I've been enjoying this grill tremendously, I've been a long time charcoal griller and I just love the consistency pellet grills bring to the table. The setup was pretty simple, I had the flu and took 2-3 hours to complete it.
Likes: I love all the space you have - it does get tight if you use ALL the grates and need to rotate the meat on the bottom grate. If you take out one piece in the middle shelf then it's pretty perfect.
It's just awesome to hit a button to preheat and take that time to prep up the meat. Quick and Easy!
The built-in bottle opener just warms my heart - no better way to kickstart the weekend in my opinion.
Dislikes: The wheels I received have a little ridge running down middle of them and just noticed it's been digging into my deck. Be mindful of that if you plan to roll it around on a wooden deck.
You pay that extra premium for the Wi-Fi but I haven't used it yet due to the app. I'm still questioning the integrity of the app and probably won't use it until more updates are done to it to make it feel legit and secure. I feel like it would do Z Grills wonders if they revamp their app into something reputable since supposedly all grilling apps are lack luster. Hire some developers and integrate some quality of life changes then easily market yourself as the best grilling app on the market!
Overall: I'm a big fan of this grill and it's been doing a great job so far. I just wish the app was significantly better as the selling piece to this is Wi-Fi. I would also recommend a thermal blanket once they get it in stock. I have yet to buy it but noticed the grill struggles to maintain 400+ degrees for searing when it's around 40 out and windy. This should alleviate that burden and also extend the life of your pellets on low heat.
The grill assembly was fairly simple and burn in helped me get used to the controller. I like this grill because it lets me adjust the temperature in 5 degree increments. Wifi also works well and allows me to monitor and adjust temps from my phone. I have smoked ribs, steaks, boston butt and a whole chicken. Other smokers may produce more smoke but this grill lightly smokes meats which is the way I like it. Everything I have smoked has excellent flavor and is quite juicy. Would definitely recommend this smoker grill.
It is definitely as sturdy as they say it is. It feels well built and is well insulated for colder weather smoking. I've smoked a brisket and a pork shoulder on it so far and next up is a pizza.
Works great. First cook was two spatchcocked chickens. Turned out perfect. Only trouble is during startup. It gets going easy enough but tries to go out. Temperature climbed to 130⁰ but started rapidly dropping. My daughter said to close the lid and it started going up again.
So far I have made baby back ribs and chicken wings and they turned out great. Next on the menu is a butterflied pork shoulder for pulled pork. I like the 3 tiered shelves so I can smoke the meat away from the hot drip pan if needed. The grill seems very well built and worked perfectly. My only disappointment was being online only purchasing I didn’t get the opportunity to see the actual grill prior to purchase. I had to rely on the descriptions and photos on the website. The BBQ legend 1000 was described in the FAQ as being insulated but is actually single walled. Not a huge issue in the southeast and probably preferred for cold smoking during the colder months. So far very happy with the build quality, ease of use, and layout. If the unit had an insulated body other than thicker steel and heat resistant paint, I probably would have given it 6 out of 5 stars.
This is my first smoker. I researched them online and talked with others before picking one. Overall it is a good value for the price. I’ve used it twice so far and it worked well. A few areas it could improve: 1) metal is fairly thin; 2) temperature can only be set at pre-designated spots (which worked fine so far); 3) Shipping box could have been better, body of smoker was dented when I got it. I kept it anyway because it wasn’t bad. Paint was chipped at the dent but I can touch it up.
The first thing I smoked was a couple hunks of teriyaki marinated Bluefin Tuna and Yellowtail Fillets. They came out perfect and tasted great. The second time I cured my own fresh ham and that also came out beautiful.