Spotted during a call... A Roto Broil 400

[redcarpetdrew]

Sorry for being kinda absent here lately. Many chaotic things in my life 5months into my Post Wife Life...

At a call, wondered what was on the customer's table hiding under a dust cloth. I got to see this...

Like it?

 

[redcarpetdrew]

The close up. In very nice shape. And used very so often.

 

[redcarpetdrew]

The buttons to play with...

 

[redcarpetdrew]

More...

 

[redcarpetdrew]

And the flip side...

So about how old is this? Not something I've seen before but would love to try it out.

Anyway, to all who have emailed me with best wishes and love, thank you. It really is helping me start to get my head back into some semblance of a small bit of order. You guys are really awesome!

RCD

 

[Ultramatic]

 

 

I'll guess circa 1954. Always wanted one of those! 

 

[ken]

Three models shown in the 1956 Sears Roebuck catalog I have.

 

[rp2813]

I have that exact same item.  My Mr. & Mrs. Roto-Broil book is dated 1955.

 

That one appears to have been used as a cook top almost exclusively, considering that the skewers look brand new.

 

I didn't realize these units came with the detachable tray handle.  I never knew what that thing kicking around in a drawer at my parents' house was for, so I never claimed it.  It likely disappeared forever at the 2008 estate sale.

 

The heat control buttons have retained their original color.  Mine have faded, and on the one I used to have, they had lost all color.  I have not seen an original blue "Bake" function button since I was a kid, and until now had begun to think I was imagining things.   Keep that unit covered!

 

Here's why I love mine so much:

 

[Ultramatic]

Just wondering...

 

 

Is that temp. dial original? Seems a bit over scaled.

 

[rp2813]

Louie, do you mean the timer dial?  It's original.  It probably was sized for the TOL model, but was used on most if not all of the others as well.

 

[Ultramatic]

 

 

Yep, that's right Ralph. I didn't know there were senior models for this appliance. Then it would &#92make sense as a cost saving measure.  Thanks!

 

[tolivac]

I sort of vaguely remember one of these when I was little-My Mom used it to make "Dizzy Cicken" as she called it-rotiserie chicken.

 

[westie2]

My grandparents had two of these and used one at the lake cabin for cooking. They also had two electric skillets and 2 electric sauce pans and a electric pressure cooker along with a GE percolator and an Iona blender. Was a nice thing for them in the early 1960's.

 

[rp2813]

There were a few models:

 

Riviera 400

King Size Riviera

Custom 400

400 Capri

 

The King Size Riviera and the Capri both had "wrap around" lids, and the Capri featured a "restaurant type grill" on top.  The Capri is pictured on the front of the Mr. & Mrs. Roto-Broil cookbook shown above.  The Custom and Riviera models are pictured on the back.

 

Here's a picture of what I presume is a later model, never/barely used Riviera I found at Savers a few years ago and snagged for Nate (controls are on the side).  The shorter glass panel supposedly improved the roasting process.  You can't make it out in the picture, but the term "Bakes" is missing from the Riviera's list of capabilities across the bottom of the glass, thus ruining the rhyming sequence found on the windows of other models.

 

 

 

[tomturbomatic]

Everything was Roto-something. The utility cart was the "roto butler." I can't imagine that the appliance was ever very efficient for baking with no insulation and the big slot in the side for the rotisserie spit, but if you could put it outside in the hot weather, it would help keep heat out of the kitchen since the cook would not have to turn on the oven.

 

[rp2813]

I think the baking function was a flop in general.  It required the purchase of an optional "Bake-A-Tray" which appeared to be a heating surface that sat on the bottom of the cavity.  I've never seen one so don't even know how they worked, since the roaster doesn't have a thermostat.  I presume they plugged into the outlet below the "Bake" button.

 

The average consumer didn't have room for one of these units to live on their kitchen counter.  When I was a kid, the Roto-Broil was only hauled out once in a while to roast a chicken.  I've done a pork roast on one and it did a good job, and it also performed well with two game hens.  I have a back-to-back four-pronged skewer to connect a couple of hens together on the spit.  I don't know if it came with the unit or if my dad, who was a machinist at the time, made it for that sort of application.

 

[ken]

Ralph:

When you say the Bake a Tray sat on the bottom of the cavity do you mean inside or under the top lid? Couldnt you bake in it like a modern toaster oven? The outlet under the timer can be used to make other plug in appliances automatic.

I would think it would have to have a thermostat. Doesnt it cycle on and off to maintain the preset temperature for low, med, high? Otherwise it would just continue to heat up.

Can you toast in it like a modern toaster oven?

 

[paulg]

Rotisseries

My suggestion to anyone who finds the Roto-Broil or the General Electric (with heating element on the TOP) is to BUY IT!
My General Electric rotisserie (circa about 1960) is the best four-dollar find in the world.
Hubby thought I was nuts when I bought it at an estate sale. Quote, "I GUARANTEE you failure with that thing." He sings a WAY different tune now. It really is HIS favorite appliance next to the ice-maker.
It has the rotisserie on/off function and the timer. There is no heat control. For our purposes it doesn't really matter.
In short, when we have had a busy day, you just oil up a chicken with olive oil, spread McCormick's rotisserie chicken seasoning on it, set the timer and make the cocktails. With frozen vegetables in the microwave on sensor-cook, your kitchen servants are doing the work for you! Really.
No glam shot immediately available. Here is an awful picture for reference only. The unit really gleams. The string keeps the door from popping open when storing. The Ziplock bag holds extra parts and the trussing needle. Here it is in the basement where it is stored.
Heating elements that are on the top seem to excel as the grease drips down into the tray below preventing smoke-ups.
Your favorite rotisserie recipes are welcome anytime!

 

[rp2813]

GE Rotisseries

Oh for sure, Paul, I would ditch my Roto-Broil in an instant if I found one of those GE's.   Your description of the cooking process is spot-on.  Cocktails and snacks while the appliances take care of things.

 

Nate replaced the Riviera I found for him (pictured above) with a GE like yours that he found after moving to Tucson, and when I saw it I could tell that it was superior to the Roto-Broil.  Unfortunately, the swamp cooler at his place created such a high level of humidity that the GE suffered some serious deterioration and I'm unsure of its viability these days.

 

Ken, I'll check the details on the Bake-a-Tray, but I know for sure that it was used inside the cavity, not under the lid.  The area under the lid could be used for cooking, but on the Roto-Broils I've seen, it has always been an uneven surface so saucepans don't make full contact with it.  I think the Capri models were better in that regard, with their "restaurant type grill" on top.