Emeril by Viking EC240 Culinary 24-inch Outdoor Charcoal Grill Review

Looks like all Emeril by Viking Grills are discontinued.

In 2011 Chef and TV personality, Emeril Lagasse, teamed with appliance manufacturing giant, Viking, to offer a new line of gas and charcoal grills. Although the gassers already seem to have faded into the sunset, the Emeril by Viking EC240 Culinary 24-inch Outdoor Charcoal Grill may still available for those willing to investigate. Viking has brand name cachet, but it appears that Emeril’s name on the lid wasn’t enough to convince consumers to buy. In addition to “Emeril” this one has discontinued written all over it.

Clearly positioned to compete with the Weber One-Touch Gold, this design attempts to one-up the competition with several features. The looks are an alternative to the familiar shiny black kettle: A porcelain-coated metallic-gray fire box, a powder-coated “heavy gauge” steel lid, and four fat tubular legs as opposed to the Weber’s three legs. Its 24″ diameter grate with 424 square inches of primary cooking area is larger than the Weber’s 397 square inches. The grate is made of electroplated steel wire, which likely means it is nickel coated. That’s how most low-cost small grill grates, including the Weber’s, are plated.

The standard grate is hinged in the center for adding more coals, a big plus and an extra cost option on the Weber. Like Napoleon’s Charcoal Kettle, the lid is hinged, so you don’t have to put it on the ground and trip on it. At the base of the four legs is a wire shelf, a good place to stow your bag of charcoal. The wire shelf on the Weber base is not very useful. The ash removal system looks pretty easy. The handle you use to move it doubles as a towel rack. It also features the obligatory hood temperature indicator, which measures the air next to the thermometer, not on the grill. As always we suggest you supply your own digital grill thermometer.

These grills were initially priced with our posted MSRP of $229, now it looks like the remaining inventory is being unloaded in the $100 range. Of the few reviews we found by owners, one had problems with it and returned it, and two mentioned that it needs a large, oblong cover for its odd proportions. One reviewer accidentally pointed out how tight the seal is when the lid is closed: when opening the lid, the reviewer got a fireball that “singed the hairs on my arms”. That’s what happens when a smoldering fire, starved of oxygen, suddenly gets a rush of it. While I’m guessing that owner had his vents closed shut, it’s still a good indication that the seal on the closed lid is nice and tight, good for BBQ, bad for arm hair. The upper damper, a dial-type with 6 apertures, is not on the top of the lid, as you’d expect, but on the left side. This helps the user control air and smoke flow somewhat.

Still, if you can get it for a great price, meaning way under the cost of a Weber or Napoleon Kettle, it may be worth a try. Warranty is 2 years on the cooking grate and 5 years on the rest while parts last. The painted surfaces carry a 90-day warranty. Made in China.