Weber Original Kettle Premium Charcoal Grill, 22-Inch, Black

5.0 out of 5 stars

By DesignGirl28 - Reviewed in the United States on May 25, 2015

First time griller success!

First off, I have to tell you that this is the first grill I have ever used. As a single woman, I was never interested in grilling until I bought a house two years ago and built a deck in the backyard. With all that outdoor space to enjoy, I just knew I needed a grill for entertaining (and feeding) family and friends. I thought I might buy a grill and just let my dad or brother handle the grilling, but much to my surprise I really got into it and loved grilling hamburgers and hot dogs on this Weber kettle grill for my first backyard party just yesterday! I did a lot of research prior to purchasing this grill from Amazon. I chose a charcoal grill over propane because I didn't want to deal with propane tanks (a friend had his grill go up in flames because of a loose hose and nearly burned his house down--No thank you!), I like the taste and smell from charcoal grills more, and most importantly because of the cost. It was less expensive to get a nice charcoal grill like this one than to get an equally nice propane grill. The entry cost into grilling was more reasonable with a charcoal grill. This freed up funds to get some important accessories, which I recommend to anyone buying this grill: a chimney starter, grilling tools like tongs, fork, etc, a steel brush to clean the grates, the Weber Fire starter cubes, and some heavy duty mitts to protect your hands and forearms while grilling. I purchased all these from Amazon at the same time I purchased the grill. As for choosing a which charcoal grill to get, I chose this model over the lesser expensive model because of the ash catcher, and I'm glad I did. The grill arrived in its original box and was easy to put together on my own, with the exception of attaching the ash catcher itself. But I just kept trying (and referring to the picture-only instructions) and eventually got it. It was put together in about 40 minutes, and that was putting it together myself. One of the best things I did was lookup videos online about this grill to see how it was used and put together. I learned about closing the vents on the lid and on the bottom to reduce heat, and how to quickly get the charcoal ready for grilling by using a chimney starter and Weber Fire Starter cubes (which I highly recommend getting). As my brother and dad arrived to my house yesterday for our Memorial Day BBQ, each were skeptical about this charcoal grill because they have propane grills at home and like the convenience of them. "It will take an hour to get to coals ready," said my brother. "Those burgers are way too thick to cook through. They'll be raw in the middle," said my dad. Both were surprised when the charcoal was ready within about 20 minutes using the chimney! And after getting some nice grill marks on both sides of the burgers, I put the lid on and closed the vents to let them finish cooking the middle of the burgers in a lower heat. The burgers turned out perfectly! The best compliment was Dad and others asking me how I grilled these thick burgers so well without burning them to dust. LOL! It's all in the vents! And I think investing in an awesome grill helped, too. My brother and dad both were asking about the grill by the end of the party. I think they might be considering trading in their propane grills for their own Weber kettle grills soon. ;) Lastly, just a bit of advice to any amateur grill masters like myself out there... Do yourself a favor and start out with this grill. All of the excellent reviews tell you that it's a good grill. The fact that so many experienced backyard chefs keep returning to their Weber kettle grills is very telling. Also, be sure to look up recipes at YouTube. I searched for "hamburger on charcoal grill" and found lots of videos with great advice on getting perfect burgers. And bonus! Nearly all of the people in the videos were using a Weber kettle grill. :)

5.0 out of 5 stars

By Rob Nelson - Reviewed in the United States on May 23, 2015

Weber Charcoal Grill # 3!

This is my 3rd Weber charcoal grill in 46 years. The design improvements are many. The box arrived in fine condition. No damage from the journey at all. The assembly instructions are visual only, no words. Very clear and well done. The new side handle design is a very welcome improvement. One on each side now. The top handle is massively improved over the old wood piece. The ash catcher and the interior blades to open and close the grill bottom are brilliantly designed and effortless to install. The blades inside are very well fitted. Excellent tolerances maintained. Welcome to the family Weber number 3! #Weber

4.0 out of 5 stars

By DaveR - Reviewed in the United States on April 13, 2019

Assembly was harder than it needed to be (and I have some suggestions to make it easier)

I just got it yesterday and haven't tried it out yet (It's raining and tornadoes are possible.), but I used to have an older Weber grill. I wish I had kept it. I've tried other grills the past few years but now I'm back to the Weber. I expect this one to work just as well as my older one and it has a couple of new features that I like (or expect to like). The grill folds so you can easily add more charcoal/wood. If the thermometer works (I expect it to work but just don't know yet.), that will be great. I think I will like the enclosed ash collector but it took a minute to get it on and off the first time. I changed the approach angle and it was a lot easier. On the downside, assembly was more difficult than it needed to be. 1. There were no written instructions but if you are careful, the visual instructions were okay. Still, it would have been nice to have some clear written directions to accompany the visuals. Note: They also have 3d instructions on the BILT app but I found the included (on paper) instructions to be better since they include pictures that clearly show you what not to do. 2. The legs were difficult to attach until I used wd-40. I wish they had suggested that in the directions. 3. The picture in the directions suggests using a regular claw hammer to but in the caps that hold the wheels on. That tears the cap up. I think they know this (They included an extra cap.). Here's what worked for me. I started putting caps on using light taps with a claw hammer. Then I used a rubber mallet to finish the job. I'll try to remember to revisit this review in a month or two. I hope and expect to raise the rating at that time. By then, I'll probably have forgotten the assembly process. After all, I'm older retired (Yay!) guy who has been diagnosed with CRS (PG version: Can't Remember Squat). Comment on portability. The rating on Amazon include a rating for portability. It's "portable" enough to move around the deck or garage. If that's all you need (like me), it's portable and rolls easily enough. I won't be taking it on any road trips (even to my friend's house a couple of miles away). That's not a problem for me, but If you plan on taking it with you, I hope you have a pickup truck and some tie-downs. Better yet, get one of the much smaller grills to take with you and just use this one at home.

5.0 out of 5 stars

By McKie Jr - Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2018

If you're old school and still using charcoal this is the best choice, you can control the air and even ...

I am 71 years old and have owned and used the original kettle Weber for over 30 years, I'm guessing this will be my last Weber. I put it together, so that means you can to, directions were mostly pictures, if you have an issue revisit the picture and you will see the light. It's not BBQ season right now, so it's covered on my patio waiting for spring. If you're old school and still using charcoal this is the best choice, you can control the air and even add charcoal through the little doors in the grill. The ash can eliminates the ashes from blowing all over your patio furniture. Plastic handle won't rot like my wood did. I have smoked turkeys using my Weber.