

You’ve probably seen one of those portable gas bbq grills at the park or on someone’s patio. Natural gas grills work with the same concept. The natural gas comes from a source in the wall. The source has a lever you can twist in order to shut off access for the gas in case there is an emergency. But using natural gas is very safe. There is an odor that emitted if there is a leak and you’d likely know if there was a leak way before it reached dangerous levels. The natural gas grill allows you to control the temperature easily and it shuts off immediately as well. You don’t have to wait like you do with electric burners.

Does Food Taste Different?

Some may wonder if using a natural gas grill to cook food with alters the taste at all. The answer is no. Natural gas used in grills is odorless and tasteless. “Well how come I can smell it?” You may be asking. There is an odor that’s added to the gas used in your natural gas grill so that a leak may be detected. If that odor wasn’t added, you may not know if your house was filling up with gas until you either became ill or worse. That odor is so miniscule, however, that it will not affect the taste of your food. It will simply help you cook faster and more efficiently.

Cheaper

The best part about a natural gas grill is that it keeps your electricity bill down. Gas grills, dryers and other appliances cost less to use than electric ones do. Especially with energy prices so high, more and more people may take to using natural gas grills. Electric grills are coming out with fancier options and looks, but it’s not likely that the natural gas grill will become obsolete anytime soon. There are still those who would rather use a gas grill than an electric one any day of the week.

Sometimes, you just want to camp without the hassle of starting a fire and cooking food the old fashioned way. There are many ways you can rough it while camping. You can take only one pair of clothes, you can use a latrine, you can even sleep outside of your tent on a bed or leaves; but delicious hot food and camping do not have to be mutually exclusive. You can still enjoy hot soup, burgers, hot dogs, chicken breasts, ribs, scrambled eggs and much more with a portable gas bbq grill. They make portable gas bbq grills that are small enough to fit in any trunk that’s also stuffed with other camping gear for an entire family. They’re small enough to carry to your campsite but they pack a big enough wallup to feed you when you need it most.

The Convenience Of Gas

Who wants to be out in the middle of nowhere slamming rocks together, trying to get a bed of grass to light? Or rubbing two sticks, or using flint and steel? Or maybe you’re only slightly roughing it and you brought a lighter. The fact is, you have to gather all that wood, create a good foundation and then keep feeding that fire if you hope for it to stay lit until your food is done cooking. That’s a lot of work just to cook a burger or two. That’s why portable gas bbq grills are perfect for camping trips. Are you hungry? Take out two of those burgers out of the ice chest and slap them on the grill. Turn the flam on instantly and the food will be done in a flash. Wasn’t that easy? Why didn’t you take a portable gas bbq grill with you on your previous camping trips? You would’ve saved so much time that could have been better spent just relaxing; which is what camping is all about.

Finding A Grill

When it comes to portable gas bbq grills, you have many choices. It all comes down to how much you want to spend for a certain level of convenience. Some gas bbq grills come with more perks than others. However, there are plenty of plain, simple models that only do one thing: cook your food. They’re not that expensive and you’ll likely be very satisfied without all of those extra bells and whistles. You can find portable gas bbq grills at your local sporting goods store, at your local Wal-Mart or Target, and you can even find them online. Of course you can also find them at camping supply stores as many people are choosing gas grills instead of slaving over an unlit pile of grass with two stones in their hands and the bruises to prove they tried.