KRUPS FDE312 Universal Grill and Panini Maker with Nonstick Cooking Plates, Silver

Yes, you can do all the fabulous gourmet sandwiches and snacks on this, but don't forget the simple things too. My niece and nephew (9 & 10) looked skeptical when I told them their lunch would be made with this fabulous grill. Here's what I did for them: I used a soft potato bread and put the bare slices in first. This toasts them perfectly. Not only does it give the bread body, but it gives those great grill lines. Then I added cheese and some tuna, which was mixed with a little mayo and tarragon. I put the sandwich together and put it back in the opposite direction of the first toasting. Out came the most perfect, gooey tuna melt they had ever had! Plus, the grill lines made a checkerboard pattern that they loved. Yes, it stores easily, but you will not want to put it away! This is not your usual sandwich maker. It is not light and flimsy, but heavy and solid. You will be surprised at how many times you think, "I bet this would be good on the panini maker". The hardback book that comes with it is beautiful, with lots of ideas to get you started. There are lots of photos, so you can simply flip through and get inspired!

I got this for my RV for making sandwhiches but the only bad thing is I have burned myself a couple times on it. All the silver parts on this Maker get extremely hot and will burn you badly. Wish there were more safety on this so u will not burn yourself. When you put a sandwhich on there you have to adjust the top portion so the top grill is laying flat on the bread but, again if you touch the silver part to adjust you will burn your finger to the point you will have a blister. That is why I rated it just OK.

I love paninis, I really do. Always have. And when I saw this item I -had- to have it. Given that it has the free-pivoting top grill piece that most indoor/sandwich grills of its type don't, it wouldn't create paninis compressed at an angle. It also seemed big enough to grill two sandwiches at once. Unless I missed my guess, this was a very reasonably priced grill that would do all that I needed. Nor was I wrong on any counts. This unit is wonderful, and easy to operate. You plug it in, and there's a red and green light. When the green light turns off, you're ready to go. Create the sandwich, spray both sides with a little olive oil, center on the grill, and within two mintues you've got yourself real, savory panini. Unplug it, and it turns off (a roller on/off switch on the cord itself might be a nice feature for future models). I especially like that the clean-up is so easy, and the cord wraps nicely into cord hooks on the bottom of the unit. A couple of safety tips... If you're like me and like an even panini, just make sure to center the sandwich--and the top grill surface on the sandwich. If you are planning on touching ANY other part of the machine while it's on (e.g., the top part to center the grill, the part of the handle that's not the plastic grip part, whatever), use temp-safe gloves or a pot holder. It gets hot all over. I might consider that a design flaw that calls for more insulation on a future model, but I just love the machine anyway. It is -so- worth the cost. Now I just need to experiment with different kinds of breads/meats to come up with the perfect combinations. *grin* Enjoy!

My girlfriend and I just got this grill because like a lot of New Yorkers, we don't have a backyard, and we don't have a lot of time to spare in our lives. Still we want to barbeque like any other surbanite. After reading some reviews of the Villaware Uno grill, which was available for purchase at a local Crate and Barrel, we saw that people complained about how meats didn't cook properly because juices flowed out of the cooking area. Although Krups is slightly smaller, it has a smoother look than the Uno, and the juices are retained when cooking. On its maiden use, the Krups grill went beyond our expectations. What a lot of people didn't stress in previous reviews is how quickly you can grill things. After preheating, the grill cooks a hamburger in about 90 seconds. The inner surface is ridged giving meats grill lines like a real barbeque grill. It also cooks both sides obviating the need to flip. All the juices are retained, and it tastes just like a bbq grilled hamburger. Want your buns toasted? Stick it in the grill and it's toasted in 30 seconds. With this tiny grill, I hosted an indoor barbeque for 14 people, grilling hot dogs, hamburgers, veggies, and toasting buns. No one had to wait.

