Otto Wilde OFB grill review: Why this overhead broiler is worth $1,200

Otto Wilde’s OFB (Over-Fired Broiler) is a consumer-sized, restaurant-grade overhead grill (also known as a “sally” or salamander grill, finishing grill, or hotel grill) that gets up to a scorching 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s mainly designed for cooking and finishing steak, which is why it’s one of the only grills ever to earn an endorsement from legendary meat man Pat LaFrieda, who provides meat to some of the United States’ finest restaurants and steakhouses.

If you’ve spent any time in the restaurant industry, you know exactly what a sally is, and exactly what it does. But if you don’t have the slightest clue, it’s a highly simple, yet powerful appliance that approaches infernal temperatures, right in the comfort of your own backyard (or very well ventilated kitchen).

Yes, the $1,200 price is shock-inducing, but let’s get that out of the way, right out front. How much are you willing to spend on a propane grill for your backyard? And do you have any interest in owning a pizza oven, at least someday? An average propane grill is going to run you at least a few hundred dollars, and a pizza oven will easily set you back $800 to start (though the sky’s the limit with both). Between a fairly inexpensive grill and a bottom-of-the-line pizza oven, you’re already at the price of this Over-Fired Broiler.

I spent all winter sampling the fruits of Pat LaFrieda’s signature Otto Wilde OFB Grill after LaFrieda himself gave me the rundown outside of his sandwich shop at The Pennsy Food Hall at Pennsylvania Plaza.