It was a novelty to see another pellet cooker in the wild. I recall when I used to drive around neighborhoods and every blue moon would see an extension cord running across a driveway along with the familiar perfectly blue smoke perfuming the air.
It was like seeing a rare bird in the forest, or a bear near your back deck. It just didn't happen often. But when it did, it was a sight to behold. I would slow down, rubbernecking to see what model it was. Back then it was pretty much a Traeger, or in the rarest of circumstances a gmg. There really weren't many other options.
Today I was running through the neighborhood across the street. With the stay at home order in place, people are out grilling and smoking in full force. In the span of a 4 mile run, I saw at least 7 pellet cookers smoking away. I saw a few webers and certainly smelled a stick burner or two in the air as well, but more pellet cookers than any other type. It truly has hit the main stream.
I am happy for the industry, but sort of miss the days when it was a super niche market and something you had to seek out. The days when people would ask "what on Earth is that thing?"...
