As the long summer evenings approach, it’s time for cold drinks and sizzling barbecues, but if you’re looking for an upgrade to help you raise your alfresco game, we might have just the thing for you. The Char-Broil Versa-Tile 3-in-1 grill is built for more than just burgers. We fired one up to see if it lives up to its name — and if the £550 grill is worth the space on your patio.
What’s Hot:
+ Different cooking styles, one barbecue
+ Plenty of onboard storage
+ Less dripping fat, so fewer flame flare-ups during cooking
What’s Not:
– Hot tiles can be awkward to change
– No temperature gauge built into the lid
– Limited traditional grilling space for searing and cooking steak
Char-Broil Versa-Tile 3-in-1 Gas Griddle BBQ: What is it?
Unlike a standard barbecue with a traditional grill, the Versa-Tile 3-in-1 grill combines a flat, solid griddle plate, a grill and a pizza oven in one barbecue-sized package.
Divided into two zones: one half features a permanent griddle plate, while the other has a round section that houses interchangeable tiles for different cooking styles.
How does it work?
Like many barbecues in the Char-Broil lineup, the Versa-Tile is gas-powered, giving almost instant heat to get your cooking off to a flying start. The two zones each have an individual burner, allowing you to control the amount of heat in each area.
The solid griddle plate does exactly what you might expect. The 70x50cm plate offers reasonable surface space for cooking meat, burgers and vegetables, while retaining more moisture to keep them beautifully juicy. You can fry off rice without needing a pan, or, for an alfresco breakfast, cook up bacon and pancakes to enjoy in the sunshine.
Swap out the griddle plate for the grill plate and sear steaks, fish, or sausages to perfection, adding just a hint of charring. The downside is that the round grill plate isn’t particularly large, so if you’re searing a dozen steaks, it’ll take longer than on a standard grill.
What sets the Versa-Tile apart from other barbecues is the ability to double as a pizza oven — of sorts. The round metal pizza riser twists into the tile space, raising the griddle plate to sit just under the domed lid and allowing heat to circulate more evenly around the pizza, simulating a traditional pizza oven.
Is it any good?
Any seasoned barbecue expert knows that it takes a few cooking sessions to learn where the hot spots are in a new grill, and the Versa-Tile grill is no exception. With just two burners, the griddle isn’t an even temperature all over, which you can use to your advantage — slide some food to cooler spots to slow the cooking, or move them to hot spots to get things sizzling. Grill quirks aside, the griddle plate did a great job at a family barbecue. We loaded it with burgers, sausages and plenty of chopped veg, and everything sizzled away, creating the perfect summer soundtrack.
Cooking fat-dripping meats on the griddle rather than on a traditional grill meant no flame flare-ups during cooking. I like a little flame-grilling, although the eyebrow-singeing kind is less appealing, so being able to use the grill tile meant I could play with fire while keeping any flare-ups under control.
Getting the temperature right to cook the pizza perfectly will take a little practice — and reading the instructions, which is something we didn’t do. Our first pizza came out with an over-crisp base, which is when we realised that you’re meant to use both burners: the right-hand one set to ‘pizza’, and the left on high to raise the ambient temperature. The pizza was still tasty, and with the burners set up properly, the next one cooked beautifully.
Swapping the tiles on the grill is easy enough, as it’s obvious where they sit and there’s a lip to line up the tile correctly. If you want to change the tile once you’ve started cooking, things are, of course, very hot, which makes it a little more awkward. A nice addition would have been a small hook tool to help lift the hot tile, but a pair of sturdy barbecue tongs will do the job just as well.
The Versa-Tile 3-in-1 grill has plenty of storage space. There is a wing on each side of the grill offering surface space, one with handy utensil hooks, and the shelves under the body of the grill provide the perfect place to store the grill plates when not in use.
Char-Broil Versa-Tile 3-in-1 Gas Griddle BBQ: The verdict
The Versa-Tile grill offers a twist on the conventional barbecue, encouraging more imagination in your summer cooking repertoire. The ability to cook your burgers on the solid griddle to seal in plenty of those tasty juices, rather than watching them drip through the grill, before moving them over to the grill plate to add those classic seared lines, will elevate your barbecue game.
The pizza oven element is an excellent addition, although it is less able to reach the heights of a standalone pizza oven, so it does take a little longer to cook. But that’s a small price to pay for a delicious, fresh pizza without the additional expense of another piece of equipment you’ll need to store come winter.
It won’t replace your dream outdoor kitchen, but with so much flexibility in one barbecue, the Char-Broil Versa-Tile 3-in-1 grill could easily become the centrepiece of your summer get-togethers.
Model Tested: Char-Broil Versa-Tile 3-in-1 Gas Griddle BBQ
Price: £550
Average Joes Rating: ★★★★☆
