5.0 out of 5 stars Good Machine! Great Value for money!! Fast Delivery!!

R. · 22 February 2016

(function() { P.when('cr-A', 'ready').execute(function(A) { if(typeof A.toggleExpanderAriaLabel === 'function') { A.toggleExpanderAriaLabel('review_text_read_more', 'Read more of this review', 'Read less of this review'); } }); })(); .review-text-read-more-expander:focus-visible { outline: 2px solid #2162a1; outline-offset: 2px; border-radius: 5px; } Arrived well ahead of the the estimated delivery given by Bolo. Well packaged and wrapped. Neat little unit supplied with Uk plug and paper instructions. Oiled the plates as per instructions and switched on with the dial set to maximum. There was some smoking as dust on the elements burned off but this only happened the first time off use. It was mentioned in the instructions so it was not a surprise!Great for paninis and toasted sandwiches. Like the fact that you can open up the grill plates to double the grilling area when using it as an open grill. Nice to have the temperature control and a little square fat collector fur when you grill chops and steaks!! So far extremely pleased with both the delivery and the machine itself. Excellent value for money would recommend!!

5.0 out of 5 stars Multi use, grill, and Panni toastie

A. · 3 June 2024

Having had difficulty obtaining a product suitable for my requirements, find this model excellent, east to use and clean. Well made, sturdy,. highly recommend also value for money.

4.0 out of 5 stars Decent quality and it does the job

S.Z. · 26 May 2020

Bought this grill to replace a Benross Quest grill that I bought from Bolo 14 months ago which has been used every day in that time, I decided to buy a new grill as it was becoming increasingly difficult to get the grill plates really clean which led to it losing most of the non stick property. The new grill has been in use now for almost a week and so far I'm impressed, I particularly like the fact that the plates are slightly inclined which is more effective at allowing fat/juices from what's being cooked to drain away. The main improvement is the fact that you can unlock the top plate so they are both flat which makes cleaning the upper plate so much easier, I'm sure that will give the grill a longer usable life. The only downsides compared to the previous grill is the area of the plates is a little smaller and although both grills are rated at 1500 watts the old grill was definitely hotter on the max temperature setting so cooking times are a bit longer. Overall I'd say the Vonshef is definitely worthy of recommendation.Update:-I've been using the grill now for a few weeks, although my initial thoughts still stand I've shown up one unfortunate negative point, it related to fat/juices drip tray or rather to the lack of any sort of guidance for the drips of liquid into the drip tray. Cooking anything with a decent amount of fat content such as quarter pound burgers leads the the worktop the united sits on being covered with fat, I reckon only about half the fat finishes up in the tray, necessitating sitting the grill and drip tray on a double thickness of kitchen roll to save the worktop. After cooking not only do the plates need to be cleaned but all the underside of the grill as well which is a bit of a pain, because of this I've downgraded my initial rating from 5* to 4*Update:- Unfortunately after 4 months daily usage the grill has failed yesterday which is rather disappointing. I contacted the Bolo seller Domu UK immediately and advised them it had failed, their response came back in minutes and they would send a replacement ASAP but said it could take up to 5 days, to my surprise the replacement arrived at 11am today, to my mind that must be considered superb customer service, I just hope the replacement proves more reliable than the original unit.

3.0 out of 5 stars No longer impressed

P.B. · 17 September 2016

I bought this to replace my Breville 1000W sandwich press which packed up just after the warranty ran out. It arrived quickly and was well packed, and to date I have cooked Panini, Ciabata and Burgers. I have not as yet tried it on a toasted sandwich as I agree with another reviewer that it would need thick bread, which I will buy next week. I have also not tried it as an open grill but based on the way it handled burgers I would expect it to work well. It is fairly easy to clean using hot water, a plastic scraper and a cloth. Being hotter than the old machine the temperature control is a good idea.A couple of minor niggles so far - the cable is even shorter than that on the Breville and whilst this may be for safety reasons it is a nuisance. Also, unlike my George Foreman grill (1750 Watts) the bottom plate is not at serious angle even with the feet adjusted so to get the fat to drain off I have had to raise the back feet 1cm or so . When used as an open grill the top plate has no drainage hole anyway so I expect a lot of fat to collect in the perimeter groove. Hence only 4 stars,As to the negative reviews on this and similar products, some seem to be down to the reviewer not actually understanding what they are buying - it is not an old fashioned sandwich toaster and does not seal the edges, neither will it be hot enough to flash fry thick cuts of steak I suspect, so if that is what you want buy something else. Also there are some who do not seem to have understood the instructions - the green light comes on when you select a temperature setting and goes off when that temperature is reached which is the same as my previous machine but a bit counter intuitive. Thus the comment that the green light is seldom on is an inaccurate criticism.Hopefully this will last a bit longer than the one it replaced though in fairness that was used virtually every day for a year before failing. If not it has a 2 year warranty providing you register online, not the 1 year shown in the booklet.Update, tried thick bread and it works well for toasted sandwiches. Yes farmhouse gets a bit crusty and soft squashes a bit but I am satisfied.Further update - OK as sandwich/panini press but poor as grill. The drip tray is badly positioned and leaks, the non stick surface was not brilliant at first even when oiled but now is getting pretty poor, and it is now proving difficult to clean. I scrape the residue off with a plastic scraper and then wash with hot soapy water using a plastic scouring sponge, but no matter how much I clean it I get smoke every time I turn it on which implies that there is grease left on it. Lastly, the numbers on the temperature control knob rubbed off after a couple of months. Poor design and manufacture, so will use my old George for grilling in future.

1.0 out of 5 stars Useless

p.n. · 24 April 2025

Absolutely rubbish

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect Panini's

S.S. · 3 January 2019

Arrived today, unpacked at lunch time and put to use straight away..result : perfect panini loaded with cheese, ham, spring onions, done in no time. Handy Tip: I used 2 sheets of baking parchment cut to size. 1 underneath and 1 overneath (new word meaning on top) cooked to perfection, still browns the panini and no mess or fuss cleaning it afterwards.At tea time.. opened it up laid it flat.. 2 cooking cooking surfaces, cooked a chicken breast on one and a selection of vegetables on the other. Cooked really well and so tasty. Best feature is the temperature control dial.Highly recommended, very reasonably priced too.