Blackstone 28 questions

krobertsmsn

I am thinking about getting the 28 inch but have some questions. I would love the 36 but that would be over kill for just hubby and me. I would really love a stainless steel cart on the 28 inch, but not avail. The 22 will be on HSN in 2-4 weeks but seems a little small.

1. Do the 2 burners heat EVENLY front to back and side to side? I mean within 2 inches or so of the edges. 
2. Are the two 15,000 BTU burners adequate or do you wish there was more/higher heat?

Thanks!

Hntnhrd

I have the 28 and find it heats evenly for my cooks. Only issue I found with that was making omletes the other day when the wind was blowing. 6 inches in was where the heat finally kicked in. Not the griddles fault just outside cooking problem. They have H burners not round burners so it seems to spread the heat fairly even. 
I would have liked the 36 but I was able to get the 28 for $99 and have cooked for up to 6 people on the 28 and had plenty of room. In fact for just 2 of us there times I only use one burner. 
Fyi for 10$ The 55 inch cover at Walmart fits it perfectly. 

Focker

On both of mine(28 and 17), it is hotter in the middle.

Never really understood the desire for an even temp.  I actually like the fact it's uneven on a griddle, for different zones, like cooking on my kettle, 3 zones for fajitas is perfect.  Hot zone to sear meat, cook tortillas, medium for the veg, and the no heat zone to hold the meat and tortillas, for example.

And on both, I can get an IR approaching 600, plenty hot for what I cook.

Blackstone cooking is a lot like stir frying...Mis en place, timing is everything.  Being aware of what you're cooking, in a thoughtful order, timing, holding, and knowing what temp each item is best cooked at, will carry you far.  The low and medium temp ranges for breakfast, are just as fun as the let it rip and flip cooks.

pgprescott

Whew! I thought you had 28 questions about Blackstone! Happy flattopping!

WeberWho

My wife and I have the 36" Blackstone. If you are cooking smaller portions just run only what you need on the griddle. I thought
36" might be overkill with two people but that's far from the truth. We end up using the whole space majority of the time. 

bgebrent

WeberWho said:

My wife and I have the 36" Blackstone. If you are cooking smaller portions just run only what you need on the griddle. I thought
36" might be overkill with two people but that's far from the truth. We end up using the whole space majority of the time. 

Agree completely.  And you have the reserve when visitors descend.

krobertsmsn

Thanks for the responses! I see how the title looks a bit daunting "28 question" LOL

I ended up ordering the Camp Chef after someone (would love to give credit if I could remember who) posted a vid comparing. My reasons are as follows:

1. The CC is about 31 inches so between the BS 28 and 36 sizes.  
2. The ignitor seems better and can run any burner individually without turning them all on etc. I won't need batteries either.
3. The side shelf folds down, saving space. I did not see that the BS shelves could be let down but maybe they do.
4. The drip well is deeper and seems to work without me having to rig it up. BS did tell me they are working on a solution for current units and will change that on future ones.
5. I think the cover on the CC could be better. 
6. The gap between the griddle and flames in much less, lending to less wind interference on the flame
7. If I ever wanted to, it will morph into a grill as well.
8. It is pre-seasoned
9. It has 2 shelves under the griddle instead of one.
10. I got 20% off at Backcountry and free 2 day shipping. It will be here Thurs!

It's poss I am unaware of more pros/cons when comparing the two

I feel like David Letterman here with the top 1O reasons!

Ladeback69

Man I want a Blackstone 36" griddle, but the price of the 28" I could sell to the wife better.  She then would ask what am I going to do with my little griddle I have and I guess I could give to my neighbor who has a large and it would fit it.  I just don't like going back to buying a propane battle again.  

I think I need to use my Little Griddle more maybe this weekend.

caliking

Be careful with that shelf under the burners. The one on my BS 28 gets way hotter than I thought it would.

I'm a fine of uneven temps as well. Takes a few cooks to know where the hot spots usually are, but then you use them to your advantage for warming, searing, etc.

 Beer can mod for the drain still works well. 

HeavyG

I have the 22"-er. It seems to heat as evenly as any of these sort of home griddles which is to say that there are always going to be some spots a bit hotter/cooler. That's more a feature than a bug.

I think it gets plenty hot. Not yet felt the need for more heat - it's a griddle, not a wok.

The 22" is a good size for my needs. I can see that there might be times (very infrequently) where having more room could be useful but I really didn't want to deal with making permanent room for the 36" (or even the 28"). I have given some thought to getting another 22" and using them side by side on those rare occasions. The 22" is small and portable enough that it is easy to just stick in the deck box when not in use.