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Weber’s New Badass Grill Proves It Can Still Nail Old-School Barbecue

The brand’s first-ever Santa Maria-style grill bets that more backyard cooks are ready to embrace one of America’s oldest cooking traditions.

Flames burning charcoal in a metal grill with meat cooking on a rack above.Weber
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By Jack Seemer

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There’s a reason Santa Maria-style grilling has endured for generations: cooking over live fire is virtually human nature.

Now Weber is betting that more backyard cooks are ready to embrace one of America’s oldest barbecue traditions with its first-ever Santa Maria-style grill.

Black Weber charcoal grill with firebox, hanging bell peppers, steaks cooking, and stacked firewood underneath on a patio.
The Live-Fire Grill is Weber’s first Santa Maria-style, live-fire cooker.
Weber

The new cooker debuts this week at the 2026 Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest, where Weber’s own Dustin Green will use one to go up against the world’s top open-fire cooks.

“Cooking over live fire is one of the oldest and most expressive forms of grilling.”

“Cooking over live fire is one of the oldest and most expressive forms of grilling,” Green says. “With this launch, we’re bringing that experience to more people without compromising the performance that defines it.”

Grilled steak with char marks being flipped on a barbecue grill with vegetables in the background.
Santa Maria-style grilling dates back to the mid-1800s. Today it usually refers to live-fire cooking with an adjustable rack controlled with a hand crank.
Weber
Grilled T-bone steaks, broccolini, mini bell peppers, and carrots on a barbecue grill over hot coals.
Santa Maria-style grilling traditionally includes top sirloin but can now refer to many manners of meat and vegetables.
Weber

At the center of the setup is a classic wheel-and-pulley adjustable grate system, allowing users to raise or lower the cooking surface from 2 to 27 inches above the fire.

In other words: precise control over searing, roasting and slower cooks.

Close-up of a black metal wheel with red handles attached to a mechanism outdoors with blurred greenery and blue sky in the background.
The Live-Fire Grill has a hand crank to control the height of the cooking surface.
Weber
Outdoor grill with steaks, vegetables, and charred bell peppers hanging on hooks above, near a lake.
The surface can sit between 2 and 27 inches above the flame.
Weber

Weber also built the grill around versatility. A firebrick-lined cookbox and heavy-duty stainless-steel construction give it the feel of a serious live-fire rig without drifting into custom-built price territory.

In a market crowded with smart grills, electric grills, griddles, multicookers and pellet smokers, Weber’s latest release feels refreshingly analog.

Close-up of glowing charcoal briquettes burning with orange flames and sparks inside a metal grill.
A firebrick-lined cookbox and heavy-duty stainless-steel construction give it the feel of a custom rig, without the price tag.
Weber

Availability and pricing

Soft launching at the 2026 Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest, the Weber Live-Fire Grill will be available in early 2027 for $899.

About the Author:

Jack Seemer is the executive editor at Gear Patrol, with over a decade of experience in product journalism. He currently reports on a wide range of topics, including footwear, watches, EDC, cookware and more.

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