Bearfire 31 Inch Portable Folding Camping Grill Review: The Ultimate Portable Fire Pit or a Flawed Grilling Machine?

There’s a specific kind of frustration every seasoned camper knows. It’s the feeling of arriving at a pristine, secluded campsite only to find a “No Ground Fires” sign staring back at you. Or perhaps it’s the wrestling match in your garage with a bulky, awkward kettle grill, trying to cram it into an already overstuffed car trunk. For years, my outdoor cooking setup was a compromise: either I’d bring a cumbersome grill that monopolized cargo space, or I’d rely on the campsite’s often dilapidated, greasy fire ring. This compromise always felt like we were missing a core part of the experience—the simple joy of a personal, contained fire for both warmth and cooking, wherever our adventures took us. The search was on for a solution that was genuinely portable, robust enough for a real wood fire, and versatile enough to grill a decent meal. This is the exact problem the Bearfire 31 Inch Portable Folding Camping Grill promises to solve.

What to Consider Before Buying a Portable Charcoal Grill

A portable charcoal grill is more than just a piece of camping equipment; it’s a key solution for unlocking authentic, flavorful cooking experiences far from your backyard. It solves the problem of bulk, inconvenience, and campsite restrictions, allowing you to bring the primal satisfaction of a wood or charcoal fire with you. The main benefits are freedom and flavor—the freedom to set up a proper cooking station at a tailgate, a remote campsite, or a park picnic, and the unmistakable smoky flavor that only real fire can impart to food.

The ideal customer for this type of product is the adventurous spirit: the car camper, the overlander, the tailgater, or the beach-goer who refuses to compromise on a good meal. They value clever design, space-saving features, and multi-functionality. This product might not be suitable for those who exclusively grill on their backyard patio and never move their setup. For them, a larger, heavier, and more feature-rich stationary grill like a classic Weber Kettle or a large barrel grill would be a better investment, offering superior heat control and capacity without the need for portability.

Before investing, consider these crucial points in detail:

• Dimensions & Space: Portability is paramount. Look at the grill’s collapsed dimensions. A product that folds down to a slim profile, like the Bearfire’s 2-inch thickness, is a game-changer for storage and transport. However, don’t forget to check the set-up dimensions. Ensure the grilling surface area is large enough for the number of people you typically cook for. A 31-inch length provides significant space, but make sure its height and width are stable and practical for your needs.
• Capacity/Performance: This isn’t just about food capacity. Consider the fuel capacity and airflow. A good portable grill needs ample ventilation to get charcoal or wood burning efficiently. Look for designs with plenty of holes or vents. Performance also relates to heat resistance; a grill that can handle high temperatures (up to 1500°F) without warping is a sign of a well-built product capable of handling both cooking and bonfire duties.
• Materials & Durability: This is where you separate the weekend toys from the long-term gear. Look for thickened steel for the body (1.5mm is quite robust) and a high-quality, food-grade stainless steel (like 304) for the cooking grate. A high-temperature powder coating is essential to prevent rust and degradation from repeated exposure to fire and the elements. Cheaper grills often use thin, painted metal that flakes off and rusts quickly.
• Ease of Use & Maintenance: A portable grill should not require a toolbox and an engineering degree to assemble. Tool-free, interlocking designs are the gold standard, allowing for setup in minutes. For maintenance, consider how easily it cleans up. A simpler design with fewer complex parts is often easier to wipe down and store. Also, check for included accessories like a carry bag, which is crucial for keeping soot and grime contained during transport.

While the Bearfire 31 Inch Portable Folding Camping Grill is an excellent choice for many, it’s always wise to see how it stacks up against the competition. For a broader look at all the top models, we highly recommend checking out our complete, in-depth guide:

First Impressions: Heavy-Duty Ingenuity in a Surprisingly Slim Package

Unboxing the Bearfire 31 Inch Portable Folding Camping Grill reveals two things immediately: it’s heavier than you’d expect and brilliantly simple. The entire kit arrives flat-packed in its nylon carry bag. Pulling the pieces out, the weight of the 1.5mm powder-coated iron plates is reassuring. This isn’t flimsy, disposable metal; it feels substantial. One user aptly noted, “This little grill is heavy,” and we concur. It speaks to a certain level of durability that inspires confidence before the first fire is ever lit.

Assembly is a tool-free affair, as promised. The five main plates interlock using a tab-and-slot system. As another tester found, there’s a “small learning curve,” but the lettered guides on the tabs make the process straightforward. Our first assembly took just under two minutes, and subsequent setups were closer to the 90-second mark. Once constructed, the V-shape design is surprisingly rigid. It doesn’t wobble or feel like it will collapse, a common fear with portable gear. The kit includes the 304 stainless steel grilling rack, a simple grate lifter tool, and a pair of protective gloves—thoughtful additions that complete the package. While the main body feels robust, initial impressions of the carry bag and the grill grate itself are less stellar, hinting at where potential compromises were made. You can explore all the included components and specs here.

