Blackstone 1650 Tabletop Stainless Steel Front Plate-17, 17 Inch Griddle, Black

Had been looking at it on Amazon for almost 3 weeks while it was priced at $71. When it went down to $60, I knew it was time to jump on board! This is a great price for what this thing does!Fantastic unit. The base is not that sturdy but it gets the job done. The most important part is that the main cooking surface is very durable. Gets extremely hot so make sure you have a water bottle next to you when you're cooking. You'll find yourself having to cool the grill down sometimes in order to keep from burning your food. As with any cooking apparatus, you have to get familiar with it. I quickly learned that while cooking you can find spots that are much hotter than others. That allows you to move the food around and be more versatile while you cook. I have grilled steaks, crab cakes, chicken, pork chops, shish kabobs, and vegetables on it, and they all turned out great! New York strips are what I found to be the best cut to use on this griddle. The Griddle seals in all the juices!I love the pork chops at Waffle House but I always wondered why I could never get that taste on my Lodge stovetop griddle. Finally I'm able to duplicate the Huddle House flavor! Cooking with it right out the box before seasoning it is not recommended. Seasoning only takes about 10 minutes. I recommend canola oil or flaxseed oil.Canola oil is by far the cheapest quality oil that you can get to season this unit.The little grease and crumb catcher compartment in the front is ideal. You can use the drippings to make gravy or sauces if you like. Had to try the unit for a few days before I decided that I would get the carry bag. The unit fits well in the carry bag, and I look so cool when I walk up to cookouts with my own griddle. There's always going to be debate about which is best between regular propane grills, charcoal grills, or the propane griddle. But when taking everything into consideration like ease of cleanup, startup time, and just overall restaurant quality flavor, I would have to go with the Blackstone hands down.

The media could not be loaded. *** Update May 09/2018 **I was cooking some pork chops and my 1lb propane tank went out, so I left the knob open and connected a 1 gallon propane tank Worthington 281149 1-Gallon Steel Propane Cylinder With Type 1 With Overflow Prevention Device Valve, when I opened the valve the gas didn't go thru, so I found out that It was my mistake, luckily I had a spare 1lb green propane bottle and I was able to finish cooking - at the end, I re-connected the Coleman regulator hose and my 1 gallon tank and it worked, so it had something to do with how I opened the hose/valve that it locked it self, it's a built in safety valve.-*** Update April 22/2018 ***Can I give it more stars?- I love this griddle is just perfect!Today I did chicken, veggies and shrimp (Fajita Style!), it was very windy today so I had to put some aluminum foil around the griddle, other than that it worked great!Today I cooked for us three, my wife and my daughter so the griddle was enough, but I'm seriously thinking about getting the 36", so I can get more food ready at the same time instead of just waiting. but I'll need to wait until the 36" is on special.=======================This griddle is Superb!- The first day I got it, I seasoned it for about 3 hrs, applied oil and burned it 4 times until I got an even black coating then I put it away, the next day I did another coat of oil and by the afternoon it was ready, first thing I cooked was Carne Asada, Sausage and onions, I was at a park and it was a bit windy so I had to put aluminum trays on the aidr od the griddle to cover the wind.- The next time I cooked some shrimp with veggies and potatoes, (first the potatoes then veggies and shrimp) when everything was mixed I cooked a steak and some hotlinks, it took me a little bit of time but everything was in the same griddle and was cooked in phases. I have no complaints, but only when it gets windy it will take a bit of time to get enough heat.- My brothers in law own large griddles and both have work in the restaurant business as chefs and they both said this was a good purchased and they really liked my new griddle.I can't wait to cook on this baby again! - I have it hooked up with a 1 gallon propane tank with an extension hose, I haven't use it with the 16oz canisters just yet, as my Worthington 281149 1-Gallon Steel Propane Cylinder With Type 1 With Overflow Prevention Device Valve is pretty small and I can carry it anywhere.Get yourself the carrying bag and also another bag where you can have your seasonings, cutting board and utensils, you'll love having this griddle around.- The reason I didn't get the bigger ones like the 22", 28" or 36" it's because I live in an apartment and I can feed my family of 5 with this griddle, If I need a bigger griddle when camping my brother's in law can bring their 8 burner griddle. This 17" is perfect for camping, day at the beach or at the park.Highly recommended, good quality!*** Update Sept 05/2017 *** I cooked pretty much three times a week with this griddle outside in my backyard and I'm not regretting my purchase, the only thing that I noticed is that when it gets a bit windy it not evenly hot, only one side, which is sometimes good and sometimes bad.- I cooked carne asada, alpastor tacos, chicken/beef/shrimp kabobs, breakfast and I have no other complaints, it's easy to clean, just add water/oil and the griddle will be good to go for the next session.

I've been using my Blackstone 1650 17 inch for over 3 years now with no complaints - it was purchased on Jan 31, 2020. I use it camping, in the kitchen, and on the patio. I had to realign the "starter / ignition" wire only once because it became harder to light after some time went by. But that's expected and took all of 10 seconds to address. I seasoned it very well upon arrival and have never had to season it again. By cooking bacon on it a few times a year it stays seasoned. I have the front grease drain trap model and it works very well for me. I always make sure it is leveled toward the front if placed on a never-before-used table top. Never a problem - just place a piece or two of cardboard under the rear feet and bingo no problem.I waited a few years to rate this grill to see if it would hold up. Like I already mentioned, my grill has the front grease drain trap and I really wouldn't want it any other way. Maybe I'm just used to it. I don't understand why they changed it to the back. But it's easy to clean and scrape the grease forward and fast to check the grease catcher and dump when needed by having it in the front. In any case, the grill has been holding up very well and it's super reliable. I paid $75.99 back in 2020 and think it was well worth it. I see the price here today is $228.19 and there is no way I'd pay that much for this grill. Although it's a great grill, I'd say it's worth a maybe a hundred and no more. Even on the Blackstone website they want $139.00 now and that's just too much for me for a simple 17 inch grill. However, I do believe mine was an investment as I do feel I will be using it for many years to come. I figure in about 20 more years I can trade it in for a brand new car at this rate of grill price inflation. But if you have the extra cash just screaming to be spent, then this grill should satisfy your needs. I do recommend it.