Others say...

"I'm seriously considering retiring our grill!"
I openly admit to being a terrible cook, its not that I don't give it my best but nothing ever comes out to terrific... this holds true to the foods I cook on our outdoor gas grill as well. We've never owned any cast iron pans but growing sick of the bug attacks when trying to grill on our deck I decided to look into a "grill pan" and saw this first, looked nice and the price was right.

I just finished eating my first attempt with this pan, grilled chicken breasts and YUM! I followed the directions given by another reviewer on how to prepare the pan (bit of cooking spray, heating it over med-high, etc) and the chicken barely stuck at all and cooked perfectly, with the most beautiful grill marks (far more impressive then those left by the gas grill).

Cleanup was a breeze, just a bit of very hot water (the pan was still hot) and a quick brush, used a tad of kosher salt to get the little bit of stuck on chicken and that was that, nice and clean.

I can not wait to make a steak or some burgers on this pan, giving high consideration to ordering more Lodge Logic pans based on this one experience.

* the photo here needs to be updated, my pan has a small helper handle on the opposite side of the main handle which was useful as the pan is very heavy. I also purchased this handle cover which worked perfectly: Lodge Max Temp Handle Mitt, Black

We're going to save a fortune on carry out!

"great grill pan"
The Lodge grill pan I received from Amazon (in February 2008) has a helper handle in addition to the pan handle, unlike the pan in the picture. Generally, cast iron pans need different care than ordinary pans but it's not difficult. I always preheat the pan on the stove for a couple minutes, for example at medium high for grilling steaks. I like very rare steak so it only takes about 2 or 3 minutes to cook. As another example, I usually preheat the pan to medium for grilling shrimp scampi with lemons & garlic. Whatever dish I manage to make, the food tastes great and the grill marks always look appetizing. After using the pan, let it cool (I usually wait till the next morning) then wash it with plain hot water and a scrub brush or a wad of aluminum foil. Never soak it in water. After it's dry, spray & wipe the inside lightly with cooking spray or wipe it down with a light layer of cooking oil. Now it's ready for the next pre-heating. The more you use it, the less it will smoke, as the carbon builds up inside the pan and the surface becomes more non-stick over time. Also if it still smokes too much, turn down the heat a bit.

Added 8/20/08: The Lodge grill pan is still going strong. I recently used it in the oven to grill/roast shrimp, lobster tails, and scallops - everything was delicious.

"need guidelines for using this pan"
My latest Foreman grill is worn out, and I bought this pan as a possible replacement. In three tries so far, though, I haven't been able to cook anything well. The pan is either too hot, and the char marks are too burned and the food sticks to the pan while being underdone, or, in trying to lower the heat, there are no char marks and the food gets overcooked and dry. Obviously, I'm doing something wrong, but there were no general guidelines about pre-heating the pan, "greasing" the pan" (I tried PAM, but any of that just runs down the side of the grids), how long what should cook, etc., etc. I'll tackle it again in a few weeks when things slow down, but in the meantime, I'm still using my aging Foreman

"Great product"
Used pan to cook a rib steak, no problems works as promised. Lodge products are worth the money.

"Quite possibly the greatest value in cookware EVER"
Let me open by saying that the negative reviews on this pan were, in my opinion, written by people who aren't quite sure how to use it. It's really pretty easy once you get the hang of it. Just try the following:

1) Put the pan on a large burner.
2) Coat it lightly with nonstick cooking spray.
3) Turn the burner on somewhere between medium to medium-high.
4) Once the pan is hot, put in burgers, chicken breasts, pork chops, or other decent cuts of meat. How you choose to marinate/season said cuts of meat is entirely up to you.
5) Cook anywhere from 4-7 minutes per side.
6) Enjoy your exquisitely prepared meal.
7) Clean up the pan with hot water and a ScotchBrite sponge. If you encounter difficult-to-remove, burnt-on food stains, try putting a thin layer of kosher salt on the pan and scrubbing with the SB sponge.
8) Rinse the pan thoroughly and dry completely with paper towels or whatever.
9) Coat lightly with nonstick cooking spray.
10) Store until next use.

Call me crazy, but that sounds pretty easy to me. Bottom line to all of you cast iron naysayers: be patient, keep using this pan, and eventually you'll learn how to get the most out of it. It really is terrific!