Deep Dive: Putting the Bearfire Grill to the Test

A product can look great on paper, but its true value is only revealed through hands-on use in the environments it was designed for. We took the Bearfire 31 Inch Portable Folding Camping Grill on a weekend camping trip, using it for everything from grilling burgers and sausages to serving as our primary source of warmth and ambiance as a bonfire pit. Our in-depth testing focused on three core areas: its much-touted portability and setup, its performance under fire, and the practical realities of the grilling experience itself.

Revolutionary Portability & Assembly: The Flat-Pack Champion

The single greatest strength of the Bearfire 31 Inch Portable Folding Camping Grill is its design for transport. This isn’t just portable; it’s practically invisible in your vehicle. Collapsing down to a flat package just 31 inches long and 2 inches thick, it slides effortlessly into a car trunk, behind a seat, or into a crowded gear box. This is a level of portability that traditional kettle or hibachi-style grills simply cannot match. For anyone who has ever played “gear Tetris” when packing for a trip, this space-saving design is a legitimate game-changer.

The assembly process lives up to its promise of speed and simplicity. The five interlocking plates are clearly marked, guiding you to connect side A to slot A, and so on. The first time, we took a moment to orient the pieces, but once you understand the logic, it becomes second nature. It slots together with satisfying precision, and the final structure is impressively stable. We confirmed what one user review stated: “All of the pieces line up and go together easily… it doesn’t wobble or feel like it’s going to implode on itself at all.” The only caveat to its portability is its weight. At 7.41 kg (about 16.3 lbs), it’s not something you’d take backpacking, but for car camping or use in an RV, the weight is a positive trade-off for the sturdiness it provides. The one component that undermines the premium feel is the carry bag. It’s functional for keeping soot off your other gear, but the thin nylon feels like it could tear with rough handling over time. Many serious users will likely upgrade to a more durable canvas bag.

Built to Burn: Heat Performance and Material Durability

Once assembled, we were eager to see how the grill’s materials would handle real-world heat. The manufacturer claims the 1.5mm thickened iron and high-temperature powder coating can withstand up to 1500°F. We started with a full load of charcoal for grilling. The abundant ventilation holes along the sides and bottom provided excellent airflow, allowing the coals to light quickly and burn evenly. The V-shape trough naturally concentrates the heat upwards towards the grilling surface, creating an efficient cooking environment.

Later in the evening, we transitioned it into a fire pit, loading it with hardwood. This is where the Bearfire truly shines. It contains the fire safely off the ground, making it perfect for campsites with restrictions. We found the user feedback about its heat output to be spot-on. One camper noted that “since there are lots of air holes, the wood burns very quickly but you can feel the heat very well. The radiant heat even projects down so your feet are warm.” We experienced this directly; the grill threw off a surprising amount of warmth, making it a fantastic centerpiece for our evening gathering. However, that same excellent airflow has a downside: it doesn’t effectively contain ash. We observed fine ash and even small embers falling through the bottom holes. As a precaution, we highly recommend placing the grill on a non-flammable surface like dirt, sand, or a fire-resistant mat, and never on a dry wooden deck or grassy lawn.

The Grilling Experience: Surface, Stability, and Shortcomings

As a cooking apparatus, the Bearfire 31 Inch Portable Folding Camping Grill presents a mixed bag of impressive features and notable flaws. The primary advantage is the sheer size of the cooking area. At 31 inches long, the stainless steel grate offers a massive amount of real estate for a portable grill. We easily fit a dozen burgers and a pack of hot dogs simultaneously, making it great for cooking for a small group without having to grill in multiple batches. The included grate lifter is a simple but essential tool, doubling as a poker to rearrange hot coals and allowing you to safely lift the hot grate to add more fuel.

However, the praise for the grilling experience stops at the size. We immediately noticed the primary issue highlighted in user feedback: the quality of the grate itself. Compared to the robust, heavy-duty firebox, the stainless steel grate feels thin and flimsy. The more significant issue is a clear design oversight: there is no lip, notch, or mechanism to lock the grate in place. It simply rests on the top edges of the firebox. This means that any vigorous flipping with a spatula or movement of heavy items can cause the entire grate to slide. As one user perfectly summarized: “I wish that there was something integrated in it to keep the grill in position so it wouldn’t slide off.” This is not just an inconvenience; it’s a potential safety hazard if a grate loaded with hot food were to slip off entirely. While it performs adequately for static items like sausages or corn on the cob, it requires extra care when flipping burgers or steaks. It’s a surprising flaw in an otherwise well-engineered product, and one that keeps it from being a truly A+ grilling machine. Despite this, for those primarily seeking a fire pit that can also cook, its overall versatility is hard to beat.

