As long as you keep the lid closed, you shouldn’t lose heat and will be able to cook the food faster. The Weber Q 1200 is an unexpectedly powerful grill, resulting in cook times that were much faster than expected for such a petite barbecue. Like other top models, this is all thanks to a single, U-shaped burner that effectively delivers heat across the range of the grill surface. When you make rubs at home we recommend you add salt first then the herbs and spices because salt penetrates deep and the other stuff remains on the surface.
I have to say, overall, I was impressed with what a good cooking performance the 2200 offers up. Although it has a few limitations that you wouldn’t necessarily find with a whole grill, I did enjoy grilling on it. Last, but certainly, not least there is the stainless steel burner that offers both quality as well as power. There are five different Q grills with different sizes, prices and features so making blanket comparisons to the Traveler is not straight forward. Let’s take a look at the table that I put together below that compares the base features of size and features before we talk about the big picture. After about 15 minutes of preheating both the Q grills and Traveler will have grate temperatures approaching 600F.
Throughout my testing, I was easily able to achieve temperatures of 450 to 500 degrees with this portable grill, which was enough for my needs. However, if you like to cook with really high temperatures—I’m talking over 500 degrees—you might have trouble getting there with only one burner. If you want a lighter grill and aren’t cooking for more than a few people, the Q1200 is a great option. If you want more room for food and are willing to lug around a bit more weight, then the Q2200 is more in line with what you are looking for. If you’re looking for a new gas grill that can slide into your car for a weekend getaway or tailgate, you probably have looked at the -series of grills.
I think this is best illustrated by these two skirt steaks that were seared for three minutes per side. I have been cooking on both a Traveler and a couple of weber charcoal grill’s for months now and wanted to share my thoughts on a Head to Head comparison. We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. Get BBQ guides, recipes, and our free digital cookbook sent straight to your inbox.
GearLab is founded on the principle of honest, objective, reviews. Our experts test thousands of products each year using thoughtful test plans that bring out key performance differences between competing products. And, to assure complete independence, we buy all the products we test ourselves. We purchased the Weber Q 2200 so our review could put it to the test in her kitchen. If you like the idea of the portable cart add-on, the Traveler comes with its own cart.
A cart is also available, converting the Weber Q from a portable grill to your permanent backyard or balcony grill. The Q series grills are designed for grilling, although there are cases of people roasting on them, grilling is by far the strength of this series. The cooking grate is made of porcelain enameled cast iron the burners are not inhibited by flavorizer bars so the grate gets direct heat from the flame. Weber creatively created the grates to ensure that any grease or drippings bypass the direct flame. This model, like the Q1000 grill, has a cast-aluminum lid and body while the burner is made of stainless steel. Apart from this, the porcelain-coated cast-iron cooking grates and glass nylon frame made it durable.