OPTIMIZED PORTABLE BACKYARD AND TRAVEL FLAT TOP GRIDDLE SET UP
About 2012, Blackstone came on the scene with their original 36-inch model. About five years ago the flat-top griddle outdoor cooking category exploded in popularity. That is partly because they are so easy to use and capable of cooking a lot of good food quickly. They are just an enormous frying pan. There is almost no learning curve.
My sister-in-law Nancy recommended that we get a CampChef for our big griddle. She had done some research and she was right. Our very first griddle was a CampChef FTG-600P, just like theirs. [Flat Top Griddle, 600 square inches, Portable] It is 30 inches across the front. We have cooked several hundred times on it and, over several years, I have taught over 37 people how to make smash-burgers on it. The legs fold up on this one. It is the key piece of the Portable Burger Machine. We have cooked burgers for the homeless several times and have done events like birthdays and house concerts, cooking for 20-30 folks using the 600. This is possibly the biggest portable flat-top available.
Along the way, when I was sharing with folks how to cook outdoors at Barbecue Camp, I obtained a CampChef FTG400 portable model. This is the 400 square inch version of the FTG600. My dear friend Steve built me a beautiful stainless-steel table and lid for this one and it now lives on the back patio next to the FTG600P.
Last Sunday we had a dozen people from Connection Codes at our home for dinner and I used both the 600 and the 400 to make 20 burgers. We toasted the buns on low temperature on the 400 and seared 20 smash-burgers using the 600 on medium heat. And three men learned how to make smash-burgers.
I am a dedicated long-term CampChef fan. I have cooked successfully hundreds of times with their gear for several years.
And I have also owned the Blackstone 17, 22, and 28-inch models. They are good basic bargain units. I taught flat-top griddle school in my back yard with five 22’s. The 22 is also nice for camping. It weighs about 33 pounds and Blackstone makes a portable folding table for it. I have cooked at a campground for twelve people on a 22. Decent used ones go for about $100. I have cooked a lot on the 22 and have observed it has the same negative characteristics as the other Blackstones: The outer two inches of the cooking surface are about 200 degrees cooler than the rest if the cooking surface. I often cook big amounts of food, like 24 eggs in silicone hoops, or 20 burgers, where I need to cook the food all of the way to the edge. These Blackstones won’t do that. However, the CampChef 400 and 600 are even in temperature all the way to the edge. The solid design and performance is why these two CampChef griddles have an enduring spot in the Hall of Flame on my patio.
The CampChef FTG400 is a sweet spot as far as capability and portability. The cooking surface is 25 X 16 inches. And the whole 25 inches is usable from edge to edge. This may be the optimal griddle size for most homeowners. It easily cooks 12 burgers at once. So you can feed around 20 people in two batches. It's big enough for most and also portable.
GRIDIRON GAME DAY
CampChef recently released an updated and improved version of the FTG400 called the Gridiron Game Day that was designed for tailgating. It has a built-in hinged lid, which latches and makes it portable. The Game Day bridges the gap between the Blackstone 22 and larger homeowner units, like the Blackstone 28 and 36. This would be one of my top recommended homeowner griddles. However, it does not come with a stand. And that leads to another highly recommended product, the Lifetime brand 5-foot folding tailgate table.
LIFETIME 5-FOOT FOLDING TAILGATE TABLE
It is steel on one half and plastic on the other. It is rated to 300 pounds. One thing that is necessary for all outdoor cookouts is a prep table to set trays of food, tools, and a busboy tub for the dirty dishes that accumulate while cooking. This nice-sized table has both cooking and prepping surfaces built into on folding portable device. The steel surface and the plastic prep table side both have dimensions of 30 X 27 inches. This is a brilliant design that was almost certainly thought of by people that actually cook outdoors and that know what it takes to do it right.
This table is $139 from Amazon.
If the need is for one high performing flat-top griddle that is competent for cooking for up to around 20 people, that was also portable for tailgating, camping, or taking to events, the CampChef Gridiron Game Day with the Lifetime 5-foot folding tailgate table is a mighty smooth combination. All for a little under $500.
Buy once and buy right.
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Disclaimer: Both CampChef and Lifetime are clueless that I wrote this.
The purpose is to help friends to make informed decisions and to have the best results with their outdoor cooking. And I get great enjoyment out of writing.
The picture is my CampChef FTG400, with the stainless lid that my friend Steve made, set on a Lifetime folding tailgate table .