The Grilla Silverbac is a wood-fired pellet grill that stands out in a crowded market. The 1.0 version of the Silverbac AT was our top pick in our 2023 Best Pellet Grills under $1199 roundup, and we've had our eyes on all things Grilla ever since.
Grilla Grills released their 2.0 models of the Silverbac, including an XL version, in 2025. In this article we'll walk you through our experiences with each model.
Silverbac 2.0
Silverbac 2.0 XL Built-in
Silverbac AT 1.0
What are the differences between the Silverbac 1.0 and Silverbac 2.0?
There are four major differences between the original and new models of the Silverbac wood pellet grills from Grilla Grills.
Cooking Chamber Shape
In the original Silverbac, the cooking chamber is almost completely circular, whereas in the 2.0 it's more oval.
Wider Base
Secondly, the base of the 2.0 pellet grill is wider. I have had my 1.0 tip over when I was moving it, so I appreciate the wider wheel base on this 2.0 design. It's more stable and better on the really windy days we get here in Central Indiana.
Pellet Hopper
Third, the size of the pellet hopper has increased. Version 1 could hold 1 bag or 20lbs of pellets, while the new Silverbac 2.0 can hold 33 pounds of pellets. That's a huge difference in fuel capacity, making it one of the largest hoppers on any wood pellet grill of comparable size on the market.
Compare the Silverbac Models
Silverbac 2.0 Specs
Feature | Measurement |
|---|---|
Dimensions | H51 xW48 xD22 |
Weight | 163lbs |
Cooking Space | 507 sq in (main), 185 sq in (upper), 692 square inches (total) |
Grill Temperature Range | 180-500°F |
Cooking Grates | ÂĽ-inch stainless steel rod |
Pellet Hopper Capacity | 33 lbs |
Probe Ports | 2 ports, 2 meat probes included |
Warranty | 4 years |
Price before discount code | $1133.99 |
Silverbac 2.0 XL Specs
Feature | Measurement |
|---|---|
Dimensions | H56.7 xW55.5 xD24 |
Weight | 242lbs |
Cooking Space | 32.75" x 21.3" (main), 33.8" x 17.5" (second), 33.8" x 10.5" (warming), Total 1,644 sq in |
Grill Temperature Range | 180-500°F |
Cooking Grates | ÂĽ-inch stainless steel rod |
Pellet Hopper Capacity | 33 lbs |
Probe Ports | 2 ports, 2 meat probes included |
Warranty | 4 years |
Price before discount code | $1,889.99 |
Silverbac 1.0 AT Specs
Feature | Measurement |
|---|---|
Dimensions | H53 xW47 xD30 |
Weight | 195lbs |
Cooking Space | 507 square inches (main), 185 square inches (upper), 692 square inches (total) |
Grill Temperature Range | 180-500°F |
Cooking Grates | ÂĽ-inch stainless steel rod |
Pellet Hopper Capacity | 20 lbs |
Probe Ports | 1 port, 1 meat probe included |
Warranty | 4 years |
Price before discounts | $1379.98 |
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What Cart Options Are Available For the Silverbac?
No matter which model of Silverbac you're looking at, all are available with a traditional cart, an all-terrain cart, or built-in to the Grilla outdoor kitchen.
Each cart option serves a different purpose and we've experienced all 3. We loved the AT cart on our original Silverbac because it made moving the pellet grill in and out of the garage and through the grass a breeze. If you tend to move your wood pellet grill around a lot, the AT cart would probably be worth the extra expense for you.
Otherwise, the basic cabinet cart is great for those who tend to keep their pellet grill in one place on their deck or patio.
However, if you're ready to get serious about your backyard setup, Grilla offers modular outdoor kitchen pieces that are very economical, including a built-in cabinet for the Silverbac wood pellet grill.
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Cooking on the Grilla Grills Silverbac
People ask me all the time if a certain cooker is a pellet smoker or a pellet grill or both. I want to show you how the Grilla Grills Silverbac is a “both” wood pellet grill.
Backyard Smoking Test: Cooking Low and Slow
Low and slow cooking is usually associated with pork butt or a rack of ribs, so we’re talking about smoking meat here.
We smoked a pair of chuck roasts by setting the pellet grill to 250° and selecting the Pro mode on the controller for more smoke. After 6 hours, we transferred the roasts to an aluminum pan with beef broth, stuck the 2 meat probes in, and covered the pan with foil before returning it to the smoker. 4 more hours passed before our roasts reached my target temp of 206° and we had delicious pulled beef for dinner.
When it comes to pork back ribs, we ran these at 225° for 3 hours and then wrapped them in foil with a competition wrap recipe. The total cook time was 5 hours, and the meat was smokey and juicy, exactly what I’m looking for in wood pellet grill ribs.
Hot and Fast Test
It’s not just low-heat cooking where the Grilla Grills Silverbac shines. Hot and fast cooking is setting the pellet grill temperature to around 450 degrees and still cooking indirectly. This convection style cooking is where the heat comes from around the meat rather than underneath, and we ran a batch of chicken wings for our test.
We seasoned half of our wings with our Feathered Formula and the other half with our Essential Equation seasonings. They cooked at 450° on the smoker for right around a half hour, and our wings were nice and crispy and perfectly cooked.
Grilling Test
Direct high heat cooking isn’t something that this pellet grill can do, since there’s not a sear station or a hatch that you can open to gain access to the flame while cooking. What this doesn’t mean is that it’s not a grill though. We've made grilled hamburgers, chicken, and even grilled a steak to prove that this cooker can grill as well as smoke, and here’s how it went.
