Huts and palaces: generals at the grill

There is space on the smallest balcony.

Not necessarily for plant pots or a chair, but a table grill always fits, as a summer's day in the courtyard of the apartment building proves.

May the first people start taking cold showers because of the high gas prices, and no matter how often the secretary of commerce calls for energy saving on all fronts - the propane gas bottle for the beloved Weber grill (professionals say

because the company is based in Palatine, Illinois) must despite 8 percent inflation to be there.

Judith Lembke

Editor in the "Housing" department of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sunday newspaper.

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Gone are the days when the old charcoal grill was fired up on Sunday afternoons and a few friends were treated to sausages.

The technical upgrade does not stop at this area of ​​life either.

No wonder these things are now the size of a field kitchen for an entire company, more and more things have to fit in: six burners, hob for side dishes, back burner in the fund for the perfect broiler and enough storage space to cut the

flank

into

cutting and accommodating all the accessories that would make any car dealer green with envy.

Barbecuing is a serious matter, in the face of the gas flame, every former civil service worker becomes a major general of his sausage flock.

analogies to the military

The analogies to the military are by no means exaggerated.

After all, Weber's competitor Napoleon advertises with the slogan "For barbecue fans and generals".

And what self-image do the brands Broil King or Grillfürst expect from their customers?

The Burnhard brand also sounds a bit like the men's epic

, in which a policeman single-handedly liberates an entire skyscraper from the hands of criminals.

The tendency to expand their dominion among barbecue fans is not just an end in itself, but a prerequisite for being able to practice the hobby carefree at any time.

It's easier to ban barbecuing on the balcony of a rented apartment than on your own property and if the place of activity is a private park and not the towel garden of a terraced house - you get the picture.

What counts for self-determined grilling is the distance to the neighbors.

Otherwise there will be lawsuits.

And the German judges' friendliness for grilling is very different.

According to the Aachen Regional Court, barbecues may be held twice a month in the part of the garden furthest away from all neighbours.

The District Court of Bonn grants barbecue fans only one barbecue a month,

and the district court of Stuttgart is particularly stingy with three barbecues or six hours a year.

For all other evenings, the grilling commander only has the electric grill in miniature format.

In case of doubt, it also fits on the living room table.