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18 Products to Elevate Your Next Backyard BBQ

Posted: June 03, 2021
18 Products to Elevate Your Next Backyard BBQ

Though some of these 18 products to elevate your next backyard BBQ are all about the grill, they're not all about the grill. Some are about the grillin', others are about the chillin'. With the drinkin', dancin', gamin', and a little Jell-O wrestlin' in between. Basically, my hand-selected 18 products to elevate your next backyard BBQ are all all about one main thing: the party.

Happy backyard BBQin', dudes.

Note: Backyard BBQ products are priced as they were listed at printing. Pricing, and availability, are subject to change.

UV-Printed Wood & Epoxy Cornhole Set

UV-Printed Wood & Epoxy Cornhole Set

The water, it is an illusion. And in this cornhole set, the epoxy creating the water illusion is an illusion too. Cornhole Solutions uses UV ink to print the swirly wood and epoxy river design on its Baltic Birch cornhole boards.

The 3/4" thick boards span 4' x 2', or full tournament regulation size, and come in sets of two. Cornhole game tops are sprayed with Pro Finisher Crystal Clear Gloss.

$206.99 & Up ➠ Etsy

TIKI 25" Stainless Steel Low Smoke Fire Pit

TIKI 25" Stainless Steel Low Smoke Fire Pit
TIKI 25" Stainless Steel Low Smoke Fire Pit

Where there's no smoke, there's TIKI fire. The brand builds their 25" stainless steel fire pit with a patent-pending internal airflow system designed to stoke stellar flames without the high levels of smoke and ash that normally accompany them.

TIKI's low smoke fire pit burns either with traditional firewood, or a TIKI Wood Pack , the latter of which enables an instant light fire for those of you all TIKI-tock about getting your fire pit roaring.

$350 ➠ Amazon

Arteflame 40" Grill

Arteflame 40" Grill
Arteflame 40" Grill

Arteflame's 40" Grill goes from a BBQ with visiting family tonight to a bonfire with the lady you didn't want to torture with meeting them when they all leave tomorrow. A slick, contemporary design for your patio or back yard, the combo grill and fire pit burns both wood and charcoal from within a US Corten steel spun bowl, which you can use with or without the included 1/2" carbon steel cooktop.

$2,095 to $3,084 ➠ Amazon

World of Watersports Super Slide

World of Watersports Super Slide

If I get the World of Watersports Super Slide, will you provide the backyard and the BBQ? At 25' long, this heat-beating piece of aquatic fun is big enough to accommodate 4 sliders practicing appropriate 6' social distancing at a time. I mean, presuming they time their PVC belly dives perfectly, and are traveling at the same velocity, which is actually more good news.

It means you can make your kids do some math and physics in exchange for letting them go play on the Super Slide!

$156.25 ➠ Amazon

Soundboks 3 - The Loudest Wireless Bluetooth Speaker

Soundboks 3 - The Loudest Wireless Bluetooth Speaker
Soundboks 3 - The Loudest Wireless Bluetooth Speaker

I learned about The Loudest Wireless Bluetooth Speaker from my recently deaf friends Maurice and Sue, who tested Soundboks' 126dB bad boy at Burning Man. Conclusion:

It's loud.

And, also to their benefit, heat-, wind-, and dust-resistant. Even in the middle-of-nowhere Black Rock City desert, which supports Soundboks' second claim that their Loudest Portable Speaker stands up to shock, temperature, water, and weather like it ain't no thing.

Now that summer is starting anew, the Loudest Wireless Bluetooth Speaker's courtesies extend to music lovers and dance partiers who aren't going any farther than their back yards, but: 1) don't want to have to worry about sudden changes in weather; and 2) do want to, as the band Holland would say, Wake up the neighborhood! Wake up the neighbors good!

$999 ➠ Amazon

Cowboy Cauldron BBQ & Fire Pits

Cowboy Cauldron BBQ & Fire Pits
Cowboy Cauldron BBQ & Fire Pits

A Cowboy Cauldron brings together folks from all walks of life. Wranglers can cook out with witches. Dudes from the ranch can grill with dads from McMansions. Fantasy fans can warm their hands across the fire pit from hipsters. Cowboy Cauldrons know no boundaries. Even better, the Salt Lake City-based company says no matter who you are, "a Cauldron will literally change your life. In fact, it will almost surely change the lives of grandchildren and great-grandchildren who aren't even born yet."

