Choosing a Portable Grill for Tailgating

CADAC Safari Tailgate Grill

CADAC Safari Grill on a Tailgate

When you’re getting ready for a tailgate party for your favorite team, you’ve got to have all the supplies to have a great time.  The good news is that you can find everything that you need online and be ready for football season in no time at all.  One of the staples of tailgating is a grill, and everyone who goes should have one.  It’s rude to show up and eat everyone else’s food unless you’ve been invited by friends.  If you are in the market for a new portable grill, you’ve got a lot of options to choose from.

Gas vs. Charcoal

The great tailgaters of decades past brought their tiny charcoal grills (or their average sized ones) and set up camp in the parking lots, cooking away as the game played on.  Today, there are many grill masters who still prefer the comfort and taste of charcoal cooking.  There are also many who like the fast and efficient cooking of gas grills.  When you are shopping for a portable grill, you’ll have both to choose from.  It will be up to you to make sure that you get the grill that works for you.  If you like one or the other, shop for that.  There’s no big difference except in the matter of personal opinion.

Gas grills are great for fast cooking and easy cleanup, but charcoal tends to burn more evenly and gives people a grilled taste that is unmistakable.  You should look at the pros and cons of each type of grill, including the cost of portable gas tanks and charcoal, and make sure that you figure out what works best for your needs.

Enter a new contender in the grill ring: electric grills.  There are some electric grills that you can use today for tailgating, if you want something totally different.  They can cook almost anything and allow you to operate on power alone rather than gas or charcoal.  Of course, you’ll need to have somewhere to hook this grill up, so that’s a consideration to keep in mind when you’re shopping.  With so much to think about, it’s really going to be up to you to get what you need in terms of the type of grill that you buy.

Other Factors to Consider

When you’re buying a grill, there’s a lot to think about beyond the type of heating source that you use.  By taking the time to explore your options and learn about what’s out there, it should be easy for you to get everything that you need.  Here are some other factors that are involved in your grill purchase when you need a portable cooker for your tailgating treats:

  • Size.  How big does your grill need to be? Are you cooking for just yourself or for a few people? Do you need a grill big enough to cook for half the tailgating parking lot? Think about how much food you want to be able to cook at any given time.  That will help you choose the perfect size grill for your tailgate party needs every time.
  •  Brand and quality.  There’s something to be said for buying a reputable brand of grill.  Although a lot of people have their favorites, there’s really no one ‘best’ brand.  You will just need to do your homework and make sure that you check the facts before you buy anything.  Getting a good grill is better than getting a cheap grill.  The last thing you need is to break down on tailgate day and be out of a way to cook your food.
  •  Style of grill.  There are portable table top grills, which is great if you plan on having a table ready.  If you want something different, you can find portable grills that fold up for easy transport.  These are really quite popular.  You can even find grills that hook up to your hitch so that you can roll up, unload, and fire it up to start cooking your food.  The options are plentiful and you should have no trouble finding something that works great.
  •  Price.  Even though having a good grill matters most, everyone has a budget these days.  Fortunately, portable grills are affordable.  When you shop online, you can save even more and still get great grills for all of your needs.  Make sure that you limit yourself to your price range, though, so you don’t fall in love with that awesome $600 portable grill unless you can really afford it.
  •  Color.  This might not be important to some people, but how cool would it be to have a grill that matches your favorite team?   Or at least to avoid having a grill that supports a different team, anyway.  You can find grills in all different colors, and even deck them out to support your favorite team with paint and decals if you want.
O-Grill Portable Gas Grill

O-Grill Portable Gas Grill

Get Your Grill On for Less

When you shop online for tailgating grills and other supplies, you’ll be able to get everything that you need for a lot less than you might expect to spend.  People love shopping online because it’s convenient, but it’s also a lot cheaper.  You are going to find the mother lode of all tailgating supplies online because you aren’t limited by local availability or shops that have to keep their inventory under control.  You’ll be able to find everything you could ever dream of, including some of the best and coolest grills for tailgating.

Plus, you don’t have to spend a fortune when you shop online.  Companies sell things for less because they get better deals on the products themselves.  They also have sales all the time, including shipping specials in some cases, making it easy for you to get everything that you need without breaking the bank.  Before you think that you can’t afford a new tailgating grill, take the time to look around and see what’s out there and think again.  Before you know it, you’ll be on your way to the big game with a new grill in hand, so get out there and get shopping now.

 

About Trey Collier

Avid Do-It-Yourself-er. Love's being outdoors. Helped push the shade sail market into one of the fastest growing outdoor shade structures product in North America.

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