Blackstone made its name on bare steel. You season it, you scrape it hard, and it gets better with abuse.
The Blackstone 2363 20 x 14 inch Camping Griddle walks away from that. Its plate wears a ceramic titanium coating. The whole thing then closes into a latching orange case.
So the question is simple. What does a griddle cook give up to carry a Blackstone like a briefcase?
The short list is the metal spatula, the scrub pad, and the plate’s second life. There is also one missing number that matters more than the rest. Spatula, scrub pad, plate and that number: this flat top grill review weighs all four.
First Impressions of the Blackstone 20 inch Camping Griddle
Closed, the 2363 looks more like a toolbox than a cooker. The orange hood clamps down at both front corners. A black handle is set into the front panel, between the two knobs.
At 26 lbs it lifts with one arm. A long walk from the car will need both.
Flip the latches and the hood swings up to stand behind the plate. Raised, it shields the back edge of the plate from a breeze. The plate itself is matte black and smooth, without the dull grey sheen of raw steel.
There is no seasoning ritual. Bare Blackstone plates want several coats of oil before the first cook. This one is ready once you wipe it down. That changes the first evening at camp more than any spec does.
The first cook tells the story. Eggs slide around the plate with very little oil. Hash browns come up in one sheet. A light hand with a nylon turner is all it takes.
You lose the clatter, though. This is a Blackstone you cook on with a plastic spatula. That one fact shapes everything below.
Key Features of the Blackstone 20 inch Camping Griddle
The feature list is short and built around carrying. Every part answers the same brief: pack small, set up fast, clean up faster. Each item below earns its place in the case.
- Ceramic titanium-coated plate. Blackstone coats this plate instead of seasoning it. Food releases easily, and the coating asks for non-stick safe utensils only.
- Two independent heat zones. Each half of the 20 x 14 inch plate has its own knob. Split down the middle, that is about 140 square inches per side.
- Latching hood as a cover. The hood seals over the plate for travel and storage. It doubles as the lid that keeps grit off between meals.
- Carry handle in the front panel. The handle sits flush, so nothing snags in a trunk. Flat sides let the case slide in beside a cooler.
- Stowaway rear grease cup. Grease runs to a cup at the back of the plate. The cup tucks away when the hood closes.
- Adjustable leveling feet. The feet screw up or down. A picnic table with a sag no longer sends batter toward one corner.
- Propane-Chain compatible. With Blackstone’s adapter hose, sold separately, the griddle joins a Propane-Chain setup. That lets it share one supply with other camp gear.
- Cover. The latching hood is the built-in cover, so there is no separate one to lose.
Missing from the list are a side shelf, a thermometer and any stainless trim. At this size, none of them is a real loss. A tabletop this compact sits on whatever table the campsite provides.
Here is the missing number. No burner rating exists in print for the 2363. Neither its own product page nor the Amazon listing gives one. Our heat density chart needs that rating, so this model goes unranked.
That gap is itself a finding. It leaves the layout to judge, and the layout is sensible. Two burners under 280 square inches means each one covers a small field. A small plate under its own burner tends to come up to heat quickly and evenly.
The split matters most at breakfast. You can run one side hot for bacon and turn the other down for eggs. Pancakes can wait warm on the low side while the next batch cooks.
The coating sets the ceiling. Non-stick surfaces reward moderate heat and gentle tools. Hard-seared smash burgers, pressed and scraped up, are bare steel’s job. The 2363 will brown a patty, but it is built for eggs, not crust.
Think of the menu it suits. Pancakes, French toast, eggs over easy and quesadillas all reward release more than raw heat. Fried rice and sliced vegetables turn easily with a wide nylon turner. Give it delicate food and the coating pays for itself.
Build, handling and durability
Of everything on the 2363, the case shows the most care. The hood closes square over the plate and clamps at both corners. The leveling feet give it a planted stance on uneven ground. Blackstone lists the closed size as 21 inches wide and 16.75 deep.
Durability is a different story, because it rests on the coating. On a seasoned plate, wear is cosmetic. You strip it, oil it, and carry on.
On this plate, wear is the end of the surface. Once the coating scuffs through, there is no seasoning trick that brings it back.
That puts real weight on how you treat it. Plastic or silicone tools, no metal scraper, no abrasive pad. The Amazon listing names the material as carbon steel, but no gauge is given. The warranty runs one year.
Running costs, upkeep and value
Day to day, upkeep is light. A warm plate wipes clean with a paper towel. There is no oil to lay down after a cook. There is no rust to chase over winter either.
Empty the rear grease cup after each meal, before the hood goes down.
The catch is the cleaning kit. Blackstone tells you not to use its own orange scrub pads here. Anyone who already owns Blackstone gear will have to set those aside. Soft sponges and a plastic scraper take their place.
Price is about $199 on Amazon, and the same on Blackstone’s own site. That buys 280 square inches of coated plate, a latching case, and two zones. It does not buy a known heat output. Paying that much without a burner figure asks a lot of trust.
The longer view is where value thins out. A seasoned steel plate can outlive its owner with care.
A coated plate has a working life, and the warranty covers one year of it. You are paying for convenience now, against a shorter horizon. For a camper who cooks a dozen weekends a year, that trade might still be fair.
A last note on retail. Walmart sells a similar 20 x 14 Blackstone camping griddle. Its listing carries model 2246, a different part number. If you shop there, check you are buying the orange OTG model 2363.
Possible Blackstone 20 inch Camping Griddle Complaints
- The coating is the plate’s lifespan. Metal tools, scouring pads and hard scraping all wear it. Once it goes, the plate cannot be rescued like bare steel. Gentle tools and moderate heat stretch its life.
- No published heat output. Blackstone gives no burner figure for the 2363. That makes it hard to compare against other two-burner tabletops. Recovery after cold food goes on is also unknown.