What Other Users Are Saying

Our findings align closely with the consensus among other users who have put the Bearfire grill to the test. The sentiment is overwhelmingly positive regarding its core concept: portability, sturdiness, and its function as a fire pit. Many echo the sentiment of one reviewer who said, “VERY well built. All of the pieces line up and go together easily,” and another who praised its transportability, stating, “being able to break it down flat to transport and store is such a great idea.” Its effectiveness as a small, heat-projecting fire pit is a commonly cited benefit for campers facing fire restrictions.

However, the critiques are just as consistent. The two most common complaints center on the accessories. The carry bag is frequently described as “not as heavy duty as I’d hoped for” or simply “not the best.” The second, more critical point of contention is the grill grate. The feedback that “the actual grill didn’t feel so cheap” and the wish for a feature “to keep the grill in position so it wouldn’t slide off” is a recurring theme that we fully corroborate. It seems most users see this product as an excellent portable fire pit that can grill, rather than a dedicated, high-performance grill.

How the Bearfire 31 Inch Portable Folding Camping Grill Compares to the Competition

The Bearfire grill occupies a unique niche focused on extreme portability. To understand its value, it’s best to compare it against established leaders in the charcoal grill space, even if they serve different primary purposes. This highlights where the Bearfire excels and where it makes compromises.

1. Weber Master-Touch 22-Inch Charcoal Grill

The Weber Master-Touch is the gold standard for backyard charcoal grilling. Its primary advantage is superior heat control, thanks to its iconic kettle shape, lid, and adjustable dampers. This allows for true smoking and indirect cooking—techniques impossible on the open-top Bearfire. Its build quality is legendary, and features like the hinged grate and one-touch cleaning system offer immense convenience. However, it is the polar opposite of portable. It’s bulky, heavy, and not designed to be broken down. The choice is clear: if you need the absolute best grilling performance for your home and never plan to move it, the Weber Master-Touch is superior. If your priority is taking a fire with you on the road, the Bearfire is the only viable option of the two.

2. Weber Original Kettle Premium 22-Inch Charcoal Grill

The Weber Original Kettle is the icon that started it all. It offers much of the same fantastic grilling performance as the Master-Touch but in a more streamlined, affordable package. It provides excellent heat retention and control for a wide range of cooking styles. Like its more expensive sibling, its main drawback in this comparison is its complete lack of portability. It’s designed to live on a patio, not in a car trunk. For the home griller on a budget, the Original Kettle is arguably one of the best investments you can make. For the adventurer, the Bearfire 31 Inch Portable Folding Camping Grill solves a problem that the Weber doesn’t even attempt to address.

3. Royal Gourmet CC1830 30 Inch Charcoal Grill

The Royal Gourmet CC1830 represents the barrel-style charcoal grill, prized for its massive cooking surface area (627 sq. in.) and features like a warming rack. This grill is built for hosting parties and feeding a crowd. It offers a huge amount of space and good airflow, though heat control can be less precise than a kettle grill. Again, the trade-off is mobility. This is a large, heavy, stationary piece of backyard furniture. It excels at cooking for large groups at home but is completely unsuitable for camping or travel. The Bearfire offers a surprisingly comparable length at 31 inches but achieves it in a package that can be carried in one hand, highlighting its specialized design for on-the-go use.

Our Final Verdict: Is the Bearfire Grill Worth Your Money?

After extensive testing, our conclusion is clear: the Bearfire 31 Inch Portable Folding Camping Grill is an exceptional portable fire pit that doubles as a capable, large-surface area grill. Its genius lies entirely in its flat-pack design. For car campers, overlanders, and anyone needing a contained, off-the-ground fire solution, its combination of robust construction, quick setup, and minimal storage footprint is nearly unmatched. It brilliantly solves the problem of bulk and inconvenience associated with outdoor fires.

However, we cannot recommend it as a primary, dedicated grilling machine without reservation. The flimsy, unsecured grilling grate is a significant design flaw that prevents it from competing with the performance of a traditional grill. If your number one priority is grilling perfection, you may be disappointed. But if your main goal is to have a fantastic, portable bonfire that you can also cook a meal on, this product is an absolute winner. It’s a cleverly designed piece of gear that delivers on its core promise of bringing fire and food to any adventure. If that sounds like the solution you’ve been looking for, you can check the latest price and order yours here.