WHAT'S FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT GOT TO DO WITH IT? Just pointing out that amazing, acclaimed, ingenious designs are usually flawed in some way. Whether or not those flaws ruin the entire package is up to you. OUT OF BOX EXPERIENCE The grill was well packaged and simple to open up. The manufacturer clearly took the unboxing experience into consideration, and put some thought into it -- not on par with Apple for example, but certainly more thought than I'm used to seeing from small appliance manufacturers. The included cookbook is a welcome addition. CRAFTSMANSHIP, FIT & FINISH and MATERIALS The grill has a good amount of heft to it, which not only reflects well on the material selections, but is also highly functional -- the weighty lid presses food perfectly without the need for latches or other gimmicks. Materials such as real metal, sturdy plastics and rubber that feature attractive finishes also feel pleasant to the touch. PROJECTED RELIABILITY Having researched this grill I am aware that many folks have experienced issues with the thermal fuse. I took this into consideration when making my purchase, and being somewhat mechanically/electronically inclined, I made the informed decision to purchase anyways, knowing that I may have to perform surgery on it at some point in the future. For this I removed only one star. I have been well trained by my German cars and appliances that sometimes you have to make a few tradeoffs in reliability for aesthetics, performance, and overall experience. I am not making excuses for it's faults (though mine has been flawless thus far), but rather pointing out that your willingness to accept some possible inconveniences in exchange for a great overall design may be greater or less than my own. USING THE DEVICE The color coded lights on the device are stylish and simple to understand. It heats up to temp quickly, and perfectly presses and grills everything I have thrown at it so far. The 'ridges' in the grill are closer together than on other devices I have used in the past. While this does make it slightly harder to clean, food seems to cook more quickly (more surface area?), and comes out more attractively pressed, as your food is less likely to deform into the indentations and appear 'wavy'. The floating center hinge is ingenious and allows for cooking items of nearly infinitely variable thickness. As I mentioned previously the lid/upper grill is very nicely weighted and presses your foodstuffs evenly and consistently. CLEANUP The grill plates on this device are fixed and not removable for cleaning. In the past I have used similar devices, with both fixed plates and removable ones. Removable plates make for easier cleanup, without a doubt, but fixed plates seem to provide more uniform heating across the grilling surface, and on this device in particular, you can load it up with food more or less from edge to edge with even cooking results. This is an acceptable tradeoff for me. The non-stick surface wipes clean easily as you would expect, and a quick sweep with a basting brush takes care of any stray crumbs in the recesses. GRILLING FATTY MEATS The FDE312-75 excels at sandwiches, vegetables and leaner cuts of meat, but might not be ideal for fattier meats such as ground beef/burgers. The recessed area of the grill is capacious enough to keep a moderate amount of grease out of contact with the items being cooked, but it lacks the "grease trap" that other devices offer. I grilled turkey burgers which turned out perfectly done and delicious, but there was enough fat that cooked away and collected that I believe fattier meats may not do as well. IT'S FOR YOU IF... - You want perfectly pressed, evenly cooked foods - You intend to primarily cook sandwiches, vegetables and leaner cuts of meat - You want a device that looks and feels 'premium' and not 'disposable' - You are willing to have the device serviced at some point, or conduct a minor repair yourself in the event the heat fuse fails (this has not been my experience, but it has been widely reported) THINK TWICE IF... - You plan on cooking primarily fatty meats such as hamburgers, or fattier cuts of beef/pork - You have low/no tolerance for things that may need repair/service - Design, aesthetics, materials and overall experience are not major considerations for you

we've had this for many years, possibly over 10.the panini we concoct are a huge family favorite. it elevates the sandwich to a fancier party level. the cookbook it came with is cute.it is getting a bit scratched after many many years, but not badly. all the silver colored parts get SUPER HOT, so be careful. Easy to clean, we usually just wipe down the grill area.the locking handle mechanism is getting a little finicky about when it will and will not unlock, but it worked well for years.we consistently use this small appliance time and again.

I was eagerly looking forward to using the Krups Grill and Panini Maker while I had out-of-country guests. Sadly, it arrived with the handle broken off because the panini grill was insufficiently packaged. Furthermore, the cost of returning it to Amazon was not covered in full so a disappointing experience was made more frustrating because I could not use the product and the transaction cost me money. On no level were my expectations me. E. Case

Heats fast and does it's job but there is no way to remove the grills for cleaning. At best I can run a dish cloth down every grate on the top and bottom surfaces after it has cooled but if I had known when I made the purchase I would have looked at a different brand.