From working in restaurants I often had a lot of guests ask about tips, tricks, more that once "haha I sure can't get it to taste like this at home, jokingly when they're blown away by something." There are really two reasons most home cooks don't get it the same at home.
The first is salt. Restaurant kitchens use a ton of it. For someone who's never watched a cooking show or been in a high-end pro kitchen, if they saw the amount of salt that goes into things, whether it's a salad or seasoning a piece of fish, they'd probably be floored. I was. I grew up being told salt was fine in moderation but bad for you if you have a lot of it. My mom was way off.
The second is science. Why do burgers dome up when cooked? Because the meat is overworked prior to cooking. Overwork the meat, you untangle proteins that then re-tangle when cooked. Don't overwork the meat, shape it into patties without pounding the crap out of it, it won't dome up. Why doesn't salad dressing break in a restaurant? It's emulsified. Why are the eggs better than mom's? That hipster brunch spot doesn't cook them over high heat. There's science to how all these thing work, and I never cease to be fascinated by it. Oftentimes the answer is that there's no tip or trick or shortcut or one vital step that someone is missing, it's just that the environment they have has certain scientific rules that define what can happen in that environment.
Good BBQ is good science, and the things that make the possibilities both limited in some cases and endless in others are all science. Talk to Aaron Franklin for an hour and he'll talk to you more about wood selection, combustion, airflow, and the science of smoke than he will marinades or injections.
Yes but this doesn't discount experience and intuitive reckoning. They didnt have a thermometer, but they find a way to determine if something was done. Or Not. Some conveniences, which isnt exactly science, have diminished these skills. Bbq history itself is just that, people figuring how to make the cheaper or fattier cuts of meat into great food. They didnt necessarily know the science.
Gonna smoke a pork butt this weekend since it's fathers day and that's what I want. Haven't done one since a bbq competition last year where I got kind of burnt out on long cooks...but looking forward to it.
And, it works out great. For better or worse, we've come to appreciate smash burgers compared to grilled burgers. And, this does a fine job of cooking many at one time. It's much easier to do it on an induction cooker and in a pan, but those have to be done one at a time...which is a pita. They're also awesome at making a lot of bacon but much more difficult to clean up than your typical pan.
I have one of those griddles and I use it for 3 things: smash burgers, pancakes, and it's also pretty awesome for homemade tortillas. Take 2c masa. Add 1.25c warm water and a pinch of salt. Stir, til it's like a sticky cookie dough, adding a bit of water if needed to get the consistency right. Roll into golf balls, cover with a wet towel for an hour. Then press on a tortilla press (you can get one at a Mexican grocery for like $12.) Get that griddle, dry, really really really freaking hot. Toss the tortilla on for 30 sec, flip and let it go for 35-40 sec, done. Delicious. This is a really really simple way to take your taco game to a brand new level. You can also just do it in a cast iron skillet, but the skillet doesn't hold as many so the griddle is easier and more efficient.