Blackstone 1554 36” Omnivore Griddle with Folding Side Shelves, Powder Coated Steel, Black

This review is for the 36” Blackstone griddle (model 1554) which I have been using for over a year now. Overall I have found this griddle to be an outstanding value, especially for its price point. You might be able to find a better griddle, but you will spend a LOT more money.Some simple assembly is required. My griddle came in a single box. Cut the two plastic straps and the box lid lifts right off. The components seem well packed. I used a 10mm wrench, an adjustable wrench, and a Philips screwdriver to assemble. Once I had it unpacked, assembly took about 15 mins. If I had someone assisting, we probably would have been done in 10 mins or less. Blackstone has a helpful 3 min assembly video you can watch either on Blackstone’s site or on youtube search for “Blackstone 36" Griddle Assembly”. I weighed the griddle top in at 55.5lbs. If you’re not comfortable lifting a bulky item of this weight, get someone to help you.If you discover a problem with your new griddle, email or call Blackstone directly. Page 23 in my manual had their customer service phone and email. I had a small issue and found their customer service to be extremely helpful. Replies to email were prompt and when I phoned, I was talking to a real human being within seconds (a real human being who spoke American as a primary language). Keep in mind, customer service operates M-F 9a-5p Mountain Standard Time.The griddle top comes coated in a protective oil to prevent rust. As noted in the instructions, your first step after assembly is to wash this oil off. I used dish soap in hot water. I followed this up with plain hot water to get the soap off. I towel dried the surface and then fired up the grill for a few mins to cook off any remaining moisture.The top is carbon steel (not Teflon nor stainless steel) and if not seasoned it will rust. For many griddle users, at this point they slap on some oil or bacon and immediately start cooking. Over time they build up the seasoning that helps protect the griddle surface from rusting and the food from sticking. In my case I wanted to do a more methodical seasoning.For a methodical, long lasting seasoning of the griddle, you follow similar steps as you would with seasoning cast iron cookware. Blackstone has a youtube video called “Blackstone Griddle Top Recovery”. This video was made to show people how to restore a rusted griddle top; however, at 2min39sec into this video they cover the topic of seasoning.The Blackstone video agreed with several articles I read about seasoning cast iron cookware with flax oil. Make sure you get the organic, cold pressed, unrefined, refrigerated flax oil. You don’t want any ingredients in the oil other than flax oil. Check the date on it, and shake well before using. It is expensive oil, but you don’t need a large bottle. I did 6 coatings on my griddle and used just a little more than 3oz total of the oil. Each successive layer used less oil.The seasoning coat/layer consisted of :1. wiping on a thin layer of flax oil over the cooking surface (I applied with a paper towel).2. wipe off excess oil (I used paper towel).3. turning on all the burners for 30 mins or so to basically burn the oil in (I ran a little longer than 30 min).4. turn the burners off and let the griddle coolRepeat the process. Blackstone recommends at least 4-5 coats. The cast iron cookware seasoning articles I read recommended 6 coats.Optimal seasoning will leave you with a shiny black cooking surface. After 6 coats of flax oil, I was nearing the optimal shiny black surface.Check level. Before starting to cook on the griddle, check level. Use a construction level or a marble or anything you have handy. You want to be sure that liquid will flow towards the drain. My patio slopes away from the house, so I had to set the left wheels of the griddle on a scrap of plywood to get the grease to head to the drain hole.Cooking. Even with a great seasoned cooking surface, I add a dash of oil with many of the things I cook (for example, eggs).Cleaning the griddle: Helped along by my well seasoned cooking surface, I find the griddle quick to clean. It typically takes me 3-5 mins. I found a video from a griddle user on youtube that was helpful. Search youtube for “Easy way to clean the Blackstone Griddle (Revised)”. Guy in the video uses spray oil, but I use liquid oil.My only complaint about the griddle would be the same issue that other reviews have mentioned: Blackstone still hasn’t conquered the grease drain problem. Randomly the grease running off will miss the cup and start running down the griddle leg. So use a paperclip or a piece of wire. If you stick it in the hole down to the grease cup, the grease will run down the wire instead of the surface tension causing fluids to flow up under the grease gutter. Or you can wrap a small piece of foil around the end of the drain to direct grease down.

