Char-Griller® AKORN® Jr. Portable Kamado Charcoal Grill and Smoker with Cast Iron Grates and Locking Lid with 155 Cooking Square Inches in Ash, Model E86714

3 month update after using it at least once a week. So this grill is perfect for 3 people, my son wife and I but for bigger families I’d get the regular Akorn. I’ve used a fraction of the charcoal I’ve previously used in big kettle grills and actually very cost effective to buy this if you’re not feeding a clan. I’ve grilled steaks chicken breasts whole chickens just had to flatten it including hot dogs and brats. This is the easiest cleaning grill I’ve ever owned and easy to empty ashes and grill cools down fast. I will always buy akorn grills from now on and I’ve owned gas and pellet grills this is easy to store and very easy to move around and take to the beach. So don’t look at others grills I’ve spent 1000s of dollars on grills and there is no comparable grill for this price point with this quality. Key points: Assembly was very easy with enough patience and a Phillips head or flat head will work for all the screws. Instructions were easy to understand and didn’t leave any questions and not tons of screws to lose while assembling. Solidly built this is on the smaller side but definitely doesn’t feel like something small when you move it, I feel confident our toddler won’t be able to move this or relocate it like everything else. Grates are cast iron and the best grill grate I’ve owned. One Con: The box didn’t arrive damaged and was delivered via USPS however there’s a quarter sized dent on the back of the top lid. Was kinda irritated finding the packaging undamaged however a dent on lid so they have a quality control issue that needs to be addressed because the foam wasn’t impacted and box arrived in perfect shape so quality control needs to be retrained or terminated. Not gonna return this over a small dent that didn’t affect the viability of this product as the dent isn’t deep and has zero chipping. I would buy again even with the dent because it’s a little tank and well built, can’t wait to use it as we have a big traegar pellet grill that I’m tired of cleaning.

I'm a charcoal guy but never owned a kamado style grill. Got this so I could smoke meat on camping trips, but have ended up using it WAY more than I expected to. Perfect for my family of 4, I've done everything from burgers and steaks, to prime rib, pork butt, and ribs. Some things I've learned: - Absolutely buy the smoking stone for this grill, it's a fantastic smoker. I've got this little thing to go almost 18 hours on one load of lump charcoal holding steady at 225. Buy wood chunks, not chips. I also found a little rack to put in it so I can fit 2 racks of ribs in here. - Like other kamado style grills, theres a learning curve with the temp. It gets hot fast, and holds that heat for a long time. So it's easy to increase temp, but tough to reduce it. Just have to heat it up gradually. With both vents only open only a crack it'll hover at 225 with the smoking stone. I like to start steaks at this level, take them off mid-way for a brief rest while I open the vents fully, and in about 5 minutes this baby will be at 500° to get a great sear to finish. - There are some comments about quality. The initial grill I was sent was dented and I sent it back, but the next one they sent was great. So they might just have some quality control issues initially but once they send a functioning grill it seems to last. I've had mine for over a year and have put it through the ringer and it's been great. - I like that it's double insulated steel instead of ceramic. Because it's cheaper (green egg of similar size is over $500), this won't shatter if it's tipped over, and if you touch it it's cool to the touch (great for camping when the kids may bump into it). Overall this is a great grill and a surprisingly good smoker that I've used to kick out a lot of good BBQ. Fun to use, and looks cool too!

Wow! What a well made, handy, extremely sturdy, and handsome griller/Smoker!!! Not only is it impressive to look at (a beautiful cobalt blue, super compact, really cool shape), but it functions better than grill/smoker I’ve ever used. I was told to go with a propane type outdoor barbecue by a number of friends and family members. I decided not to because it would have been too difficult for my wife or I to remove, refill and reattach a propane type tank. With this char-griller, you simply use briquettes and/or your favorite wood chips and easily clean them out afterwards. Using the recommended amount of briquettes, this baby gets up to around 600 F. Amazing really when you see how few briquettes you need to use in order to achieve good heat in this wonderfully compact, multi-functional griller. The char-griller is made mostly of what appears to be a high quality iron. There isn’t a single piece that hasn’t been made with the utmost effort and precision that I can tell. It’s completely functional, easy to assemble, easy to clean. And it looks sturdy enough to last a lifetime. This lovely product has made grilling for us a hugely satisfying experience. We just moved here from NYC where outdoor grilling had been banned for many years. But now that we’re here, to grill or not to grill is no longer the question.

