I have the Vermont Castings model piped for natural gas from Home Depot for almost 5 years. Very similar to a model on the VC website - difference was stainless steel cover instead of the dark blue enamel which I have and prefer - which was selling for significantly more than I paid. It was very well priced and I had a HD coupon as well.

I'm in NYC, use it year round and never cover it. It is in full sun. The worst thing that happened is that the paint on the VC logo peeled. I routinely do chicken, burgers, fish, steak and get excellent results. The lack of a side burner was essential for me since I didn't have the space for it. I installed one of the two stainless steel side shelves.

I have had a Phoenix no flare grill for 9 years and
swear by it. I use it at least once per week year round.
You can do anything on this grill that you can do in your kitchen including steaming lobsters. You never have to worry about flare ups, because its designed to prevent them. All I've done in nine years is clean it. The burners have a lifetime warranty.

Check out this site for their videos of all their models.

The viking is a large, heavily built commercial style grill. It uses the thickest stainless of the bunch.

The DCS uses ceramic rollers in a stainless flame for their flame guard system. Easy to clean by just flipping the frame. I believe they also have a stainless grill surface that you can flip over. One side for steaks, the other side for fatty stuff so the grease can drain off quicker.

I don't care much for the Webers. They're not in the same league.

Here is a link that might be useful: bbq place

Good(Cheaper) to Better(More espensive)

BroilKing Weber Napoleon Firemagic.

Vermont Castings has been in bankruptcy at least 3 times the last 10 years. Stay away.

BroilKing, Weber and Napoleon have their Chinese made lines as well as their Canadian(BroilKIng,Napoleon) or American(Weber) lines. Stick to North American made grills.

FireMagic is just plain superior to DCS and Viking in the same price range.

FireMagic uses cast SS burners with lifetime warranties. Simply the best of the best.

CalFlame looks good with cast SS burners but they are made in China and don't have an established track record.

Here is a link that might be useful: Burner Comparison

My Weber gas grill has been a terrific performer and it didn't cost the earth. It certainly bears a look. My brother got one, too and loves it. Gets to 600 degrees in 15 mins.

Here is a link that might be useful: Weber Genesis

you may want to check out Alfresco.. Have had no issues with ours..

kellylp - It would probably be helpful to provide a little more information about what your grilling needs and desires are. The only specific you mentioned is that this be the last grill you purchase.

What is your price range? obviously more than a few hundred, but is it $1k, $2k, $5k, $10k. This may make a difference.

What type of grilling do you do? High temp searing, low and slow BBQing....

How big a grill do you need?

What extra features are important to you? Side burners (none, multiple, etc). Rotisserie (yes, no?), built in or cart, LP or NG, capability to do charcoal or wood as well as gas? IR burners (yes, no?). Local purchase or internet?

A little more information will get you more targeted responses. All anyone can do at this point is to throw out their personal favorites based on their needs & experiences. This may not be as helpful as it could.

Have had our Vermont Casting for 3 years and LOVE it; especially the rotisserie. I do two chickens at once with smoker chips and it is the best.

Has very even heat. Never fails to light. Great even in our extreme temperatures -30C.

I don't think a Weber is in the same league.

I don't think a Weber is in the same league.

It isn't. Weber is in a far superior league.

While doing research to pick an outside gas grill, we polled our serious BBQ friends. All had a DCS grill & loved it. We've had ours for 3 years, & it's the best we've ever had. The smoker box (for wood chips) is unique to DCS & is a great feature.

Webers are pretty much forever. I have a Genesis E-320 because I was walking through Home Depot and they had one sitting there in British Racing Green and stainless that broke my heart with loveliness. I gave my older Weber to the kids next door. I do not think it failed to light in 15 years. My new one has enough room for 8 racks of baby backs. Somebody messed up the ignitor button on my new one when it was a couple of years old. I called Weber thinking just to buy a new one. They sent me a replacement free of charge without even asking.

If I could possibly change anything about the Weber it would be that I would prefer to have the burners arrayed from front to back rather than side to side. That way you could keep a "cool side" rather than a "cool front and a hot rear"

But it doesn't matter too much, because I can dial the Weber down so low that I can maintain a perfect 200 to 225 to cook up a mess of ribs just the way I like.

All of this talk of ribs is making me hungry.

Anyway, Weber, I think, is kind of seen as not worthy of consideration when contrasted with more high-line barbecues, and they may be right. But I have a DCS Phoenix patio heater whose fire grate is so blown out it resembles the cratering on the surface of the moon. It is a heavy piece of gear that had some really weak engineering going into a critical piece of the whole. My Weber, on the other hand, will still be happily grilling ribs when my grandkids are grown. They aren't as exclusive or as arcane as some of the others I am sure, but they work good and they last a long time.

I have a philosophy "buy the best, cry only once" After going through a Barbeques Galore top of the line model and not being able to get parts, I went with Firemagic. Not cheap. Except for lighter and cover over burners, guaranteed for life. I have had it about 3 years. Live near the ocean in So Cal. It stays out uncovered all year.

Best grill I have ever had. Highly recommend if you can affort the front end price.

Have had Webers for about 15 years, current is NG Genesis Gold bought in 04. We use it at least 2-3 times a week through 4 seasons. Their warranty service is spectacular--we've had flavorizer bars and hood replaced at 5 years for no cost or hassle. I don't agree that increased price means increased quality, especially with chip smoker tray and cast iron grates. If I were to drop about 4 times the cost of the Weber, it would only be for an IR sear burner--none of the regular gas grills generate that type of heat radiation (as does charcoal). That decision would also probably make me single.

