British BBQ Society Forums

Picnic and day trip season is upon us and I am thinking of adding a Smokey Joe to the "fleet."
Anyone got one?
Are they practical? i.e. Are they easy enough to cook on; how many can you feed on one burn and do they cool down quick enough to pack away?
Is the Premium worth the tenner extra?
Anyone care to recommend an alternative.

Cheers

Hey Curlie

I have one, the premium, yes in my opinion worth the extra £10, mainly because it won't drop ash in your car as the vents are above the grate, some people however don't like it for that exact reason!!

Long time no speak, been busy?

If you can find one (Weber has discontinued them in the UK) then the Go Anywhere is a cracker. I have one, as does All Weather Griller. Love mine.

Apparently Weber discontinued them because they don't have a heat deflector on the handle and it doesn't fit with H&S regs.

The Go Anywhere is better if you can get hold of one for a reasonable price. Otherwise the smokey joe is fine. Only thing to watch with the the premium is if you are going to cook much with the lid on it is a bit sensitive to the placement pf the coals - it can go out quite easily IMHO

As Steve mentioned, I have the Smokey Joe Gold and the Go Anywhere, both are good, as mentioned the gold can be sensitive to air flow and I have found that if your using heat beads it is generally a better grill. However, I do LOVE my go anywhere, It allows me to cook indirect, I have easier grate control and the beauty is the oblong in shape with fold up legs so its not so much of a PIA to pack when to boot is full.

I believe that the Go Anywhere is still produced for sale in other countries just not the UK/EU.

Enjoy, don't forget the pics.

Adie

Im going on a short break soon in the car and im going to get a big green egg mini to take with.

I have cooked a few times on a smokey joe and you couldnt get a chciken in with the lid on... Too shallow

I have the Smokey Joe and it is a great little cooker, I agree the lid is quite shallow, but it cooks well.

As an alternative for camoing have you seen the Cobb cooker?

Our team is sponsored by Cobb and I have used their cooker for a few years. Very versatile and with the dome extender you can even do beer can chicken etc. I took mine to Rudgwick and smoked a bacon explosion, I have also done pizza on it.

If you are interested let me know and I can make sure you get any info you need.

That's the one the Hairy Bikers use isn't it? They seem to be able to do loads with it

Just to add, the Go Anywhere is a shallow lid, you couldn't cook a chicken whole on it, it would need to be halves, the BGE Mini is a much better way to go, I have seen one at the development kitchen in Chesterfield very handy, they cook on it under an extraction hood.

Out of interest does any other manufacturer i.e. Monolith, Kamado, Primo do a mini?

The Cobb is an excellent machine, I really rate them.