YemYam

Thanks dstr8! I spent twenty years in Texas before logging a little over 10 now in North Carolina so I have feuding bbq states in my blood now. Trying to do them both justice and with the KK you can't go wrong no matter what style you go with!

Yes, food pics! Third day cooking on it, definitely getting the hang of things! I did not use the guru yet as the weather was forcasted to rain on and off and I know the guru is not fully waterproof. 5698k, I got the CyberQ wifi with the Pit Viper fan. Looking forward to doing an overnight smoke with it once I get a clear weather window. For this cook I did bone in boston butt and beef briskett. Cooked for a party and maybe it's the amount of beverages consumed but everybody was all over it like zombies to brains. Everybody loved it and said it was some of the best bbq they have had in their life (again, maybe from the beverages, drunk hungry people say the darndest things). Other notes on this cook: Fogo lump charcoal Peach and Plum wood for smoking from Fruita Wood site Kosmos Dirty Bird rub on the briskett and Kosmos Killer Bee on the pork butt (also from Fruita Wood site) Smoked at just under 250 from 10-6 then tin foil wrapped for another two hours Made sure I let the temp come up super slow so I didn't slip past 250 like I did on my first two attempts. Thanks for the comments all!

Thanks for the feedback everybody! And thanks for the compliment on the kitchen Tony, I spend a lot more time in the backyard since it was completed. I think for now I am going to leave it as is and keep an eye on the heat it produces. I investigated getting a custom granite base and Dennis suggested maybe a thermal hard board insulation. I've only taken it up to 350 so far but the base was super cool. Once I do the first high temp "burn in" I'll know how much heat the base produces. We don't have that extreme weather here in NC and the kitchen has been completed for 2 years with no issues so hopefully it will be fine. If there's a lilttle discoloration or slight crack I'm not going to cry over it. The first two cooks went great. First was a large chuck roast and pork ribs, I stumbled a lil and over cooked em a tad so I turned them into beef chili and pork ragu and they tasted awesome. Second day I did a bone in boston butt and was much more comfortable/confident and it came out great. I just got my bbq guru in the mail yesterday so that will be my training wheels until I get more experienced with the process. Loving the KK very much, it's nice to be cooking with fire again!

Yes, from the high side, there are stairs just to the left that go down to the open end of the kitchen. I decided on this for a few reasons: - I will be doing 80% low and slow in the KK so I will not need to be hovering over it much, just loading and unloading mostly. - There's not much room in the rest of the kitchen floor space so I didn't want to clutter up more walkway space. - In addition to being an amazing cooking device it's extremely beautiful and I love how it anchors the look of the cooking area. If I'm grilling quick n easy on the gas grill I love having it close by so I can keep an eye on it. I'm not super concerned about a little discoloration, it is a fully open kitchen so I anticipate some weathering. However, I will keep a close eye on it and if it doesn't seem to be working out or it turns out to be too much of a pain to access from that side I will definitely buy the stand and find a home for it close by. Thanks for the quick response! I'm prepping to do my first cook today and am very excited!

Hello all! Proud new owner here from North Carolina. I recently took delivery of this beautiful 19 hi cap. When I confirmed delivery on the phone I asked if it would be ok to place the KK on my outdoor countertop and they said it would be ok. I was only referring to the weight at the time. I think that will be fine, it's cinder blocks underneath capped in cemented stone work with a 1in granite countertop. Also, it's at the corner so it should be very stable. However, somebody mentioned that the granite will crack (not soon but eventually) because of the heat transfer from the bottom. I know that the KK is super insulated and even at extreme internal temperatures the external is not nearly as hot. How does that apply to the base of the KK? Looking at the pics do you guys think it's safe? Been browsing the forums for a couple of weeks now and have already learned so much from all of you so thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences. I have a bone in boston butt, a chuck roast, and some baby back ribs prepped for her first low & slow voyage!