CUISINARTCGG-501 Gourmet Gas Griddle, Two-Burner

BEWARE: I thought this Cuisinart 8500 grill would be a terrific BBQ but there is ONE MAJOR DESIGN FLAW.On the back, just below the edge of the stainless steel top there is a 2" x 27" OPEN SLOT through which even a mild breeze enters the cooking area. Unless there is no breeze, when I grill a steak or 4 hamburgers with 3 of the 5 burners on full heat it is near impossible to get the temperature up to 400 degrees and there is no way to sear the outside of the meat.We live in Long Island community where ocean breezes are frequent. On my previous grill (Weber) I cooked hamburgers for about 11 minutes and they were perfect: blackened on the outside and medium on the inside. But I was so disappointed to discover that on this Cuisinart 8500 with the air blowing through it, even at 18 minutes they were greyish on the outside and practically raw on the inside. I had to finish them off in the microwave (disgusting).Unless Cuisinart can offer a part or instructions on some way to cover this open slot (which I have not yet found), the grill is USELESS.

Short version: For the TLDR - It's a great grill, aesthetic and solid despite some cosmetic damage. Value, features, assembly and cost considered, would recommend.Long version: We love Amazon, and we love Cuisinart, and we love grilling, therefore, we love this grill. Five burners, a side burner, cast iron grates, easy access to the tank and self-ignition? Take my money. It heats in a snap, has enough space that I'm going to estimate two spatchcocked chickens with room to spare, or four dinner-plate sized steaks, if not six, or enough burgers to feed a small army. Warming rack, spot to mount a rotisserie, plenty of room for just about anybody. Each burner is individually adjustable, the side burner is generous, the ignition is mechanical so there's no battery. The finish is nearly seamless and the drip pan is well built. Really, when it comes to the cooking side, this one's great so far.Assembly-wise, it's not bad. I'm pretty handy and it took me about 45 minutes to an hour. Maybe two dozen screws and a dozen parts, but nothing that had me scratching my head. On the construction end of things let's be honest. If you're a person who puts the grill in your pickup and goes tailgating or moves it from spot-to-spot around the yard, or brings it in the RV and has to roll it around a campsite, this isn't your grill. The construction is fine if you're like me - build it, plant it, use it, leave it. It's four posts, some wheels to get it to "the spot" where it lives it's whole life, and that's it. Cooking for sure, but not the tubular steel, twist and rattle kind of job I'd count on to tote around. This one's poolside for life - and excellent at it. Looks good, cooks great, and the stainless finish fits in great.Complaints? Only one... dings and dents. It's stainless steel which is amazing and I love it. The one we got was shipped well and packed like a precious egg, arriving in a pristine box (Go UPS!) but when we opened it, the center of the control panel was dented in. I've worked in metal shops and this is more than likely from being the 10,000th grill someone had to hike up off a fab table that day and get into a box. Right where you rest it on your hip, that's the control panel, it's gorgeous, buffed stainless steel, full of controls, and the one coming my way folded. We've all had that day, my guy had it his I'm sure, put it in the box anyway and taped it shut. Paid by the production piece, not by the hour - I've been there. The snag is that I can only ship the whole grill back (#nope) or buy a new panel aftermarket, tear it down and rebuild it (#nopenope) or try something else - there's no partial refund option. About 30 minutes with some wood blocks, a leather pad and a peening hammer (snicker, then Google it, it's a real thing) smoothed it mostly out - that said, it's stainless steel. If your guy donks it in production, you donk it in construction, or someone donks it in the future, it bends. You have to donk it pretty hard to bend it, but donk stinks - beware of donk.Overall, love it and keeping it. It's a grill for cooking a ton of food that looks good by the patio or pool but not for traveling or doing adventuring things.

Ok, I've had this for a few weeks now, used it half a dozen times, its a major piece of garbage.#1. It came seriously dented, though I was able to get it assembled.#2. Getting any of the burners to light is a chore, sometimes on the 5th try, sometimes the 15th.#3. The temperature gage is worthless#4. It has no hand holds, so you have to put your hands under sharpish metal to move it.#5. The propane valve is hard to reach, especially when the thing is hot.#6. The side burner grate just fell apart.This is, at most, a $150 product. I really wish I could return it as it even felt like crap when I opened the box, but its just too heavy to bother shipping back.Save yourself some hassle, and go to your local home depot or even grocery store and pickup something you can see isn't a piece of crap in person.I bought this based on the ratings, and now I no longer believe the rating system. If this is 4.5 stars, clearly somebody is paying to increase those ratings because this thing is just trash.

Little broken wire connection upon delivery. Cuisinart solution: unassemble, rebox entire grill and send it back to Amazon because it is an Amazon exclusive model. Not much impressed with manufacturer standing behind their product. We'll see how outcome is on exchange.Update on return process:Replacement delivered with missing cast iron grates. No options to let anyone know I'm keeping the parts from original delivery to replace missing parts on replacement grill.Update again:Return acceptance/acknowledgement from Amazon took about a month after it was returned.

Overall we're pleased with the way this grill cooks, and it's got ample room to cook for a large group! Very even heat distribution and it heated up quickly. It took my husband and I just over an hour to assemble it, but it wasn't bad. My only complaint is the hassle of getting it here without damage. The first one we got, one of the grill plates had been snapped in half. They sent us a new grill very quickly (within 1 business day!) but even that one was damaged, with a large dent in the back that prevented the grill plates from fitting inside. We were tired of dealing with returns so we hammered out the dent and everything's working fine, we just hope that area (which had some paint chipped off too) doesn't rust. Functionality-wise, we give this grill an A+!