We picked up some 80/20 ground beef at the supermarket and made 1/3 pound patties. We dropped in a GrillGrates Sear Station (save 10% with discount code: BBQLAB10) on half the grilling surface and tested to see which put on the best grill marks. The high setting on the Grilla Grills Silverbac is 500°, so we set it to high and let it warm up for a half hour before putting the burgers on.
After 3 minutes on the first side, we flipped the burgers and found that the GrillGrates panels put on wider sear marks than the factory grates did, but the Grilla grates still performed better than the other 8 pellet grills that we tested head-to-head.
The Grilla Grill is one of the few wood pellet grills that can grill a whole main grate of burgers without having a sear station. That really makes it stand apart from the others in the space.
While "searing" a steak on the Silverbac is not what it's meant to do, we were pleasantly surprised to be able to achieve any amount of sear marks on this steak.
Grilla Grills Silverbac Features
Quality Build
Looking at the quality of the build, the Grilla Grills Silverbac has a couple of standout features.
First are the stainless steel components, which are rare in this price range. There’s a stainless steel lid with double wall insulation, and many stainless steel internal components. The burn pot, diverter panel and drip tray are all stainless steel as well, and it speaks to how Grilla didn’t cut corners to meet a big box retailer’s price point like so many other brands.
When I’m looking at wood pellet grills, I want the grates, igniter rod, and drip pan to all withstand the test of time and weather, and this grill seems up to the challenge so far.
The metal that isn’t stainless steel is powder coated, which is common in pellet grills, but what I like about the Silverbac is that the main parts that usually wear out are stainless.
Without completely taking the pellet grill apart, I can’t see what the auger tube and other internals are made of, but what I can see shows me that this grill stands out from the rest in build quality.
Grilla Grills App
When it comes to a mobile app that controls a pellet grill, I’ve used them all. Many are functional but visually underwhelming. This simply isn’t the case for the Grilla Grills app. It’s visually clean and crisp, looking like the design was one of the first points of consideration.
I’ve used the app to control and monitor the grill remotely while I was away from the house, and it’s incredibly responsive. I can change the temperature, go between Pro and PID modes on the controller, monitor my meat probe temperatures, and more.
It’s all the control I need for a wood pellet grill that I’m using while I’m at the kids’ games or for a quick run to the store.
Pause Feature
One thing I've really come to appreciate about all of the Silverbac models is the pause feature. Typically, when working with wood pellet grills, you have to work quickly when opening the lid to avoid the controller sending too many pellets down the auger, driving up the temperature. Grilla Grills has added a pause feature that you can engage before opening the grill lid that lets the controller know to take a break from feeding pellets while you're working with the open pellet grill. You can unpause manually once you close the lid, or it does automatically turn off on its own after 5 minutes.
Safety Features
There is a high-temperature shut-off and a low-temperature shut-off built into the Silverbac controller. If the pellet grill hits 615°, it will initiate a shutdown of the grill to protect it against overheating. If the grill hits 150 for an extended period of time, it will also shut down since it’s either out of fuel or there’s another issue causing such low internal temperatures.
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Cleaning and Maintenance of the Grilla Grills Silverbac
When it comes time to clean the Grilla Grills Silverbac, there’s not that much to it. Other than cleaning the grates each time you finish cooking and wiping down the exterior with a damp cloth, it’s just the deep clean that you need to worry about.
Every 3-4 cooks, I take out the grill grate, drip pan, and heat deflector and assess the cleanliness of the inside of the pellet grill. There’s likely to be an abundance of wood pellet ash due to the convection style cooking, and I attack that with a vacuum cleaner. I make sure to sweep all of the internal components, leaving the pellet cup and bottom of the grill clean for my next 3-4 cooks.
The pellet grill also has a pellet dump feature on the hopper, which allows you to change the type of pellet that’s in the grill. If you decided to run Hickory wood pellets for a brisket and want to change to Apple pellets for some chicken, that’s where the pellet dump comes in handy to change out wood pellets.
Grilla Grills Warranty
There’s a 4 year warranty on the Grills Grills Silverbac, and that’s a great warranty as far as pellet grills go. You have a hard time finding a wood pellet grill with a longer warranty. They do exist, but this is quite the extended coverage for a pellet grill.
Our Grilla Grills Silverbac Review
It’s hard to find things that I don’t like about the Grilla Grills Silverback. The usual corners that are cut to hit the price point of a big box store aren’t found in the Silverbac. With double wall insulation and stainless steel throughout, this is a high quality wood pellet grill at an affordable price point.
We found the overall quality and performance to be superior when compared with many of the other pellet smokers we have tested, and can whole-heartedly recommend this grill.
Grilla Grills quality doesn’t stop with the Silverbac. Be sure to also check out the Grilla Grills Primate gas grill and griddle combo as well as the Grilla Grills Kong kamado and the Chimp portable pellet grill.
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Donniebritt
May 24, 2023 11:52 pminteresting! ready to update 🤩
BRYANT PEARCE
August 24, 2023 3:00 pmAmazing review for the Grilla Grills Silverbac . So good in fact, I bought one based on your review. You are great at proving the info a consumer needs to make an educated decision on a pellet smoker.
David Gafford
August 24, 2023 3:37 pmThanks for letting us know Bryant! All the best with your new grill.
john carlson
August 26, 2023 11:35 pmJust ordered one, can’t wait to start cooking..Thanks
Joe Kuzma
December 8, 2023 10:09 pmHow do I know if my SILVERBAC PELLET GRILL has or needs a upgrade?
Kj
January 8, 2024 3:35 amCan the Silverbac alpha only be turned on via the app or is there a manual turn on option as well?
David Gafford
January 16, 2024 5:51 pmIt can definitely be turned on at the unit itself.