Here in the UK, we don't get all the grill manufacturers you have in the US. Traeger are a known force, as are GMG. Louisiana Grills have come and gone on the UK market, but are currently in CostCo and various garden centres.

I actually don't need a new grill, although I was idly wondering whether to put in time building a new controller for my old Traeger Lil Tex, or perhaps just get a new larger grill, particularly as I do sometimes run out of space.

Then I saw the Louisiana Champion. Available in the UK, and at a price not that much more than a "normal" large pellet grill.



I immediately googled it, expecting bad reports for a grill that size, for that money. But what I have found so far appears to be enthusiastic.

So, because I have a healthy regard for the opinions here, does anyone have any direct experience? Specifically the Champion, but also Louisiana Grills in general?

Chris,

In your rear yard / entertainment center that would work perfectly! .... Guests would definitely know you were serious after seeing that. On the other site there were posts about it coming on the market, but haven't seen any user reports about them. No matter what .... YOU need one of these, "cue meister", if nothing else, just for image.  Kind of reminds me of a WWI tank?

I was always pleased with my WholeHog and that was 10 years ago...the new controllers are like 4th generation now and way beyond what I had!

No experience with that particular unit, but reviews on other sites I've see have been mostly positive. As far as the brand goes, I also have a whole hog. Grill has worked great since 2014. I am starting to see some paint issues, and have noticed the controller buttons don't always respond when pressed. Overall, that grill is a great bargain. I saw one in person at Costco and while they have some cheaper components to keep the cost down, all and all it seemed well built to me.

Most of the complaints You see about this brand is temp related, and that's unfortunate. There has been so many different iterations of controllers and programming I think most people could change a few settings and be happy campers. I don't know what it costs over there, but had I needed one I would have been all over it for the 999 that it was here.

Chris I have no direct cooking experience on this unit but inspected one at my local Costco and was not impressed with the construction or materials used.  I would want to talk to someone who has one and has cooked on it to get a true opinion.  Good luck.

I've seen the Champion at Costco, looked it over pretty good. I'm not sure it'd ever be a pit I would buy, mainly because... well it's huge. 

I love the size of the main grill , it's deeper then most grills... I forget the exact measurements front to back, but I know it's more then 20"... height from the main grate to the top of the main chamber is also more then 9.5" like on so many grills with the 20" diameter barrels...   I personally might be more interested in a grill that was just the main body...  But then... those side chambers sure could hold a lot of beef jerky or slabs of bacon... 

I didn't think the construction was all that bad... steel was reasonably thick, not like 'yoder' thick of course, but I didn't think it was any worse then the 'average' pellet grill sold these days..   I have to almost laugh when I say it, because I personally would have to be extremely dissatisfied before I tried to make use of it... but with the Costco satisfaction guarantee, there wouldn't be that much risk to buy one, if you were a person who had a interest in it.

I too saw it at Costco recently, my first reaction was "dear Lord, I don't even know that many people to cook for".   And the ones I know and want to cook for are fewer. [ Invalid Attachment ]

When I first saw it, I thought that it was really bigger than I needed, but was more or less the same price as the grill one size up from my existing large grill.

I'm regularly cooking for a dozen or more, and for the bigger cooks usually end up doing stuff like reheating precooked pulled pork somewhere else, while grilling the fresh meats on the grill. It struck me as useful that I could do that, and do sides, in the side compartment while grilling on the main grill (which also has a direct flame feature).

So it looked an attractive proposition, on paper; at least worth going to look at one.

However, before that, my next step was to go out to my BBQ area with a tape measure, just to see how it would fit. It was only then that I realise how huge it was. It is actually bigger than the BBQ Shelter I have out there.

Meanwhile I have a friend, who I had helped buy a second-hand grill just like my large one, a couple of years back. She is in the process of selling her house and moving to a place with a smaller back yard. Chatting today, we decided that her needs would be satisfied by a smaller grill, like my portable. So there is a possibility that I may end up with two medium-sized grills as well as my portable, which would solve my problems.

So I haven't ruled out the Champion yet, but I am waiting and seeing what happens.

I sold a GMG JB because it was just to big & I never used it, And My GMG DC works fine.

I was originally looking looking at the LG700 as an all around grill. But settled on the Elite 800 because its one fine looking/cooking pit and I got it for just $100.00 more than the LG700. So far I've been real happy with it.

My point being for me the 800 with its second shelf & my DC as an overflow pit, I don't need the room of a Champion & I see you've got others you can use as a over flow also,

Did you ever settle on the Champion? Get something else?

No, I've done virtually nothing on the smoking/bbq front this year, so far. Things will pick up in the Spring.

The thing is this. Often the price of these grills is the same number as you are paying in the US. The same *number* - i.e. if you are paying $700 for a grill, it will be on sale here for GBP700 - about $970 dollars. There isn't even the excuse that the units have to be shipped, any more, as in most cases both UK and US grills are being shipped from China, anyway.

So the Elite 800 you speak of - no doubt a fine grill - sells here, from the official Lousiana stockist, for GBP1300 ($1800) - almost double the price in the US. Whereas the enormous LG Champion is available from CostCo for "just" GBP1150.

If I bought it, it would replace my Lil Tex. I would continue to use my DC as an everyday grill for just me, but use the Champion for when I have a crowd round. From what I have seen of it, it has the flexibility to shut off bits that you aren't actually using, so I don't see how it would be more expensive to run than a grill the size of the main chamber.

At the moment, I think it is unlikely I will buy anything. I'll get the Lil Tex up and running again with a new relay for my arduino controller, and I'll spend some time reaquainting myself with my one remaining charcoal grill (shhhhhh, don't tell anyone), so that I can expand onto that when I need to. But every now and then I see new kit, and start to think how much fun it would be. 

Just to say, I decided not to go for this, for now; although I reserve the right to change my mind in the future!

Instead, today, I have done a fairly simple refurbish of my existing pellet grill (the larger one of my two). That isn't really on-topic here (being different kit from Louisiana), but I may post about it sometime soon, in the relevant section. I'm pretty happy with how it has turned out, but I need to play with the kit a bit before announcing success.