Prices Vary ➠ Cowboy Cauldron Co.

Smokemiester BBQ Smoker Grill Converter

Smokemiester BBQ Smoker Grill Converter

Holy smokes...miester! A Weber, a hole saw, and a coupla Bud Light Limes on a Saturday afternoon, and my Bru-BQ Wayne kettle grill becomes a Bat-Smoker too! The Smokemiester BBQ Smoker converts any covered grill into a hot or cold pellet smoker / grill combo.

Smokemiester BBQ Smokers aren't cheap add-ons, but they do save you a few bucks, and a lot of space, on purchasing a separate smoker. You can also install these external accessories on smokehouses or, as one Amazon customer suggested, and old refrigerator. Smokemiester products require no power, have no air pump (they make their own draft), and take up no surface space on your grill grate since they screw onto the outside of your base.

$115.95 ➠ Amazon

Bulk Wrestling Jello

Bulk Wrestling Jello
Bulk Wrestling Jello

I was just thinking the other day that I could stand for a good round of co-ed jello wrestling at my mama's next backyard BBQ (I know, not the ideal location, but she's the one with the back yard; I live in a cond.) But when I started doing the calculations to figure out how many boxes of gelatin-forming strawberry granules I'd need to fill a backyard swimmin' hole, I realized...I'm really shitty at math. It would definitely be way more cardboard and little paper sacks than I'm willing to paper cut myself opening though.

However, after 40 years of lazing around waiting for other people to do stuff for me, I have learned that where there's a problem, some go-getter type will always figure out a solution from which I can profit. Here, it's the Jello Wrestling Package. A giant bag of jello crystals ready for gelatinization, each Jello Wrestling Package makes up to 100 gallons of tussle-quality jello. Just dump its contents into an empty pool, mix with 100 gallons of water, crack a beer, and wait for the product to set.

$95 ➠ Amazon

Cocktail Smoking Chimney Kit

Cocktail Smoking Chimney Kit
Cocktail Smoking Chimney Kit

The Crafty Cocktail is all smoke and mirrors chimneys. Their Cocktail Smoking Chimney Kit comes with everything you'll need to infuse your bourbon, whiskey, or mixologist's especiale with a little smouldering barrel aged wood. Using the included cocktail chimney and butane torch, the show you put on while doing it should be just as lit.

$79.99 ➠ Amazon

My Hibachi BBQ 3-in-1 Sit Around Grill

My Hibachi BBQ 3-in-1 Sit Around Grill
My Hibachi BBQ 3-in-1 Sit Around Grill

Now here's a way to win your backyard BBQ...or first date. My Hibachi BBQ's 3-in-1 Sit Around propane gas grill is an investment to be sure, but think of all the use you'll get out of it, showing off to friends and family, entertaining your boss' wife, and impressing Tinder dates with your mad teppanyaki skills. You want to Netflix & chill? First you better apron up & grill.

My Hibachi BBQ goes 3-in-1 with its centerpiece surface, a flat-top teppanyaki griddle that can also change into a standard BBQ grill or a multi-purpose cast iron stovetop. The grill table has 3 integrated folding surfaces that flip out to form space for 4 to Sit Around the hibachi and eat. Four folding stools are also included.

$2,795.99 ➠ Amazon

Campfire Flyers Flame-Powered Kinetic Dragon Sculpture

Campfire Flyers Flame-Powered Kinetic Dragon Sculpture
Campfire Flyers Flame-Powered Kinetic Dragon Sculpture

But can these fire dragons roast marshmallows? Maybe not with their breath, but Campfire Flyers, kinetic dragon sculptures powered by the flames of your campfire, could probably be rigged to hold the sticks.

Designed by kinetic artists, and father and son, Jeffrey and Carl Zachmann, Campfire Flyers consist of steel dragon cutouts attached to rods and a ground stake. They loosely resemble a mobile you'd hang in a kid's room, but instead of a crib, Campfire Flyers dangle over a campfire or fire pit. When lit, the fire's flames create thermal convective currents, with rising heat that creates an updraft and makes the dragons fly. In circles, with wings flapping, like they're protecting the land below.

