u/grendel2000

I know NOTHING about Yakitori - I stumbled across this subreddit because I was researching tabletop charcoal grills to use for cooking kebabs and searing steaks without having to get my Kamado Joe going. I cook less (in terms of volume at one time) now that our kids are out of the house and I typically sous vide a lot of the protein we eat (steaks, chops) so what I really need on that front is high temp charcoal searing. I'd also like to be able to sear/cook kebabs over charcoal which is how I stumbled upon these Japanese style grills.

I stumbled on Yak first, then found Bincho. Both looked interesting but I now saw that at least the Yak can't do temps above 750, so I think that's out. I later started reading about traditional grills with the ceramic insulation (Konro?) and finally the Teruhimo stainless grills.

What I'd like to have:

- table top (probably outdoors on our granite patio table)

- Large enough to cook skewered kebabs for a party of 6-8 without out taking hours and hours of rotating batches onto/off of the grill

- Ideally large enough to quickly sear two steaks at a time (or more)

- I'd like to have the options of a grate as well as the skewer bars I think

- quality construction

- Ideally $500 or less for the grill and needed accessories

I don't care too much about looks - I'm more about quality, performance, durability and bang for the buck.

I've been looking at these: https://www.korin.com/grillware?custitem_krn_facet_categories=Konro-Grills&page=1

What do folks suggest?

My wife and I visited Bilbao and San Sebastián in March and truly loved our visit. It occurred to me recently that perhaps the Basque Txoko concept could be used as a model to get more people in my own country out and into a more communal/social "third space" to get more time face to face with other humans.I have some questions about the logistics behind how these are run and mange to remain self sufficient over time.

If it's not a bother I'd love to better understand some of the following questions:

- How often are the facilities typically used? Every day? Weekly? Weekends?

- How are meals/evenings planned? Who is "in charge"?

- If the cooking facilities are always available (I've read members have their own keys?) how does the society deconflict use, to ensure availability?

- How is purchasing food, alcoholic beverages, etc. handled (who pays)?

- How are funds raised? Annual dues? Per meal? Pay for drinks?

Ideally I envision a "no phones" policy to emphasize the idea of getting away from both home and work to spend time with people you like being around. I'm really curious to see if something like this might work for my area, so any help or advice would be very much appreciated!

Thanks!

Grill recommendation

Starting something similar to a Txoko outside of Basque Country - anyone willing to answer some questions about how they function?