Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet News and Press

Detroit Free Press
July, 2006

One of the most decorated makers of ultra-high-end grills is Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet...

Grills Are for Dreaming

You there. Yeah you, the one kicking back next to your modest backyard grill, sipping a beer while you watch the burgers brown.

You may think your meat is sizzling nicely.

But picture this: You slap that ground beef down on a gigantic stainless steel monster as long as you are tall and turn it on in a whufff of flames. It's fed by a gas pipeline — no mere propane tanks here. Turn on all the burners and you're looking at up to 150,000 BTUs of [cooking] power, or enough to heat about three 2,000-square-foot houses.

OK, so it'll set you back about $10,000 or so. But your grill would be the undisputed king of the neighborhood, the altar at which all other grills — including the one you're using now — would bow down and worship...

Don't feel bad about lusting after a luxury grill... If you live in Michigan, it's almost your civic duty. After all, one of the most decorated makers of ultra-high-end grills is Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet, located right here in the mitten, which turns out models like the Bread Breaker Two Dual-Fuel, an $11,290 stainless steel sculpture made of 500 pounds of laser-cut steel.

Overdoing it? Sure. But in the same way your head turns when a Ferrari drives by and your eyes widen when you see some celeb's indoor polo field, there's something irresistible on this most-popular-of-grilling-holidays about looking at the grills of your dreams: those flaming dragons of excess that define the most luxurious outdoor kitchens on the planet.

The Bread Breaker is even historic: The grill is made by a fourth-generation metal master whose great-grandfather made one of the first grills in the country. And it's equal opportunity: It doesn't matter whether you like wood, charcoal or gas, since the Bread Breaker accommodates all three.

Leslie Wheeler, director of communications for the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association — c'mon, you knew there had to be a trade group for grills; imagine their annual picnics — says that high-end grills account for about 6% of the overall market...

Nearly all high-end grills are made of stainless steel, although all stainless isn't created equal. The $199 stainless grill you might see at a big box store is probably made with 430 grade stainless. Those monster elites? 304 grade, which is less likely to rust and retains heat better...

©2006 Detroit Free Press Inc.