Packed size and cool-down time decide whether it travels twice · review
The only grill here with a front charcoal door, three fire-grate heights and a damper on body and lid both.
What we would actually buy The only grill here with a front charcoal door — refuel without opening the lid, and the listing gives the right reason: it reduces heat loss. Three fire-grate heights, the most on this shelf.
The best feature on this shelf, and the only one of its kind here.
A load of charcoal in a portable grill gives roughly forty-five minutes to an hour of real heat. When it fades, every other grill here makes you lift the lid and the grate — with the food on it — to reach the fire.
Which dumps all the stored heat, and means in practice that you cook on one load and stop.
Royal Gourmet puts a door in the side of the firebox and gives the correct reason: provides convenience to add charcoal and reduces heat loss.
It is the small-grill equivalent of the hinged grate on a full-size kettle. It turns a one-cook grill into one that runs as long as the charcoal does.
One on the main body and the other on the top lid.
The only listing on this shelf that describes the pair that actually controls a charcoal fire:
The body damper is the intake. It sets how much oxygen reaches the coals, so it sets how hard they burn.
The lid damper is the exhaust. It sets how fast that heat leaves, so it sets the temperature under the lid.
Close the intake and the fire dies down. Close the exhaust and the heat is held in.
Compare the Minxchen’s five side vents — all intake, on a grill with no lid, so there is nothing to hold. And the $199 Oklahoma Joe’s publishes no vent count at all.
The most on this shelf. The Feasto moves its charcoal tray between two layers; the Oklahoma Joe’s has a “height-adjustable charcoal tray” without saying how many positions.
On a small grill this matters more than on a large one. There is no room in 300 square inches to push the coals to one side and make a two-zone fire — so grate height is the heat control: close to the fire to sear, raised to finish.
Royal Gourmet pairs it with the dampers in its own bullet, which is the right way to think about it: height sets how much heat arrives, airflow sets how much is made.
The right material for the job, and better than this shelf’s two alternatives.
Chrome plating — on both Cuisinarts and the DNKMOR — resists rust and cleans easily, but chips where a spatula catches it and then rusts at the chip. Bare stainless, on the Zarkind and Minxchen, is fine but does not hold heat.
Porcelain enamel is glass fused to the steel: it does not chip to bare metal in the same way, and food releases from it more easily.
The warming rack above is chrome-plated, which is sensible — it never touches the fire.
303 square inches “overall” — and the listing says plainly that this is the cooking grates and the warming rack together.
A warming rack sits high above the fire. It holds cooked food hot and toasts buns. You cannot grill on it.
The Feasto, at the same $99.99, is the only grill here that separates the two: 265.5 sq in of grilling, 88 of warming, 354 total.
So Royal Gourmet’s actual grilling surface is likely somewhere near 215 to 240 square inches. The page does not say.
No thermometer, where the Feasto at the same price has a mechanical gauge that needs no battery, and the Oklahoma Joe’s one that glows in the dark.
No warranty. Eleven and a half kilograms, so “grab and go” means two hands.
On sale at around $100 on the American Amazon store at the time of checking.
Prices and availability are what Keepa reported on the date this page was updated; both move.
Prices quoted in this text were read on 4 October 2026. The live price is at the top of the page.
| Cooking area | 303 sq in overall — cooking grates plus the warming rack together |
|---|---|
| Cooking grates | Porcelain-enamelled steel wire |
| Warming rack | Chrome-plated steel wire |
| Charcoal door | A front access door, to add charcoal while reducing heat loss |
| Fire grate heights | 3 levels — the most on this shelf |
| Dampers | Two: one on the main body and one on the top lid |
| Ash | A removable ash tray underneath |
| Handles | Two side handles, for lifting it out of a car boot |
| Weight | 11521 g (406.4 oz) |
| Dimensions | 472 × 705 × 488 mm (18.6 × 27.8 × 19.2 in) |
| Cost per square inch | $0.33, counting the warming rack in the 303 sq in |
| Grilling area alone | Not published separately from the warming rack |
| Thermometer | None |
| Warranty | Not published by the maker |
| Amazon reference | B0BV6MPHGM |
| EAN | 0810001891718 |
It is the single most useful feature on this shelf and nothing else here has one. On a portable grill, a load of charcoal gives roughly forty-five minutes to an hour of real heat. When it fades, every other grill on this shelf makes you lift the lid and the grate, with the food on it, to get at the fire — which dumps all the stored heat and means in practice that you cook on one load and stop. Royal Gourmet puts a door in the front of the firebox, and gives the right reason: "provides convenience to add charcoal and reduces heat loss". It is the small-grill equivalent of the hinged grate on a full-size Weber kettle, and it turns a one-cook grill into one that can run as long as the charcoal lasts.
