“The compact outdoor charcoal grill with two handles is just the right one for grabbing out of the trunk”
“The front charcoal access door provides convenience to add charcoal and reduces heat loss, and the ash tray underneath is removable for easy cleanup”
“Two air dampers, one on the main body and the other on the top lid, control air circulation to effectively burn the charcoal”
“The overall 303 sq. in. cooking area is made up of porcelain-enameled steel wire cooking grates and chrome-plated steel wire warming rack”
“Customize your preferred cooking temperature by adjusting the 3-level adjustable fire grates and two air dampers easily”
The door in the front
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.
Two dampers, described properly
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.
Three fire-grate levels
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.
Porcelain-enamelled grates
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.
The number to read carefully
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.
And what it does not have
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.
Warranty in the table only. The Amazon.com table lists: Manufacturer warranty for 1 year from date of purchase.
Availability
On sale at about $100 on Amazon.com when we read the listing on October 31, 2026.
Price and availability were read on Amazon.com on October 31, 2026; both move.
Prices quoted in this text are dated readings and can differ from the live price in the buy box.
What we rate, and what we do not
Strengths
A front charcoal access door — the only one here, and the only way to refuel without dumping the heat
Three fire-grate levels, more than the Feasto’s two or the Oklahoma Joe’s unspecified range
A damper on the body AND one on the lid, described correctly as the intake and exhaust pair that controls a fire
Compromises
Publishes 303 square inches "overall" without saying how much is grate and how much is warming rack
No thermometer, where the Feasto at the same price has a battery-free mechanical gauge
Eleven and a half kilograms, so "grab and go" means lifting it with two hands
Specifications
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
25.4 lb (11.5 kg)
Dimensions
18.6 × 27.8 × 19.2 in (472 × 705 × 488 mm)
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
Manufacturer warranty for 1 year from date of purchase, in the Amazon.com table; not in the bullets
Amazon reference
B0BV6MPHGM
EAN
0810001891718
The questions that come in
What does the front charcoal door change?
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.
Why does a damper on the lid and one on the body matter?
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.
How much of the 303 square inches can I cook on?
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.
Our score
8.1/ 10
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.
This one against the other cookware and knives
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
Warranty
Royal Gourmet CD1519
$100
18.6 × 27.8 × 19.2 in (472 × 705 × 488 mm)
None
Manufacturer warranty for 1 year from date of purchase, in the Amazon.com table; not in the bullets
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.
218 sq in tabletop charcoal grill in heavy-duty steel with thick cast iron grates, a height-adjustable charcoal tray, a professional temperature gauge with glow-in-the-dark accents, a rubber-gripped lid handle, a full-size removable ash pan and a 2-year warranty
The only grill here with a warranty — two years on all parts — plus cast iron grates and a glowing gauge.
Best for: A grill that travels by car and is kept for years — the only one here with a warranty behind it
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
Foldable stainless steel tabletop charcoal grill with a flat-fold structure, an included fitted oxford carry bag, tool-free assembly in under a minute, ventilation holes on both sides and reinforced legs
The only grill here that folds flat and ships with a fitted oxford bag, packed to 8.27 in (210 mm) thick.
Best for: Carrying — a hike, a beach, a car boot already full, where packed size decides it
