The Napoleon TravelQ Portable Gas Grill With Scissor Cart  was the winner of two prestigious awards, the 2014 Vesta in the gas barbecue division, and the award for Top Ten Best Value Grill from AmazingRibs.com. This portable gas grill is a grill that can’t be beat. The Napoleon TravelQ Portable Gas Grill has set a new standard in portable grilling excellence. Leading the way with innovation and quality, this portable gas grill has everything you need for perfect portable grilling anywhere.

Be the Tailgate Master!

Be the life of the party anywhere. Bring your gas grill wherever you go with the convenient scissor cart. The all-terrain wheels easily roll over anything, and it folds down and opens up with a quick lift and pull. Set up for your tailgate, beach day, or picnic. Hang the cart on the wall for easy storage, or pull it along with you when you travel. The cart features spacious side prep shelves and towel and tool holders too! Everything you need for successful grilling on the go.

Don’t let the small size fool you; this portable gas grill has 285 square inches of total grilling area. That means you can grill up to 18 large hamburgers at once. Be the star of your next tailgate with this bad boy. Two, individually controlled burners for up to 12,000 BTU’s of flame power. That means you can have perfectly powerful grilling anywhere you go this summer; whether tailgating, picnicking, adventuring, heading to the beach, or just relaxing at home.

Every Napoleon TravelQ Portable Grill comes fully assembled in box with the complete folding cart assembly, dual stainless steel burner system and two removable porcelainized cast iron cooking grids.

For more information, contact West Sport in Sudbury.

Memorial Day is here, and believe it or not Summer is just around the corner which means barbeques and outdoor gatherings. Before you do your first grilling this season, it is a good idea to make sure your gas grill is ready and in prime working condition.

First off check your propane tank to make sure you have plenty of gas. Also check to make sure your tank is not rusted or damaged. Next take a close look at your LP gas hose and regulator. Check for cracks, cuts, abrasions or kinks of any kind. If you see any of this type of wear go ahead and replace the hose and regulator assembly.

Now while your grill is cool, go ahead and clean the inside of your grill. Use some type of gloves as this is a fairly dirty and messy process. Using whatever type of cleaning brush you desire, clean the cooking grates from front to back. Flip the grates over and do the same to the bottom side of the cooking grates. Once you have completed this step, remove the cooking grates from the grill and set them aside. Make sure to set them on some newspaper or some other kind of scrap material to prevent grease and oil from staining your patio or deck.

Either using the same cleaning brush or some type of flat scraper, clean all excess grease and debris off the top and bottom of your heat tents. If your grill has porcelain coated heat tents I would recommend using a cheap plastic putty knife as this will not damage the surface. You can scrape the debris off directly into an open trash can. Once you have finished cleaning the heat tents, set them on top of the cooking grates.

Using the plastic putty knife, scrape any excess grease and debris from the inside of the firebox into the bottom of the firebox. This would include the cooking grate ledges, heat tent ledges any flat spots on the burners, etc.

At this point check your main burners. Check the overall condition of your burners, looking for any rust through (surface rust is fine and very common but not to be worried about), cracks or breaks. If you see any of these issues go ahead and replace the burner or burners that have these issues. Also check to make sure that none of the burner ports (holes) are clogged. If they are, you can use a paperclip to clean the holes. Never use a toothpick or anything that could break off inside of the burner. It is also a good idea to remove each burner to make sure that spiders or other creatures have not clogged the burner or air vents with nests and debris. Follow the instructions in your owner’s manual for proper removal and replacement procedure.

Next, check to make sure that there is a spark at each electrode when you push your ignition button (this may be difficult to see on a bright sunny day). If not, you may need to clean the electrode tips and the sides of the burner next to the electrode to get a better spark. You can use an Emory cloth or Scotch Bright pad to accomplish this. Also check to make sure that the gap (or space) in between the electrode tips and burners are about the same on all of your ignition points. If there is a difference between these gap sizes you will not get proper spark at every point. Typically this can be adjusted by lightly pushing the electrode tip in or out as necessary. Be cautious when doing this because you do not want to break the electrode.

