Beautiful XL Electric Griddle Review: Our Verdict

This is the griddle for families who make pancakes, eggs, and bacon in volume. We'd skip it if you want a lid, a fully immersible body, or restaurant-style searing, since the dial tops out at 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Pros and Cons

Here is how we arrived at that verdict. We score a family griddle on five things: how evenly it heats, how well food releases, how easy cleanup is, how much food fits on the surface, and what it costs for what you get. Safety around kids matters too, so we weigh cool-touch handles, cord length, and how hot the surface stays.

Those criteria are why a long, narrow surface and a drip tray score well here, and why a cooler corner or a short temperature range costs points. We also note where a spec is simply missing, such as overall dimensions and weight, rather than guess.

Using that rubric, the Beautiful XL does best on capacity and cleanup and loses points on heat evenness. Here is how it handles each part of a family breakfast.

Heat Up Time and Even Heating

The manual says to allow 10 minutes to preheat, and the indicator light goes off once the dial temperature is reached. Wait for that light. A full run of bacon cooks evenly across the surface once it does.

The griddle heats up quickly and spreads heat better than most budget electrics. One small annoyance: the temperature knob is hard to read, so landing on an exact number like 350 degrees takes some squinting and a guess. We lean on the indicator light instead of the dial markings.

Edge to edge, the heat is good but not perfect. The outer corners, roughly an inch and a half in from the edge, run a bit cooler than the center. Crowd bacon and pancakes toward the middle and rotate anything sitting on the edges.

A small minority of units have had trouble: heat that shuts off intermittently, a burning smell and faint electrical noise on early uses, or patchy heating. The clip-on backsplash can also pop off if bumped. Test yours right away while the return window is open.

Pancakes, Eggs and Bacon

This is where the griddle earns its keep. The maker rates the surface for up to 15 pancakes or eggs at once. For comparison, a 22-inch griddle turns out about 8 pancakes at a time, so the long, narrow Beautiful layout is a real strength for a big family. Bacon lays across the surface in full strips, and the grease runs to the drip tray instead of pooling around the food.

Smash Burgers and Searing

With a 400 degree ceiling, smash burgers are possible but not the griddle's strength. A flat-top built for searing runs hotter, and a Zojirushi reaches 425 degrees.

We have not put a rigorous smash burger test on this model, so we will not promise a deep crust. If burgers, steaks, or hard sears are your main goal, look at a hotter griddle. If they are an occasional dinner, the drip tray handles the grease well.

The key specifications are listed below.

Cooking Surface, Wattage and Dimensions

The cooking surface measures 12 inches by 22 inches, powered by 1500 watts. The temperature runs from 200 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit on a removable dial probe. The brand page lists only the cooking surface size, so we haven't published overall dimensions or weight here.

Colors and Included Accessories

The griddle comes with a detachable stainless steel backsplash, a removable drip tray with a grease drain, cool-touch handles, non-skid feet, and the removable temperature probe. Colors include Black Sesame, Sage, White Icing, Cornflower Blue, Porcini, Rose, and Lavender. Oyster Grey is sold out.

The coating plays a central role in how the griddle holds up over time. Food releases easily from the EverGood ceramic surface, which is why cleanup stays short. The coating does have rules. It scratches if you use metal tools, and hard scrubbing dulls the finish. The manual calls for silicone or wooden utensils, no cutting food on the surface, and no steel wool, scouring pads, or abrasive cleaners.

On the chemistry question, the maker's wording covers PFOA and PFOS only, so we can't call the coating PFAS-free. Ceramic coatings in this class can also lose some nonstick performance over a few months, and the bella 12x22 is the clearest example, with areas that turn hard to clean. Treat the surface gently from day one. The limited two-year warranty is a reasonable backstop. For the care steps, follow the printed operating and care instructions that come in the box.

Once the coating is cared for, cleanup is the test that matters most after a big family breakfast. The surface wipes clean with a damp soapy sponge. The drip tray and stainless backsplash are top rack dishwasher safe, while the griddle body, cord, and temperature probe must never be immersed.

For storage, the slim, lightweight body fits in a cabinet with the backsplash off and the drip tray slid into the front. There is no lid, so dust protection is up to you.

How does the Beautiful XL compare with other large griddles? It competes on size and price, and here is how it lines up against four larger-footprint rivals.

The Zojirushi takes 7 to 8 minutes to heat but gives very even heat, and a pound of bacon lays across it and crisps well. It costs far more, so it suits cooks who want precision over price. The Presto has a PFAS-free textured ceramic coating and an immersible control, which helps if chemistry matters to you. The bella is the closest match on size and price, but its nonstick can fade after a few months. We haven't gathered specs on the Blackstone E-Series or Ninja Sizzle Pro XL, so we left them out of the table.

• Wait for the indicator light before cooking; it signals the dial temperature has been reached.
• Keep food toward the middle, and rotate edge items.
• Use silicone or wooden utensils only.
• Let the surface cool fully before wiping it down.
• Take off the backsplash before you store the griddle, and slide the drip tray into the front.

If you want a hotter sear or a fully immersible body, step up to the Zojirushi. Families who want big, easy weekend breakfasts on a budget can start here and rotate edge items as they go.