Choosing the perfect location for your new back yard barbecue isn't as simple as many first imagine. Besides traffic flow, the issue of when you'll be out there grilling is vitally important too.
If you face the grill west, and you like to grill around dinner time, you will have the sun in your eyes every time you fire it up. You'll be facing directly into the sun. And we all have experienced trying to drive into the sun and how awful that is. We don't want to do that to ourselves if we don' t have to.
You may have no choice based on the existing layout of your yard, but you will now want to consider some kind of sunscreen or wall to block that setting sun. We don't want to ruin the joy of grilling with the agony of the heat. I've built grills with 8 ft tall back walls for exactly this reason.
Another consideration, if your grill will have a propane tank, is where the hatch for the tank will be and how convenient accessing it will be. If it's a pain in the neck to replace the tank, you'll be less likely to use that grill. So ensure the door is in a location that is very easy to get at and to maneuver that heavy tank in and out of.
When I meet with a client to discuss building their dream grill, I always ask a lot of questions.. Will they do all their grilling for lunch and dinner events? How about breakfast? Some people like to grill early? Can the grill be positioned in their yard, on their patio, so as to avoid sun in the eyes and also not disrupt the flow or the space? What kind of countertop are you thinking about? Grilling typically means grease splatters on that countertop? How do you plan to keep it clean and nice looking? Speaking of the countertop, just how big can you go? Grilling often involves having multiple platters of ready to cook meat on one side of the grill and more platters for the finished meats on the other side. That means a larger countertop than a lot of people first imagine they'll need. Lots of questions.
When you're ready to hire a contractor to build your dream grill, it's smart to have spent enough time thinking through the questions above. Where? How large? What kind of material? Knowing these in advance and providing as much information to the contractor as possible will help ensure you get that dream grill that you can enjoy for many years to come.