Once you have completed these step you will need to proceed in one of two ways depending on how your grill is constructed:

1. If your grill has a removable grease tray and grease cup at the bottom of the firebox then remove and empty the grease cup first. Then remove the grease tray and hold it over a large open trash can, scrape all of the excess grease and debris off using the plastic putty knife. Once you have finished cleaning the grease tray, reinstall it into your grill along with the grease cup.
2. If your grill does not have a removable grease tray then remove and empty the grease cup first. Reinstall the grease cup and then you will need to scrape any excess grease and debris off the bottom of the firebox and into the grease cup using the plastic putty knife. You may need to empty and replace the grease cup several times depending on how much debris is in the bottom of your firebox.

Now put your heat tents and cooking grates back in place and you are ready for your first barbeque of the season… Enjoy!!

For more information on grills, propane and supplies, contact West Sport in Sudbury.

landmann-usa.com

If you could have just one outdoor cooking appliance, what would it be?

Backyard grilling has always been a big American pastime, but in recent years this has been joined by an explosion of interest in slow smoked barbecue, cooking meats slowly at low temperatures with indirect heat and plenty of smoky flavor. This has led to a boom in smoker sales, but for most people that means a second unit, and usually a big one, since many smokers are of the offset variety and require a lot of space.

The problem of multiple grills is confounded, because when most people say they are having a “barbecue” they really mean grilling, or cooking over flame, the most common form of backyard cookery. Most of us use our smokers for a limited number of specific slow cooked BBQ specialties such as ribs, brisket and pork shoulder, but grills do everything from a single steak to hamburgers for a crowd, hot dogs, chicken, pork chops, vegetables, seafood and so on and soon. Some smokers, especially vertical ones, can double as wood or charcoal burning kettle-style grills, but this is not typically a solution for the frequent griller.

Because grills typically get used more often than smokers, convenience becomes a big factor: while it is well worth lighting a hardwood charcoal fire to cook ribs for six hours, few people want to bother with this to make a couple of hot dogs, or burgers for two. This typically reduces grill selection to a choice between more convenient propane or more flavorful wood fired cooking, two very different types of grills, and some people want both – along with a smoker (there is also a very limited niche of dual-fuel grills that can burn wood and propane).

But many Americans live in an urban or suburban world of limited outdoor space, a single patio or even balcony, and if you have to choose just one grill that truly can do it all, the choice is simple: it is almost impossible to argue against a pellet grill. These can slow smoke or grill, do both very well, and easily, with real wood and real fire but without hassle or time constraints, lighting quickly with no mess or chimney starters, and then cooking accurately with minimal supervision.

Pellet grills burn small hardwood pellets about twice the size of a pencil eraser, which you buy in bags. Like wood chunks, they come in different “flavors” like hickory, oak and mesquite. They are not brand specific and are readily available in stores. Different brand grills work differently, but at the higher end, better pellet grills generally have a storage hopper for the pellets and an electronic auger which feeds them into a firebox. This typically has an electronic igniter, an element that heats up when you start the grill, and when pellets are dropped onto it, they catch fire. Once it gets going, new pellets are ignited by the old. The whole thing is computer controlled, and you set the temperature with a digital thermostat, just alike a wall oven, then the computer and auger feed pellets as needed to precisely maintain the temperature. That’s pretty much it – whether you are slow smoking at 215° for 12 hours or searing steaks at 500° for two minutes per side, you turn it on, set the temperature, and wait for it to heat up, which is slightly slower than propane and much faster than a wood fired smoker or grill.