$95 to $525 ➠ Campfire Flyers

The Hype Button

The Hype Button

Believe the hype. Live up to the hype. Be your own hype man - or lady - and annoy the ever loving hype out of everyone around you. All with a single press of The Hype Button, a battery-powered sound machine that blasts an effect of the hip hop world's beloved air horn.

According to The Hype Button's makers, The Hype Button is "approved for use in offices, schools, tailgates, the DMV, bachelor parties, Bar Mitzvahs, weddings, funerals, and anywhere else that needs some extra HYPE!" They forgot backyard BBQ. Good thing I didn't.

$14.95 ➠ Amazon

UKIAH Tailgater Fire Pit Sound System

UKIAH Tailgater Fire Pit Sound System

Pumpin' heat and beats. The UKIAH Tailgater series Music Fire Pits lights up your sound system and brings the tunes to your dancing flames with a self-contained, portable propane fire that ignites atop a rugged, battery-powered stereo.

Tailgaters are designed, yep, for tailgating, but also for any outdoor activity that calls for music and fire. At around 30 pounds it transports easily, and comes with everything you need to light up your gathering, except the propane tank. The front panel has controls for music volume and flame height.

$629.99 ➠ Amazon

Kong Beer Bong

Kong Beer Bong
Kong Beer Bong

Under the motto, "Make the good times better," the Kong Bong is a combo can koozie and beer bong that transitions between the two in seconds. The insulating koozie holds beer cans, keeps 'em cold, and facilitates condensation-free polite sipping from the tab when business on the top is appropriate.

But when it's time to party on the bottom, the Kong Bong koozie's hard plastic construction lets it convert to a vessel that can also hold liquid on its own. A corrugated hose screws into the bottom of the koozie to serve as your chugging conduit and, once you've got the open end plugged with your thumb, pour up to 16 ounces of beer straight into the Kong Bong koozie. Then, prepare your pharynx.

$29.99 ➠ Kong Beer Bong

Olive Wood Steak Plate

Olive Wood Steak Plate

I never would have thought steak and olive would be such a mouthwatering pairing, but this Olive Wood Steak Plate from BfCart Mallorca has me drooling for a NY strip laid across my own personal cutting board.

And not just any cutting board. The Olive Wood Steak Plate is engineered specifically for juicy meat consumption, with 4 separate spaces divided by channels, so your steak drippin's don't run into your steak seasonings, steak condiments, steak sides, or steak-lovin' lap.

$75 ➠ Etsy

Giant Party Size Twinkies Baking Kit

Giant Party Size Twinkies Baking Kit
Giant Party Size Twinkies Baking Kit

Twinkie, Twinkie little star / how I wonder what you are...still doing in your giant Party Size Twinkies baking pan. Get! In! My! Belly!

Hostess has released a Party Size Twinkies Baking Kit, and even though I've never before associated Twinkies with backyard BBQs, I feel like the pairing is appropriate, and I am all in.

$48.75 ➠ Amazon

Meathead: The Science of Great BBQ & Grilling

Meathead: The Science of Great BBQ & Grilling

Meathead Goldwyn. I guess when your mama curses you with that lemon of a name, your best option is to make huge vats of lemonade. Or, in this case, huge piles of grilled meat. Goldwyn, founder of BBQ & grilling website AmazingRibs.com, has teamed up with physicist and food scientist Prof. Greg Blonder to pen Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling. It's a book not just on how to cook delicious food out back, but on why the how is the how. What happens when you co-mingle of fire, heat, and smoke with your food, and the science behind doing it just right.

$23.17 ➠ Amazon

Bricknic Modular Campfire & BBQ Cooking Bricks

Bricknic Modular Campfire & BBQ Cooking Bricks
Bricknic Modular Campfire & BBQ Cooking Bricks

Bricknic modular cooking bricks have many qualities I would endorse, but the coolest thing about these clay culinary tools is that you can fill them up, stack them up, and fire them up to build your own brick oven. Whose individual bricks are filled with your food!

That's right, filled with and your food. Those key descriptors shouldn't be lost on you. Bricknics aren't about radiating heat outward onto a cornucopia of delectable eats you must then share family-style with others. Each brick houses its own meat, fish, veg - even, bread, cake, or pie! - which heat radiates inward to cook tagine-style. And when the magical process is complete, the contents to me look to be perfectly portioned for one.

$50 to $61 Apiece ➠ Bricknic
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