Because those two together are what a charcoal fire is actually controlled by, and this is the only listing on this shelf that describes them correctly. Royal Gourmet writes: "Two air dampers, one on the main body and the other on the top lid, control air circulation to effectively burn the charcoal." The body damper is the intake — it decides how much oxygen reaches the coals, so it sets how hard they burn. The lid damper is the exhaust — it decides how fast that heat leaves, so it sets the temperature under the lid. Close the intake and the fire dies down; close the exhaust and the heat is held. The Minxchen’s five side vents are all intake with no lid at all, and the $199 Oklahoma Joe’s publishes no vent count whatsoever.
The listing does not break it down, and that is the figure to be careful with. Royal Gourmet publishes "the overall 303 sq. in. cooking area is made up of porcelain-enameled steel wire cooking grates and chrome-plated steel wire warming rack" — so the headline number bundles the grate and the rack together. A warming rack sits high above the fire; it holds cooked food hot or toasts buns, and you cannot grill on it. The Feasto at the same $99.99 is the only grill on this shelf that separates the two: 265.5 sq in of grilling and 88 of warming, totaling 354. Against that, Royal Gourmet’s grilling surface is probably somewhere near 215 to 240 square inches, but the page will not tell you.
Close prices, same category: comparable cookware and knives. We keep only the specifications all of them publish, because a column with gaps compares nothing.
| Model | Price | Dimensions | Thermometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Gourmet CD1519 | $100 | 472 × 705 × 488 mm (18.6 × 27.8 × 19.2 in) | None |
| Feasto 2720PC | $100 | 508 × 681 × 541 mm (20 × 26.8 × 21.3 in) | Mechanical — the maker states it needs no battery replacement |
| DNKMOR A-09 | $44 | 279 × 541 × 269 mm (11 × 21.3 × 10.6 in) | Fitted to the grill |
| Cuisinart CCG190 | $40 | 368 × 368 × 381 mm (14.5 × 14.5 × 15 in) | None |
A long cook away from home — refuel through the door, move the fire, control both vents
Listed because the add-on names this pan as a fit.
Amazon reports what buyers took in the month before this page was last checked: at least 100.
The figure is a floor, rounded by Amazon, and read through Keepa — it says what buyers picked, not what a maker claims.
Specifications: the manufacturer sheet for cookware and kitchen knives and the matching Amazon product page. Prices and availability: Keepa. Every figure on this page names its source.
14 in portable charcoal kettle with a 196 sq in chrome-plated grate, dual adjustable vents, three lid locks for transport, an enamel-coated firebox and an ash base, at a stated 4 lb
A 14-inch kettle with 196 square inches, dual vents and three lid locks, at a stated four pounds.
Best for: Tailgating and camping — a proper lidded kettle that travels without making a mess
≈ $40
Tabletop portable charcoal grill and smoker in solid metal with premium chrome wire mesh, a chimney in the lid, a fitted thermometer, a wood top handle, one chrome cooking grid and one charcoal pan
A lidded tabletop smoker with a chimney and a thermometer at 2948 g (104 oz), for forty-four dollars.
Best for: A tabletop smoke — a lid, a chimney and a gauge without the eleven kilograms
≈ $44
14 in portable charcoal kettle with a 196 sq in chrome-plated grate, dual adjustable vents, three lid locks for transport, an enamel-coated firebox and an ash base, at a stated 4 lb
The 14-inch Cuisinart kettle under a second reference — same price, same specification, a different catalog weight.
Best for: The same job as its twin — buy whichever of the two references is cheaper on the day
≈ $40
Prices quoted in these summaries are dated readings. The live price is shown next to each product.