PROS:

Convenience – To make ribs, turn the smoker on to 220° with the flick of a switch and the push of the temperature control arrows, and less than 15 minutes later the ribs went in. With a regular smoker, it’s 15 minutes in the chimney starter just to ignite hardwood charcoal, than another 25-30 minutes to get the smoker itself going and settled down after the initial weave of excess smoke. And while it’s never a good idea to leave a fire burning apparatus unattended, this is largely a case of “set and forget.” Once the ribs or brisket or wings go in, you can do something else until it’s time to check, spritz or sauce them, no refueling or tinkering required.

Efficiency – As long as you have pellets on hand you never have to unhook a tank and take it to the gas station again, and the pellets are cheaper and much easier to ship and store than hardwood charcoal. A 20-pound bag (from $12) takes up very little space, and one bag easily gets you though three 4-6 hour smokes and several high-temperature grilled dinners.

Accuracy – Once lit, the temperature never fluctuates by more than 2-3 degrees with zero supervision. A regular smoker requires a constant eye and adjustment of vents and fuel and even using a remote digital thermometer to monitor it.

Versatility – Pellet grills are just as adept at grilling as slow smoking, can go up to 600°, and for a wood grill, the high temperature is even harder to regulate steadily than the low, but here, you punch in 450° you get 450°. You can grill steaks, burgers, corn on the cob, and more direct grilled, all with great success.

For more information on pellet grills, contact West Sport in Sudbury.

Forbes

Memorial Day is widely regarded as the unofficial kickoff to backyard grilling season, yet surprisingly, Mother’s Day is the fifth most popular outdoor cooking day of the year.

But the calendar is becoming increasingly irrelevant as America’s love of all things grilled and smoked is more of a year round phenomenon than ever before, and even in the long lasting wintry weather, many lit a smoker for the first slow cooked outdoor ribs of the season as soon as the snow was clear.

Here are some interesting factoids about the current state of barbecuing from  a recent poll:

• 75% of U.S. adults own a grill or smoker.
• The majority of grill owners (63%) use their grill or smoker year-round and 43% cook at least once a month through winter.
• Nearly a third of current owners plan to grill with greater frequency this year.
• Barbecuing isn’t just an evening activity: 11% of grill owners prepared breakfast in the past year.
• The five most popular days to barbecue, in order are: July Fourth; Labor Day & Memorial Day (tied); Father’s Day; Mother’s Day.
• The top three reasons for cooking outdoors, in order are: to improve flavor; for personal enjoyment; for entertaining family and friends.

Now for the really interesting stuff:

Gas grills are easily the most popular style, the choice of 62% of households that own a grill. The convenience factor is extremely high, and the purported flavor disadvantage of gas versus charcoal is not nearly as great as many pundits make it out to be. That being said, if you could have just one grill to do it all, there is little doubt that the best all-around choice is a pellet grill, closely followed by a kamado (ceramic egg) style grills. Yet the pellet grill remains one of the least well-known backyard cooking devices.

With both pellet and kamado you can truly do it all, including very high quality slow smoked Texas or Southern style barbecue, as well as grilling, roasting and all other forms of live fire cooking, with much better smoking results than you can improvise on a gas grill. Yet only two percent of barbecue households own a pellet grill. However, with growing recognition of the advantages and recent improvements in quality this is changing fast – an impressive 8% of those surveyed are considering buying a pellet grill this year.

One big advantage of charcoal/wood grills is that they are cheap, making it easy to have more than one fuel option, and this is often the case, as nearly two thirds of barbecue owning households have gas and more than half (53%) have charcoal, with many overlapping.

The grilling accessories scene is also changing fast, and the most popular new items owners plan to buy this year include pizza stones, broiling baskets and cooking planks.

Here’s the really important news – drumroll please – nearly half (45%) of U.S. adults surveyed plan to purchase a new grill or smoker in 2016. The timing could not be better, because the new selection of grills is better than ever.

If you are looking for a new grill, contact West Sport in Sudbury.

