Blue Rhino GGC1643B Razor Griddle Review
Gas fired outdoor griddles continue to increase in popularity year after year. They are in particular demand with campers, RV-tourist, tailgaters, and people who need to cook a lot of food while they are on the go. This has prompted a wide range of grill manufacturers to provide a griddle or grill to meet this niche.
Blue Rhino doesn’t necessarily have a long reputation for producing grills or griddles. They started into the market as a replaceable propane tank provider. In recent years they have evolved their line to include propane grills and griddles.
The Blue Rhino GGC1643B Razor Griddle is their attempt to throw their hat into the ring. Being relatively new to this niche, they tried their best to design a quality unit, that hedges out its competitors.
One complaint you get with other griddles in this class is that they have narrow grease channels and small dripping pans. So, Blue Rhino made a point to give it a broad channel grease management system that flows directly into a large, yet nicely concealed dripping pan.
The Blue Rhino GGC1643B Razor Griddle was also designed to be portable. It folds up into a nice tight case, with very little effort. It’s a little on the heavy side ringing in at 117 pounds. So, make sure you have another person to help you load it in and out of your vehicle.
Blue Rhino also made it a point to show off their propane fire acumen. The four independently controlled burners each producing a whopping 15,500 BTUs of heat for a total of 62,000 BTUs. This is above and beyond what the competitors offer.
This level of heat can sometimes be a little bit too much overkill. If you are cranking it up to the max on all four burners for a long cooking session, heat can start to transfer to the side shelves. Sometimes the shelves can get very hot! Just keep in mind that it might take a little bit of time to dial in just how much fire you really need.
Construction & Ease of Assembly
Blue Rhino clearly made an effort to produce a quality grill when they were designing the GGC1643B Razor Griddle. They made sure to use quality materials throughout, married to thoughtful design. The griddle top is made from 4.5mm steel, which is what you find in most restaurant griddles.
One tiny knock on it is that it has two wheels and two small casters. If you are setting this grill up at a campsite with soft or uneven ground, it could be an issue. In a case like this, you might want to keep a couple of small pieces of wood with you to make sure the casters don’t sink in from time to time.
It was also designed to be easy to assemble, easy to collapse for packing up, and easy to set up. It’s also worth noting that it comes with a locking lid top, which you don’t always find with portable competitors in this same niche. You should be able to put it together in a little over an hour to an hour and a half.
Grilling Performance
The four burners are capable of producing a whopping 15,500 BTUs of heat. This allows you to cook just about any high heat application. Just be careful to remember that the side tables can get pretty hot if you leave the burners on their highest setting.
You will need to take the time to maintain the seasoning layer on the 4.5mm grill top. It comes pre-seasoned. Still, its best to heat it up the first time, then rub it down with shortening or peanut oil. There are some people who also advocate seasoning with flaxseed oil.
The griddle top is large enough to create two distinct heat zones. This is something that you can’t always do with a competitor grill that uses cast iron, which absorbs and spreads the height heat.
Being able to create two heat zones means you can prepare things like fajitas, where you sear the Steak or chicken on high heat, while the vegetables sweat on the low heat side. If you are making breakfast, you can set one side to high heat for making sausages and French toast with crisp edges. Then you can leave the other side on medium to low heat for making a big mess of scrambled eggs.
One potential knock with the Blue Rhino GGC1643B Razor Griddle is that it doesn’t have the option of being able to replace the flat griddle top with a set of grill grates. Some of the competitors in this class do this and include replacement grates. Though there are some internet rumors saying that Blue Rhino is working on it.
Grilling Areas
The Blue Rhino GGC1643B Razor Griddle offers a large 730 square inches of cooking space. This is enough to cook a full English breakfast for up to six campers. At the same time, Blue Rhino boasts that it can handle up to 57 hamburger patties at one time!
Special Features
The grease channel and large, concealed drippings cup is the top of its class.
The Blue Rhino GGC1643B Razor Griddle was intuitively designed to collapse down into a compact case that is relatively easy to move. Just make sure you have someone to help you load and unload the 117-pound griddle.
Ease to Clean
So long as you are mindful to maintain the seasoning layer on the griddle top, the Blue Rhino GGC1643B Razor Griddle is very easy to clean. It needs little more than a quick scrape down and a vigorous wipe. Then you just take out the drippings cup and pour it away!
Warranty
The Blue Rhino GGC1643B Razor Griddle comes with a 1-year limited warranty. This is a little bit less than competitors in the same class, who typically offer a 3-year warranty.
Conclusion
The Blue Rhino GGC1643B Razor Griddle was carefully designed and uses quality materials. Most of its features are a half to a full step above its competitors. Just make sure that you take the time to maintain the seasoning layer. If you aren’t sure of the best way to do that, Blue Rhino has an instructional video on their website.