Very nice little kamado. I just finished seasoning it outside. It was 0n;y 2 degrees out with the windchill. I put one layer of lump charcoal on the grate. This little grill got up to 400 internal easily. I made sure there were no leaks by wrapping electrical tape our the center of the wire levers to ensure a tight fit. Otherwise it would have allowed air into cooking chamber. With any kamado, you want it air tight at all times. So this morning I will try to smoke a 17lb Turkey (if it fits) The smallest I could find. It will be -0 with the windchill. I already have the indirect stainless steel divider for smoking and some apple wood chunks. I will use cotton balls soaked in 91% alcohol as my charcoal lighters. I had a larger kamado until it tipped over and shattered, so I decided to go with the Acorn Jr since it's just my wife and I now. Large ceramic kamados are expensive anyway, but grilling on a kamado is absolutely unbeatable. Cut a 17lb turkey in half. Smoked it for 1 1/2 hours at 300. Came out perfect. Very juicy and moist. Just as good as my old broken kamado!

I already have one of those big 300lb beasts of a kamado cooker and wanted something easier to fire up and clean for a quick 2 person dinner or a few burgers and this seems to fit the bill. There are similar all ceramic mini-eggs out there, but they are pricey with smaller cooking surfaces and super heavy. This hits the sweet spot of affordability, larger cooking area and easy to move around without pulling something. POSITIVES One of the best features of this unit is the removeable ashpan. The combination of the middle hanger and the 2 quick release clips on the edges make it easy to clean and prevent the pan from accidentally falling off when you release the clips. You'll need to spin the pan a 1/4 turn to pull it out from the front since the legs get in the way of the handles, but its really easy once you figure it out. Great design, although this could also be an area for air leakage if the seal is poor, but I'm mainly using for open grilling so not as much of a concern for me. Grill looks great once assembled. Its a darker shade of red than pictured but I like it. The legs make it easy for casual cooking near a seating area at ground level. I consider this more of a portable grill that I can put away when not in use so I'm not as concerned about stooping a lot to cook on it. If its your main grill, then you may want to invest in a heat proof table or move up to the bigger model on a stand. Construction isn't bad for the price. It is thin sheet metal that's been shaped and enamel coated so more care is needed vs a ceramic one. Assembly is easy and parts look to be good quality. As always its better to loose fit assemble all components first before tighten the bolts so everything lines up. When attaching the legs, get then on almost fully tight on all 3 legs then flip over so the grill sits on its legs and do a final tightening. Tightening while it sits on its legs helps with overall levelling. NEGATIVES Packaging was a bit poor. The inner liner has a spot rubbed away by one of the feet on the firebowl about the size of a quarter. Not enough damage to warrant a return but irritating nonetheless. I'll just add a little oil on it on the first season. Almost threw away the main grill grate. Its packaged underneath the very bottom styrofoam packing with no protection other than the cardboard. Mine was fine when I found it, but I can see these arrive cracked from rough transport. The handle attachment is poor. The instructions call for a 7/16" socket as the only tool needed, but there is no way to fit that socket in the space provided. Suggest a flathead screwdriver to final tighten as a philips is likely to strip the heads due to the angle. Design of the firebowl seems like an afterthought. There are 3 standoff feet towards the bottom of the firebowl. These feet sit against the inner liner of the grill but hold the firebowl above the inner ledge of the grill. So the firebowl will loosely rock inside the grill until you add the cooking grate on top and "lock" it in place. The cooking grate has cutouts all along the edges that slot into hold downs inside the grill. Once you slot in the cooking great and rotate it to lock it in place it seems to hold down the firebowl better. This appears to be by design, but its not mentioned in the instructions. Still either the firebowl should sit on the inner ledge for better stability or they should add notches for the firebowl feet to sit in and/or add additional standoffs at the top of the firebowl to prevent rocking. The top vent attachment does not seem well designed. There does appear to be a rubber gasket around it but the instructions don't specify whether that gasket should be fully enclosed into the top lid or just sit against it. In any case I was not able to get it all the way into the top lid and there are not stops on the screws so you can really overtighten. The pic on the site shows the gasket exposed, so I went with that. I'd be careful about overtightening here as there are only 2 thin metal ears hold that in place which look easy to shear off. You'll probably get way more air leakage at the main gasket and the ashpan, so this wouldn't be where I'd be concerned. The main gasket will also likely not seal great unless you use the clip. Due to its lightweight there is not a lot of pressure crushing that gasket to provide a better seal. OVERALL Time will tell on the longevity, but overall I think this is a great price to value with some negatives but more positives.

