Heavy, durable, and expensive as a Learjet. Well, maybe that’s a bit of hyperbole, but nobody ever blamed the Austin-based cooler giant for being subtle. Whatever you think about YETI, you have to admit the brand completely reset the bar for everything from coolers to coffee mugs.
It also receives a fair bit of flak for being super-expensive and symbolic of excess. But hey, credit where credit is due. It literally reinvented the cooler.
Now, YETI is stamping its seal on a line of products that aim to YETIfy the campfire. I can see the eyes rolling. I can hear the groans. And I can also hear the wallets opening, crisp $100 bills hitting countertops.
No, I haven’t seen one of these yet; this is just a teaser sent out this morning.
YETI Fire Pit
If you’re going into the world of fires, might as well start with a pit. YETI takes a pretty traditional approach to the fire pit, which I’d call more of a pan. No fancy secondary combustion walls here — the 70-pound YETI Fire Pit is corten steel that the brand claims weathers naturally. It supposedly forms a protective patina that “grows tougher over time.”
For $1,000, it comes paired with a fire iron to stoke the flame and an all-weather lid for the end of the night. It looks burly and built to last, which is fortunate, as it hits with about double the price of the classic Solo Stove.
To be fair, it’s about $400 less than the (phenomenal USA-made) Breo X30 Smokeless Fire Pit.
But as a shallower pan, the YETI has promises to really heat up those sitting around it. It also might be smokier than other options. Time and testing will tell.
YETI Grill Kit
Now we’re cooking with wood. For an extra $500, turn the Fire Pit into a full-on outdoor cooking setup. The Grill Kit has two cooking surfaces, a small grill grate with an adjustable height, and a larger grate that sits right above the Fire Pit surface.
The small grill grate can be used for warming and resting when raised and for controlling the temperature as you lower it. The large rectangular grill allows for active fire management with space to tend to the flames.
It’s case-hardened carbon steel, so it should last for decades with proper care. At 30.3 by 37.25 inches, it’s a big, burly cooking system to add onto an equally heavy-duty grill.
YETI Ranch Pan
So you’ve got a fire and grill, meat searing, covered. But what about the beans, veggies, or other sides?
Well, YETI doesn’t want to leave you sitting with any old cast-iron pot. Not when YETI already has a great cast-iron producer under its wing after its acquisition of Butter Pat a couple of years ago. Indeed, it has a full cadre of cast-iron pans, and now launches a deeper version in its Ranch Pan.
At $375, it’s expensive enough to make Le Creuset blush — not an easy task. But for the YETI (and Butter Pat) fans, it’s a beautiful option.
Except it doesn’t have a lid. What?
Editor’s note: Since publication, YETI adjusted the price. The pan now sells for $325, with the optional lid available for $50. Now, the package, lid included, sells for $375. YETI is proactively communicating with early buyers who paid $375 to refund the price difference.
At $375, you can now use the Ranch Pan as a Dutch oven. The lack of a lid really limited its utility. But with the addition of a lid, you should to be able to braise venison shanks, right out of the box. I appreciate that YETI corrected its oversight.
And it’s still a beautiful piece of Wisconsin-made cast iron.
YETI has made a strong play in the world of fire. For brand fans, they look like durable, capable tools for campfires and ranch cooking. Expensive, durable, and with a head-scratching omission, it will certainly fit into the YETI ecosystem nicely.