Forbes

Now that it is grill season again, you have the choice of either gas or charcoal. You may be using a gas grill, but you may be considering a charcoal grill to use on the weekends. It is easy to turn on the gas valve, hit the ignite button and instantaneously have a fire.

But maybe you think something is missing! Maybe it’s getting your hands dirty arranging the charcoal, the time standing around watching the coals get hot or even the smell of the charcoal burning. Whatever it is, there is something nostalgic about grilling with charcoal.

Yeah sure there is more clean up, you have to get rid of the used up coals. And then there is always the possibility that the coals will burn out in the middle of cooking. That wouldn’t happen with a gas grill unless you let the gas tank run out.

But there are also a lot of benefits to grilling with charcoal, which leads us to this article. Let’s look at the pros and cons of grilling and charcoal and figure out how they affect the style of cooking.

We put the question of gas vs. charcoal to a couple of professional chef friends who had opposite positions. Although their preferences were different, they both came up with great reasons why they choose their style.

One chef listened and then said, “Yes, charcoal grills are more work and what type of grill you use will depend on your lifestyle and the amount of time you have available, but in the end you can’t compare gas grilling to charcoal grilling. Forget about it, charcoal wins hands down.”

When we asked why he was so enthusiast toward charcoal he said, “Because with charcoal, you add more flavor and you can make a hotter fire and heat is your friend.”

The other chef we spoke with favored a gas grill for the convenience and felt you could achieve the same great tasting food by various cooking methods, food prep, and the use of woods for a smoky flavor.

Who’s right? There is no right answer and it really just depends on personal preferences. It really depends on your life style and how often you plan to use the grill. Look at the list of benefits for both gas and charcoal to see which fits best into your lifestyle.

Benefits of Gas and Charcoal Grills

Gas

• Push Button Convenience
• No messy charcoal to deal with
• Easy to start
• Control temperature with a dial
• Control temperatures for longer periods of time
• Can still use wood for smoky flavor
• Wind is not a factor

Charcoal

• More heat
• Hotter grill
• Flavor from charcoal
• More intense smells
• More hands on experience

For more information on both new charcoal grills and new gas grills and the various grill specials we are offering, contact West Sport in Sudbury.

reluctantgourmet.com

Yesterday’s patio has become today’s outdoor kitchen or conversation nook.

All of the home design trend-watchers are saying that outdoor living has gotten bigger and better over the past few years.

Traditional portable grills are being traded in for pizza ovens, built in island gas grills and outdoor kitchen appliances. Tiki lamps are being replaced by sconces and lanterns. And there are outdoor mini-fridges that reduce those trips back into the house.

The notion of spending more time living and relaxing outside has become practical due to advances in fabric and furniture design.

More people are thinking about using more of their property as living space. Furniture is getting bigger and more decorative — options for the outdoors used to be limited because you would think first about how long everything would last. Now you have real sofas where there used to be all of that metal.

Just as the comfort foods of an earlier era have made a big comeback, homeowners have begun to savor those long spring and summer evenings outdoors that some of us associate with growing up in the 1950s and 1960s.

Being outdoors can bring back a sense of community. That’s how people meet each other. You don’t do it sitting behind a locked door and waiting for someone to knock.

Outdoor living gives people a chance to experiment with design ideas they might be afraid to try indoors.

It’s a good place to take a risk and have some fun. You can be bohemian, eclectic. I think most people are more willing to try bold patterns outside.

Inside you can get a little bored because it’s such an investment — outside you have more license to play.

Putting a living space together outdoors can be freeing. You can create something that is a lot of fun.

Spending more time living outdoors with outdoor kitchens can give homeowners a new perspective on their interior spaces when they head back inside in the fall.

For more information on creating an outdoor living space, contact West Sport in Sudbury.

CT Post

Outdoor cooking remains more popular and easier than ever. In fact, the majority of Americans claim that some elements  of cooking outdoors are even easier than cooking indoors and that they prefer cooking out over eating out, according to HPBA National Barbecue Month (NBM) Poll results.