Just put this little guy through its paces and I absolutely love it. I've been cooking with a primo xl kamado for years and wanted something that I could take camping. It's not perfect, but once it's set it is really super. I'll give you the things to watch out for first: 1. The assembly was very easy with the exception of the handle, which was really pretty frustrating. Get someone else to help you hold it in place (it's three separate pieces) while you tighten the screws and use a flat-head screwdriver instead of the recommended nut driver (there's almost no space to get the nut driver on the head, and the angle that the hole in the handle base makes it nearly impossible to get any grip) and it'll be a lot easier on you. 2. Burn through a load of charcoal before you cook with the unit, it puts off some pretty noxious smells the first time you heat it up. 3. Don't expect it to look like you just bought it after you run it full blast. The paint on mine looks pretty faded/oxidized after bringing it up to 700 degrees a couple of times. Personally I don't care but I know some folks take tremendous pride in the aesthetics of their rigs. 4. There's definitely a learning curve to using a kamado (any kamado, not just this one), so if you're not experienced be prepared to do some experimenting and tweaking. It's not at all the same as cooking with a "standard" charcoal grill. Ok, the good: 1. It's a kamado that you can haul around without worrying about the weight or breakage!!! It's steel, not ceramic. For you experienced kamado users out there, you know what I mean. For new kamado users just trust me (my primo weighs 200 pounds unloaded) 2. Its easy to get it to 700 degrees rather easily. Pizza!! 3. I was disappointed that there didn't seem to be one of the heat deflector ceramic stones, but there's an available accessory sheet that comes in the box, and there's a stone available evidently (I haven't ordered it yet) 4. It cools down quickly. I don't have any specific numbers but once you close off the vents it only takes an hour or two to completely shut down the coals and cool off 5. The 14' grate is large enough to cook a decent amount of food 6. Because it's enclosed, you don't need to worry about the wind (we had 20mph sustained winds all weekend and it had no affect). This is a kamado advantage. 7. It seems surprisingly well built. I have to say I didn't have super high expectations given the price but I am impressed with the engineering and apparent quality. I've only had it for a few days and cooked twice with it but I'll be surprised if I have any issues. Hope this helps!

This is my second Char-Griller Akorn (my first was a full-size, bought from a popular big box store that rhymes with "Yo Peepo"). I got rid of my full size over the winter as I got tired of messing with charcoal, fire management, and rusting cast iron grates. Replaced it with a Traeger, and while I love my Traeger, I've come to miss that mallard reaction that you can only get from an open flame. Didn't have the room on our patio to have both my Traeger and a full-size kamado like an Akorn, so the Junior made a good option - especially since it was on sale. Figure I'll store it in the basement when not in use. Got the Akorn Junior assembled in less than 45 minutes, and it would have taken less time had Char-Griller provided proper nuts/screws to attach the front dome handle. Now, onto the QA stuff - to be frank - it was awful. The thermal insulation has multiple breaks, and was even put on crooked. The finish was missing over many parts of the steel area. The interior dome had a spot that had a no ceramic coating on it - looks like it was ground off. The hardware package had popped open and screws were just rolling around unsecured in the box. The orange paint wasn't uniform - it was a very thin spray coating on the lower dome portion versus the upper lid dome portion. Just... horrible HORRIBLE quality assurance from the manufacturing. But, I was in a pinch, already bought $80 in USDA Prime steaks (rib eyes!) and had a friend coming over for the Dance of Dragons premiere, so I assembled it and hoped these issues wouldn't become a larger problem down the line. I seasoned the cast iron grates using avocado oil in my electric oven (425 F for over an hour). First cook was like visiting an old friend - it performed great. Honestly. it was a lot easier to control than the full-size Akorn, but maybe that was just me having great luck this time. This won't be left in the elements - it will be stored in a climate controlled dry basement, so hopefully it'll last a while. Welcome home Akorn Junior - looking forward to many more cooks when the Traeger isn't being used!

First of all, I purchased this at a discount rate due it was a previously returned item. That being said, it arrived to me in a torn box and it was slightly bent. Everything was included to assemble it along with detailed instructions how to do so. This was my first purchase of a ceramic bbq grill and after initial breaking in fire, I am presently cooking 2 beautiful porterhouse steaks as I write this. I was very impressed with the overall quality of this grill and how versatile it appears to be. Mine is a smaller version of popular larger egg grills but just small enough to perfectly satisfy a small family’s needs. I love it, glad I bought it and I believe it should last us a long time with just average care.