Our recommended Best buy Press Grill is the Cuisinart Griddle and Grill, it is a domestic version of the commercial contact grills used in restaurants and cafes.

The Cuisinart is made from commercial grade steel with 1600 watts of high grade heating elements set behind the upper and lower plates providing intense, even heat.

This grill cooks everything from steaks to pancakes and can do extra thick paninis

You can use it as a standard press grill or open it out completely flat to use as a griddle. The grilling plates are reversible, use the ribbed side for grilling and the smooth side for griddling, the plates are dishwasher safe for easy cleaning.

There are independent variable heat controls for grill or griddle use and a sear function ( 230°C ) which allows  you to caramelize your steaks then reduce the temperature to cook them  giving them  that crispy crust and succulent juiciness you normally get with barbecued steaks.

When grilling the floating hinge ensures the top plate lies flat on the food,  the spouts on the plates allow grease/fat to run away from the food into the integrated fat collection tray.

The two faults we found are the letters rub of the dial, ( not a performance issue ) and make sure the green ready light is on when you do your toasties  / paninis or the bread will be toasted but the fillings only warm.

We found the best way to clean the  plates  after grilling meats was  soak them first to soften the residue then give them a rub off with a cloth and then put the plates in the dishwasher. Scraping the plates can damage the non stick coating.