Evo Griddles.
Evo builds a round, gas-fired flat-top griddle designed around teppanyaki-style cooking, where the cooktop itself is the serving counter and the cook works standing at the ring. Pinecraft Barbecue carries Evo and orders the line through the Sarasota showroom, and Middleby acquired Evo America in 2018, giving the brand the backing of a large commercial kitchen equipment manufacturer.
Where a rectangular griddle sits along a wall, an Evo is built to be cooked from and gathered around at the same time. Gas burners heat the round steel top from underneath in zones, so a cook can sear at the center and hold food warm toward the edge. In our catalog, sizes run from a compact countertop unit for a small bar setup up to a freestanding model built for an outdoor kitchen island.
Gather round.
Cook in the middle.
Evo griddle maker
Most people who ask about Evo already have a patio or bar area in mind, not a grill slot in an existing island. We walk the unit on the floor so you can see how much room the ring actually takes, then we talk through countertop versus cart versus a built surround. Come see how the round layout changes the way a group cooks together compared to a straight griddle top. It is a different kind of outdoor kitchen centerpiece than a rectangular flat top like Blackstone, and it is not a grill insert.
For a built-in Evo station inside a full outdoor kitchen island, licensed contractors we work with install it once you have chosen your equipment here.
| Cooktop | Round, gas-fired flat steel |
|---|---|
| Sizes in the catalog | Countertop through freestanding cart |
| Also see | Blackstone flat-top griddles, Lynx |
| Availability | Ask about the line at the showroom |
The obvious comparison in our catalog is Blackstone, which builds a flat, rectangular, propane-fired steel cooktop for smash burgers, breakfast, and stir-fry-style cooking along one straight edge. An Evo swaps that layout for a ring: the cook stands or sits at any point around the circle instead of working from one side, and guests can gather on the other sides while food is still going down. Neither layout is a built-in grill insert; both are flat-top cooking surfaces that solve a different social problem than a grill does.
Which one fits depends on how the space is used. A rectangular Blackstone tends to sit against a wall or counter run the way a stovetop would. A round Evo works better in the middle of a patio or bar area where people naturally circle up, which is why we see it specified more often for entertaining-focused backyards than for a single-cook weeknight setup.
Countertop, cart, or a built spot in the island
The countertop Evo drops into an existing counter run the way a grill does, and the freestanding cart version stands on its own so it can go wherever the layout calls for it, including away from the main cooking wall. Either way, our outdoor kitchen design team plans the surrounding counter space, seating, and gas run around the unit you pick, the same planning conversation we have for the built-in grill lines on the grill inserts page, even though an Evo itself is not one of those inserts.
For coastal placement on an open lanai, read our salt air and humidity guide before deciding how exposed the griddle will be. Licensed contractors we work with handle any built-in surround once the unit and layout are chosen here.