Best Flat Top Grill

Last Update: October, 2023

Flat top grills and griddles are commonly confused with their terms often used interchangeably. They are different, though. In this article, we’ll be focusing specifically on flat top grills. The best flat top grills allow you to have great control over the cooking temperature. You’ll be able to use it both indoors and outdoors for the best grilling experience.

More About The Blackstone 36-inch Outdoor Flat Top Grill

The Blackstone has been equipped with new features such as a paper towel holder, a removable cutting board, and trash bag hooks for hanging trash bags in a convenient location. For your convenience, it also features a unique, highly-trusted rear grease management system that helps to eliminate greasy messes.

The grill offers 720 square inches of cooking surface with four independently controlled burners. You’ll love how easy it is to use – there are wheels for easy transport, an easy start button, and fold up legs for storage purposes. With its legs folded, the grill can fit in the closet, shed, or mudroom for quick and easy storage.

More About The Camp Chef Flat Top Grill 

With a griddle surface of 604 square inches and a grilling surface of 501 square inches, the Camp Chef flat top grill is ideal for cooking bulk meals that are full of flavor. The large cooktop has the capability to serve up to 50-100 people an hour, heating and cooking food evenly.

In addition to the cooktop, it also features a grease tray and catches system, and micro adjusts griddle adjusters. The entire range is on wheels for easy maneuvering.

More About The Blackstone 28-inch Outdoor Flat Top Grill

Smaller than the 30-inch version of this flat top, the 28-inch model features two 15,000 BTU stainless steel burners and a cooktop that totals 470 square inches. Its burners are independently controlled and it is fueled with a fuel efficient 20lb propane tank.

You’ll love how much thought Blackstone has put into its design. The range is made of powder-coated steel and sports a set of wheels for easy transportation. It also has a removable griddle, and legs that fold to make storing the range a breeze.

More About The Cuisinart CGG-501 Gourmet Gas Griddle

This popular Cuisinart gas flat top grill is compact, durable, and sleek in appearance. It has two burners that combine to give out 20,000 BTUs. A twist ignition system takes the hassle out of lighting the cooktop so you can get to cooking quickly.

Its cooktop is roomy and great for small and large meals, totaling a whopping 285 square inches in size. Portability is one of its highlights. This makes it ideal for use on patios, balconies, decks, and in RVs. Cook a variety of meals with its independent burner controls. You can even cook two different foods at the same time.

More About The Royal Gourmet PD1300

Available in two and three burner options, the Royal Gourmet PD1300 is every backyard chef’s dream cooking range. Each burner boasts 9,000 BTUs and is made of stainless steel that is easy to clean. Its griddle top is crafted from porcelain enamel. It uses a Piezo ignition system and a handy, easy-to-understand control panel set into a stainless-steel base.

This flat top grill is small and compact, but still highly effective. If you need a grill that’s versatile, this is great for family gatherings, camping, and backyard barbequing.

Factor to Check When Buying

Cost

Your budget, as with most purchases, is one of the top considerations. The prices of flat top grills vary greatly so you need to decide how much you are willing to spend. Restaurant grade grills are going to be the higher cost ones.

There are many great flat top grills that are very reasonably priced. You don’t have to pay a bomb to get a good product. Note that the size of your grill will be one of the biggest impacts on the price. If you are getting an outdoor grill, cast iron with stainless steel burners will be your best friend.

Temperature

The voltage of a grill impacts the temperature, a higher voltage grill will be capable of reaching a higher temperature. If you will be cooking meat, you will need a high voltage grill as low voltage grills are not capable of fully cooking all meat safely.

You will also need to check if the grill comes with a heat adjustment feature that allows you to adjust the temperature. Most flat top grills do. This will also you to cook vegetables as well as meat and a variety of other things at the appropriate temperature.

Cleaning

When you are purchasing a grill, you might forget to consider how you are going to clean it. Some grills have plates that are quite difficult to deep clean while others have removable plates for easy cleaning.

Chrome grills are super easy to clean but are also usually higher priced. How clean your grill is will also impact the taste of your food. Making sure the grease tray is easy to clean is also important to consider.

Size

The size of the grill you purchase will wholly depend on the size of the space you have available as well as how much food you will be cooking on it. There is no point in buying a massive grill if you only usually cook for 2 people.

The size of the grill will be a real deciding factor on the price tag that comes with it.

Fuel Type

The type of fuel you will need to power your grill will be another important consideration. Many people prefer to buy an electric grill as it’s a very accessible power source, others decide on a grill with a propane tank. 

Flat Top Grill vs Regular Grill

The biggest advantage the flat top grill has over the regular grill is the even distribution of temperature, thanks to its circular heating plate. This consistent heat results in evenly cooked food and does not require constant flipping and maneuvering.

The flat top grill also adds a smoky taste to food, but it is not overpowering enough to take away from the actual taste of the food. Yes, it more so just complements it.

It’s also an extremely versatile cooking surface, you can cook the food directly on it, but you can also use pots and pans on it as you would a regular stove top.  

Because of its flat top nature, cleaning a flat top grill is a lot easier than cleaning the bars of a traditional grill which require a great deal of scraping.

With regular grills, you are pretty reliant on good weather to pull it out, whereas flat tops are indoor friendly. You have the joy of being able to use it all year round. 

One of the disadvantages of a flat top is the lack of aroma produced by the smoke. You will not get that same charcoaled taste as you would off of a regular charcoal grill.

However, this is again a personal preference. Many people love the taste that a traditional grill gives, others don't.

Conclusion

Buying a flat top grill is definitely a great investment and provides an exceptional cooking experience for everyone from amateurs to professional chefs. There are so many models available from indoor stove top grills to outdoor flat tops. With the right flat top grill, you’ll be able to tackle a greater variety of foods now and take your grilling experience up another notch!