Otto Wilde Grill vs Beefer (2021): Which Salamander Grill Should You Get?

While some might think over-fired broilers are more gimmicky than useful, they have the cooking chops to be a part of your everyday arsenal. That said, the Otto Grill and the Beefer are two of the most reliable salamander grills around. They reach high temperatures in the blink of an eye and cook just about anything well, from steaks to chicken and even pizza.

At their core, they’re pretty much the same, but there are a few key differences here and there. For starters, the Otto Grill has two infrared burners, while the Beefer uses one ceramic burner. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. We compare the two to clear things up and help you decide which one you should get.

Otto Wilde Grill vs Beefer Comparison Chart

Cooking Performance

The Otto Grill uses more burners than the Beefer.

The Otto Grill has two infrared burners that can be set at different temperatures, so you can cook, say, a chicken and a steak at the same time. In comparison, the Beefer is a single burner grill. It does have two grates, allowing you to cook meat and veggies at the same time, for instance. Its rectangular form factor helps too since you can control their exposure to heat.

For the record, the Otto Grill comes with a cast iron grate, meaning you can get bolder sear marks on your steaks that way. On the other hand, the Beefer is packaged with stainless steel grates that can give your meat an all-over sear. This really boils down to preference, but at any rate, Otto Wilde has an optional stainless steel grate.

By their nature, there won’t be any runaway flames to worry about. That’s because their burners are at the top. You can also use the two as a pizza oven, but their pizza stones are sold separately.

One quick cooking tip in using salamander grills: Preheat them first without the grate inside. According to the manufacturers, the grills can do this within three minutes. Now when everything’s ready, put the meat on the grate and stick the whole thing inside. This is to avoid overcooking the meat right off the bat and prevent sticking.

Ease of Use and Portability

Compared to the Otto Grill, the Beefer is lighter and, by the same token, slightly more portable.

When it comes to grills, an easy-to-clean design can go a long way. It can just save you from a lot of headache down the line. At that, the Otto Grill has what Otto Wilde calls the “It’s ThatEasy?!” feature. The name itself should you give you a pretty good idea of what it’s about, but it refers to the grill’s detachable top. That way you can really get into the corners. You can’t do that with the Beefer, but it’s not that hard to clean because of its design.

The Otto Grill also has stageless height adjustment. That means you can adjust the grate’s height without having to remove it, adding a touch of convenience.

In terms of portability, the Beefer weighs less than the Otto Grill. It’s a 35-pound grill that measures 9.1″ by 15.7″ by 18.5″. In contrast, the latter is 39.7 lbs. and measures 16.7″ by 11.6″ by 17.3″. Regardless, both are easy to take along trips, such as a day at the beach.

Warranty

The Beefer comes with a longer warranty than the Otto Grill.

The Otto Grill comes with a two-year guarantee on all its parts. Funny thing is, Otto Wilde promises to buy the grill back from you, no questions asked, in the event that it doesn’t “make steaks that rival the steaks you get in a fine steakhouse.” Well, that was a mouthful.

However, Beefer wins on this front, offering a three-year warranty on all its grills.

Included Accessories

The Otto Grill is shipped with a cast iron grate, while the Beefer is packed with two stainless steel grids.

It goes without saying that both grills come with everything you need to get cooking. The biggest difference is the grate type. Otto Wilde throws in a cast iron grate, while Beefer goes with stainless steel.

Just to lay out everything else, the Otto Grill includes a 36-inch gas hose, drip tray tongs, a stainless steel drip tray, and the Clever Lever, which is used to adjust the height on the Meat-O-Meter and even open bottles. On the other hand, the Beefer has a longer 59-inch gas hose, two Gastronorm trays, two grates, and one handle.

Optional accessories are where things get interesting. As mentioned earlier, you can buy a pizza stone for either of the two, and you can also get a stainless steel grate for the Otto Grill, which makes it more flexible in a way. Sure, the Beefer doesn’t have a cast iron alternative, but it does have a burger tray with a ring. Needless to say, making a perfectly shaped patty is a breeze thanks to that.

Verdict

The Otto Grill has a lot of advantages, but the Beefer isn’t without its charm.

Put simply, the Otto Grill offers a lot more. It has a detachable top for easy cleanup, separately adjustable burners, and stageless height adjustment. That gives it a ton of points in cooking performance and ease of use. However, the Beefer is more affordable and has a longer warranty.

In fact, the Beefer is in the same price range as the Otto Lite, Otto Wilde’s more streamlined version of its grill. Beefer’s XL variant would’ve been more comparable here, but it goes beyond the $1,500 mark. That would’ve skewed the favor toward the Otto Grill because of the huge price gap, so for the sake of keeping it as narrow as possible, we stuck with the manufacturers’ “originals” for this comparison.

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