Outdoor grilling is a very popular pastime that unites friends and family with great tasting food that’s easy and affordable. Sixty-four percent of adults agree, reporting that a barbecue is a better way to spend quality-time with their friends or relatives. And more than a third of adults associate barbecues with family tradition.

That’s why May is National Barbecue Month - there’s no better way to celebrate than taking it outdoors for a cookout with friends or family!

According to poll results,  Americans see grilling and outdoor cooking as the ticket to an easy, delicious meal and a healthier lifestyle:

• Easy Does it. 81% of Americans report that at least one aspect of grilling outside is easier than cooking indoors. The most convenient parts are cited as cleanup followed by the cooking process itself
• Cooking Out Trumps Eating Out. The majority of adults agree that cooking out is more fun and relaxing than dining out and beneficial for avoiding travel, dress codes and crowds.
• Healthier Choice. Seventy percent of Americans say cooking out gets them in a healthier routine, specifically by encouraging time spent outdoors instead of cooped up in the house. Outdoor cooking also encourages adults to make smarter food choices such as eating fresh rather than frozen foods and cooking healthier food on the grill overall .
• Got-to-have Gadgets. Accessories make already-convenient outdoor cooking even easier. When it comes to the go-to tools, Americans report top usage of:

• tongs (77%),
• spatula or brush (65%),
• rubs and marinades (62%),
• skewers (37%), and
• baskets (20%).

Need a new outdoor grill for National BBQ month? Contact West Sport in Sudbury for everything you need to know about outdoor gas grills, charcoal grills, keg style grills, pellet grill and smokers and outdoor kitchens and all the grilling accessories you need!

hpba.org

If you could have just one outdoor cooking appliance, what would it be?

Backyard grilling has always been a big American pastime, but in recent years this has been joined by an explosion of interest in slow smoked barbecue, the traditional Southern or Texan style of cooking meats slowly at low temperatures with indirect heat and plenty of smoky flavor. This has led to a boom in smoker sales, but for most people that means a second unit, and usually a big one, since many backyard smokers are of the offset variety and require a lot of space.

Most of us use our smokers for a limited number of specific slow cooked BBQ specialties such as ribs, brisket and pork shoulder, but grills do everything from a single steak to hamburgers for a crowd, hot dogs, chicken, pork chops, vegetables, seafood and more. Some smokers, especially vertical ones, can double as wood or charcoal burning kettle-style grills, but this is not typically a solution for the frequent griller, and in summer in the Boston area lots of people cook out several nights each week.

Because grills typically get used more often than smokers, convenience becomes a big factor: while it is well worth lighting a hardwood charcoal fire to cook ribs for six hours, few people want to bother with this to make a couple of hot dogs, or burgers for two. This typically reduces grill selection to a choice between more convenient propane or more flavorful wood fired cooking, two very different types of grills, and some people want both – along with a smoker.

Many Americans live in an urban or suburban world of limited outdoor space, a single patio or even balcony, and if you have to choose just one grill that truly can do it all, the choice is simple: it is almost impossible to argue against a pellet grill. These can slow smoke or grill, do both very well, and easily, with real wood and real fire but without hassle or time constraints, lighting quickly with no mess or chimney starters, and then cooking accurately with minimal supervision.

Pellet grills burn small hardwood pellets about twice the size of a pencil eraser, which you buy in bags. Like wood chunks, they come in different “flavors” like hickory, oak and mesquite. They are not brand specific and are readily available in stores or by mail order. Different brand grills work differently, but at the higher end, better pellet grills generally have a storage hopper for the pellets and an electronic auger which feeds them into a firebox. This typically has an electronic igniter, an element that heats up when you start the grill, and when pellets are dropped onto it, they catch fire. Once it gets going, new pellets are ignited by the old. The whole thing is computer controlled, and you set the temperature with a digital thermostat, just alike a wall oven, then the computer and auger feed pellets as needed to precisely maintain the temperature. That’s pretty much it – whether you are slow smoking at 215° for 12 hours or searing steaks at 500° for two minutes per side, you turn it on, set the temperature, and wait for it to heat up, which is slightly slower than propane and much faster than a wood fired smoker or grill.

