If You Have a Grill, You Need a Grill Table
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I’m blessed to have a backyard in Brooklyn and perhaps even more so by the fact that part of it is paved into a patio. It’s the section that comes right up to the back of our ground-level unit, the door leading directly into the kitchen. The moment I saw it, I knew it was going to be a prime area for grilling and outdoor dinner parties.
Still, I wanted to make the space function for such occasions on a budget, as my husband’s and my spot is a rental. My parents generously bought us an outdoor table and benches as a housewarming gift, I put upstring lights, and, of course, bought agrill(it’s the classiccharcoal Weberin green, in case you care to know).
For the first few months, that setup worked. I would bring my food and gear outside on a largesheet tray. When it was just me, I could place it on the table — fine enough, though somewhat low, far from the grill, and not a surface I wanted to get messy. When friends were over and the table was occupied, I’d end up doing a dance of holding items, passing them to other people to take inside, and asking someone to please grab me adish towelor basting brush and bring it out. It wasn’t ideal. Just as you need counter space inside — so did I outside.
When you search for “outdoor grill table” online, you get a lot of intricate setups: tables with various drawers and shelves and hooks. It all felt like too much to me. Or you get simple ones but from retailers like Crate & Barrel and Pottery Barn charging upward of $500 for something unnecessarily fancy yet still quite basic.
And so I ended up picking out a regular old stainless-steel restaurant-grade work top (ours is two feet by three feet, but you can go a bit smaller or quite a bit bigger). I am pleased to say, heading into our fourth summer with it, it was a fantastic decision.
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This thing is sturdy. It has adjustable legs, so you can set it to your preferred height (our patio is distinctly sloped, so I added some bricks on one side, too). Thanks to the material, there’s no need to worry about it warping or degrading, which wood eventually does. It’s supremely easy to wipe down so that it looks fresh again, no matter how much wear it goes through across seasons(we leave ours out all year long)or if I spill something gross on there, like meat marinade. The main tools I use outside are a spatula and tongs, and I prefer to bring out the ones I keep in my kitchen anyway. I don’t need space to store extra-long specialty ones.
With this setup, there’s no need to run back and forth to the kitchen every couple of minutes. Instead I head outside with everything I need: food, tools, my rechargeable lamp, a lighter, and a glass of wine to sip on — and then put down — as I cook.
More tools I love for grilling
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