If you want excellent, high-quality gas, I agree with the people who say that Weber isn't in the same league, though mabye not for the same reason. Weber makes great recreational grills and are famous for their kettle charcoal grill. Only the Weber Summit would compare to a grill like DCS, and that's just a small part of Weber's product line.
All DCS grills are high quality 304 stainless steel, and are a great addition to any outdoor kitchen setup. Not to downplay any of the other brands you mentioned, but choosing out of the bunch I would go with DCS

Here is a link that might be useful: DCS Reviews

If I could possibly change anything about the Weber it would be that I would prefer to have the burners arrayed from front to back rather than side to side. That way you could keep a "cool side" rather than a "cool front and a hot rear"

I cannot STAND this about my Weber Genesis Gold. Unfortunately although always uncovered, well used, never maintained other than a scrape-down once in a blue moon, the grill looks great and is going strong after almost nine years. I look forward to the day I can justify replacing it.

I think you both got the quote on the Weber burners wrong. My NG Weber has front, middle, and rear burners. I'd rather have left, middle, and right. But then the cover isn't really designed to exhaust at either end, so maybe that wouldn't work that great.

I'd vote for a Weber. They'll run forever and ever, and parts will likely always be available.

That said, I really just use mine for quick grilling. I have a charcoal grill and a smoker that I use for other stuff (indirect roasting, smoking, etc).

And maybe there are fewer parts, but don't get deluded that anything that runs that hot outdoors with any regularity will not wear out. Charcoal grills do have a lifespan, too.

thull - There's always room for misunderstanding when discussing this, but we're all in agreement. Weber's burners are arranged front to back, and we'd prefer to have them oriented front to back.

I wasn't familiar with that usage of the word "arrayed" so I gave mojavean benefit of the doubt. ;-)

Yea!!! Tax refund!!! Haven't had one of those for a while. Asked hubby - new flat screen or new grill??? Poor guy - rather unfair of me to ask him to choose. Meanwhile, I am leaning toward the grill and doing research. We currently have a Ducane, 20 yrs old so I guess we did okay but it is a mess. What bothers me most are the porcelin grates that are all rusty. I would really like stainless grates and a grill with a rotisserie, thought I could find a web site where I could input this info to find out what is available and by whom - no luck. Hopefully you "griller gurus" can help and tell me what is available. Keep in mind that if I buy reasonably then I can surprise him with a tv!!!

Follow the link I have above to an excellent web bbq store. They have plenty of videos of pretty much all the units they sell and good prices.

People have strong opinions about their grills. We have been through lots of grills during our 25 years of marriage. We live in Florida where you can grill year round but the humidity is always high. It can kill a grill. For the last 3 years, we have used a Viking. We looked at every high end grill and narrowed it down to Alfresco. Then we got a deal on a demo kitchen. My husband loves the Viking. If it ever needs replacing, which it shouldn't, then we would get another one. Not sure what is going on with the LG merger, though.

I'm happy with my Weber Summit Silver bought about 6 years ago. This model has 4 burners arranged left-to-right, by the way. Performance is good - my only gripe is that the separate side burner to the right of the grill isn't very adjustable (though I rarely need it for anything).

While I could probably get choosey and find a more perfect grill, I would first look at Weber's higher-end because I'm thrilled with Weber's customer support.

While performing way-overdue maintenance, I called them to order some replacement parts for items that had understandably worn out or corroded over time... They sent me replacements at no charge. No questions about warranty periods or anything like that. I called them intending to purchase parts, but it seemed they volunteered to replace them on the assumption that Weber products are designed to last forever.

So I'm a loyal customer of Weber's. We live not far from the pacific ocean, the grill is outside, uncovered and facing the sea, and we use it 2-3 times a week year-round. No complaints.

You might want to consider looking into a Memphis Wood Fire Grill(See youtube Videos) as another option. I just recently discoved this grill. Smoker / Grill / Convection oven all in one and priced below the options above you had mentioned.

Hey I'm looking to buy my very last grill! I'm torn between the Weber Genesis or Summit. I'm trying o keep to a budget of under $1k but you know how that goes.

I'm leaning towards a built-in over a cart but don't have a firm preference. I want a want a smoker and lights and a good size cooking space. Maybe 30-36 inches

It MUST be easy to clean my scrubbing days are over. So I'm looking for stainless grates. And lights for night grilling would be sweet.

Grill masters-hook me up! Thx Dina

Bump.....getting ready for spring/summer 2013....building a bbq/ kitchen island, looking at the usual high end suspects for 48"+. Dcs, wolf, lynx, firemagic etc....i think if $$ was no object fire magic is the best of the best (from what ive read). But its nearly double the price of the DCS which seems to get consistently great reviews...its one thing to spend $4k for a great grill but 6-7k?? Welcome all input & feedback

For anyone looking into that kind of money and built in Island type thing I would suggest something like this.

XL Primo Oval Kamado ceramic BBQ combined with a nice small Infrared grill with rotisserie.
Would be somewhere around $3500 total (just for the grills) and far better than a single big gas grill.

A Solaire Grill is rather nice and I think for a 27" one is around $2000.
You can even do a "demo" of one for $147.00 for 2 weeks, if you buy one then they apply the $147 towards the cost of the grill, so if you like it then the demo is free.

I have never used a Primo Grill but hear they are very nice and come with a 20 year warranty.

http://www.amazon.com/778-Extra-Large-Ceramic-Charcoal-Smoker/dp/B0017L529A/ref=sr_1_6?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1363541241&sr=1-6&keywords=XL+Primo+Oval

Here is a link that might be useful: Solaire Demo