I am a perfectionist. For me, barbecue means cooking on charcoal. Now, you would think that it is easy to find a simple charcoal grill. Not so. Most manufacturers are putting all their energy in designing one more gas grill, which serves more to show off its owners' wealth than their cooking skills. It took me a long time to find a charcoal grill that is modern, well constructed, solid and not too expensive. My research came up with Weber 781001.

This grill is what one would expect from Weber: excellent body made of stainless steel, with porcelain-enameled bowl and lid. Only the vent is made of rust-proof aluminum. It is extremely stable - it weighs 60 pounds, no wind is going to wobble that one, even with the lid up (there is nice, handy lid holder.) The legs look a little on a skinny side, I hope they can do the job of supporting the rather heavy grill. The cooking area is generous 508 square inches.

The grill was extremely easy to put together, since most of it is factory- assembled. In 15 minutes I was ready to cook.

Although my family was making fun of me for buying such a large grill, they liked the fact that I could put everything for dinner at the same time. Large surface allows you to distribute different food items at different temperature, as they require. There is enough space under the lid for a whole chicken, and I might try turkey one day as well.

There is enough place for a lot charcoal in the charcoal baskets for the whole job. The ash container is enclosed so the wind will not blow it in your face, and it is easy to empty and clean.

The price of $299 (at the Amazon) is high, but I used my old Weber for years, and I grill a lot, so I think that it is reasonable. All together, a great grill.