this subject also answers the ? about if hi-end grills are worth it. i often do turkeys and find it is a real benefit to having an infra-red back burner. this is usually only found on lynx,viking, wolf, dcs, type grills. it is a vertical burner across the back. find a nice 14-15 lb turkey to put on a rotisserie. season the turkey with salt. put a pan under the turkey and make baste. 1 cup of Kahlua, 1 cup of water, and about 12oz. of apricot jam. mix baste and put in pan. cook only using back burner and baste every 15-20 min. turkey will take about 2 1/2 to 3 hours. save all the dripping, remove add a little water and corn starch to thicken for your gravy for this fantanstic dark colored bird. if you prefer more of a golden colored bird , use amareeto and apple jelly instead. um good

I only built a screen for our grill - yes it it exposed to the elements when not covered. I do put up an umbrella for shade during daytime grilling. But, a roof over the grill would be fairly simple. Here is a link that might be useful: Patio Photos

@nycbluedevil_gw You said you have the infrared sear zone and 2 normal grates---can you use the infrared zone for anything other than high-heat searing? The Alfresco person told me no--that's either on or off--so now I'm wondering if the space on the 2 standard burners will be enough room for everything else. Or if you sear on the infrared and then turn that one off, might that be used as just a warming zone for food that's done or food that needs indirect heat? We aren't a big steak family, so now I'm wondering if I should get the sear zone! We do mostly turkey burgers (sometimes hamburgers), chicken, vegetables....the occasional pork butt low and slow. I know I could just sear on standard burners with very high heat--is the infrared that much better for that sort of thing?

Update on my Hestan 30” cooktop. While I love the center burner especially for Wok cooking, I am very disappointed that they did not use the dual burners 15000 BTUs on the 30 that they used on 36. The BTU power on front burners is even less than my 25 year old Jennair and I really miss that. I am wishing that I got the Monogram cooktop that had similar set up to Hestan 36” and had simmer control on all burners unlike the Hestan. Monogram has 10000 and 12000 on their burners to Hestan 8000 and 10500 - I wish I had paid more attention to that and it makes a BIG difference !!!!! The look is great and it cleans up nicely but cannot understand why they skimped on BTU power on the 30” .....kind of a cheap move for a higher end product—especially one know for the BTU power on their ranges—what a strange decision they made her. I cannot recommend The Hestan cooktop for this reason. Hoping I love the oven or this will be a bust cause the dishwasher is OK and I got it free with the cooktop and oven purchase but would have gotten a Bosch otherwise. live and learn