If you’re ready to take your outdoor cooking game to the next level, this 36” Blackstone griddle is where it’s at. With four powerful burners and a big flat top, you get tons of cooking space and precise heat control—perfect for everything from breakfast pancakes to sizzling steaks. 🥞🥩The propane-fueled setup heats up fast and cooks evenly, making it a favorite for backyard chefs and even restaurant pros. Plus, the handy side shelf gives you extra room for prep or holding your tools, keeping everything within reach. 🛠️🔥Built tough and sleek in black, this grill looks great and performs even better. Whether it’s family cookouts, parties, or just a casual meal outside, you’ll love how easy and fun grilling gets. Ready to fire it up? Let’s get cooking! 🍽️✨

Absolutely LOVE this griddle! Studied a lot of YouTube videos before getting it to make sure I seasoned it properly and it's been smooth cooking ever since.The four burners allow you to regulate your hot/warm/cold zones and cleanup isn't too bad.Commit to getting a metal top to over the griddle otherwise it may rust under the elements and get a cover to keep the dust off.Other than that it's been fantastic.

Great portable griddle and grill set-up! Folds-up and stores in a few packages that are easily transported and reassembles in about 5 minutes.Was hosting a group campout and needed a griddle capable of preparing pancake/sausage/egg breakfast for 30 campers. Preseasoned the griddle with flax seed oil before the event and am very happy with the performance and value. The seasoning process formed a hard non-stick surface and cleaned up very quickly.The controls are easy to use and the griddle required the two center flame controls to be reduced by about 20% to heat evenly. The grill had similar hot spots, but once identified it was simple to adjust the controls for reducing the output to provide even surface temperature.Had read about a problem with grease and drippings trailing back across the bottom of the drain channel, so followed the tip suggestion to insert a binder clip leg in the drain hole. This is a simple and effective remedy and the grease/oil followed the clip leg into the collection container. No back flow or dripping on to the control panel!Was originally considering a griddle rental, but in the 3 day outing, this unit paid for itself. Used the savings to buy the optional grill and grilling accessories.Blackstone does not sell a storage bag for the base, so we bought a waterproof lined canvas transport bag designed for rooftop rack hauling. Placed a rubber backed entry carpet in the bottom of the bag to provide a heavy duty bottom and form to the transport bag. A few nylon cinch straps secure the bag and base for hauling, transport and storage. Sewed a few black canvas bags to hold the bottom shelf, side counters, grill wind shield / drip pan. These bags store in the base burner cavity and keep the parts from getting scraped and scratched during transport.The griddle is very heavy duty fits nicely in the optional lined, zippered canvas storage bag. It is heavy to carry, but manageable.The optional grill comes with the identical zippered canvas bag and fits nicely. Removed the four front clips so the grates can be lifted and tilted back for easy cleaning. The open design is fine for most grilling, but glad that we also bought a large stainless steel dome cover to cover certain meats and for quickly melting cheese over the burgers. I prefer to do the heavy grill cleaning at home, so we bring a heavy construction plastic trash bag for covering the dirty grill before inserting in the canvas bag. Keeps the bag free of drippings clean for the next trip.The propane tank hangars need to be removed to store the base. To simply the install/removal, tack welded the bolts to the propane mounts and replaced the supplied nuts with plastic knobs with threaded brass inserts. Now the propane hanger hardware is quickly installed and removed without needing wrenches!Is the Blackstone grill perfect? No, but it is easy to use, assemble, disassemble, transport and store. Would I buy it again? Definitely! It made the meal prep for the group so easy and it received many compliments! A few campers are now buying their own Blackstone griddle/grills after watching it in action!