PROS:

• Convenience
• Efficiency
• Accuracy
• Versatility

For more information on Pellet Grills, contact West Sport in Sudbury.

Forbes

Make no mistake about it: Outdoor living is trending and bigger than ever.

Outdoor living is huge. It’s like bringing the inside outside. It really seems like everybody wants to live outside now. Instead of taking a vacation, they want to go outside and have a staycation.

From functional outdoor kitchens to elaborate backyard living areas and everything in between, West Sport in Sudbury has the best ideas for your outdoor living space. Outdoor kitchens remain a popular feature.

We’re seeing a lot more outdoor kitchens with built-in gas grills, refrigerators, and bars. Outdoor kitchens can be as simple or as elaborate as the customer’s budget will allow.

You can have the basics — a refrigerator and grill. Or some people go all out, even installing lobster steamers.

Another idea is to buy a shed, deck it out inside, open up the doors, put a patio on the front of it and now you’ve got an outdoor entertainment area. Fire pits are another way to make the outdoors more cozy and appealing.

People are taking advantage of fire features. Now that everyone is migrating outside fire pits extend the season — you can be outside in the spring and the fall.

Whether outdoor living spaces include elegant or rustic elements, one feature home owners insist upon is low maintenance.

Everybody’s working so hard these days, you want to come home, have dinner, and not worry about messing up anything. You’ve got to clean the house and take care of the inside, so the outside should take care of itself.

For more information on outdoor kitchens and outdoor kitchen design elements, contact West Sport in Sudbury. Send in your contractor and get 25% off your entire project!

heraldbulletin.com

Over the years, outdoor landscaping has evolved from a plain concrete pad to more elaborate, multi-functional, multi-dimensional designs like outdoor kitchens and living rooms. These outdoor living spaces are accessible to people with a variety of budgets, and aren’t just limited to high-end homes.

People are increasingly considering the outdoor area to be an extension of their home, using it as an outdoor kitchen as well as an outdoor living area.

What is your priority: do you want to cook, or do you want to entertain? How do you want to use the space?

While things like a built-in gas grills or a smoker used to be reserved for luxury homes, those features are now readily available at different price points.

It used to be only the elite could have these outdoor kitchens, and now they’re accessible for everybody, and people really want to incorporate them into their design. People want to build outdoor spaces they can really use and savor during the months they can be outside.

Homeowners also want to incorporate items like outdoor TVs, seating spaces and a cast iron fire drum to host gatherings for friends.

Outdoor living spaces now have more of a flow, using different materials and creating distinct areas.

You might have an outdoor kitchen, an entertaining level, and then a separate area with a pergola and a swing. You can build in some functional furniture that doubles as benches and storage.

Even lighting for the outdoors has become more high-tech, as LED technology has introduced smaller lighting fixtures in a wide range of styles.

People are asking for maintenance-free lighting systems they can install and then forget about.

People are also making conscious choices about what plants they are incorporating into their landscaping. They are mixing herbs and vegetables into their overall plan and not having a designated vegetable garden. They are also choosing to incorporate plants that are friendly to butterflies and other wildlife.

There are really so many exciting things on the market now, and things that will be coming onto the market in the near future.

Homeowners also might create a large-scale plan for their outdoor space and then create it in phases. The key is for the designer and the homeowner to work on the project today.

If you build a house, you’re involved with the home builder from the very first step. It should be the same when you create your outdoor space. You should be involved and empowered to make a space look beautiful, but it has to be functional for you and your family and how you want to use it.

For more information on designing outdoor kitchens, contact West Sport in Sudbury.

nwitimes.com