Gozney Dome Premium Outdoor Oven Review

About the Gozney Dome Premium Outdoor Oven

• Oven External Dimensions: 21.6 in. high x 31.1 in. deep x 26.7 in. wide
• Pizza Stone Dimensions: 18 in. deep x 17 in. wide
• Oven Mouth: 5.1 in. tall x 16.1 in. wide
• Weight: 128 lbs. (150 lbs. in packaging)
• Fuel Options: Dual Fuel Propane and Wood, Dual Fuel Natural Gas and Wood, Wood Only
• Materials: Ceramic bonded exterior coating, 30mm double-layer stone floor, dense cavity insulation
• Color Options: Bone, Olive
• Features: Detachable flue and cap, dock and accessory port, digital thermometer, two temperature probes (for checking internal temperature of cooking food), and a manual air regulation vent. Dual fuel models also include a gas burner and regulator, ignition and flame regulation dial, and a stone floor puck to switch between wood and gas. Stand and other accessories (like peels and oven door) are sold separately.

This isn’t the first time that we’ve worked with Gozney products. Our original pizza oven ranking had the Gozney Roccbox rated as our top pick (before the Solo Stove Pi Pizza Oven dethroned it). However, unlike the Roccbox, the Dome is not small and portable; this thing weighs a massive 128 pounds, and it’s definitely a two-person job to lift it onto the 65-inch-tall stand (available for an additional $299).

The Dome has three fuel options: wood only, dual fuel natural gas and wood, and dual fuel propane and wood (the unit we tested).

Cooking with wood

Cooking with wood in an outdoor oven can be intimidating, but this is certainly an area where Gozney shines. With an arsenal of accessories, you can transform the oven into a smoker for braising pork shoulder or use it as a steam-injection oven for baking bread.

The Dome is large enough to build a fire directly inside the unit, too—just like restaurant ovens we’ve used in professional kitchens. Most wood-fired pizza ovens utilize a separate chamber for wood at the back, but the Dome’s fire is located directly on the stone floor. After the unit preheats, you can control the fire’s temperature with the airflow control dial.

We suggest picking up the wood rack if you plan to use this cooking method regularly, as it helps to keep the fire in place and promotes airflow throughout the entire ember bed.

Cleaning the unit is well thought-out, too: When you’re finished, sweep the ashes to the back of the oven into an easily removable ash pan.

Cooking with natural gas or propane

When using the oven with propane or natural gas, the arched ceiling design creates a tower of mesmerizing flames that roll over the ceiling and cover the entire oven. That not only looks impressive, but it also heats the pizza toppings from above while the preheated stone puffs up the dough.

Controlling the flames with this fuel is as easy as turning the dial, allowing the oven to get as hot as 950°F. If you accidentally turn it down too low and the flame goes out, don’t worry; the unit has a built-in pilot light, so it immediately comes back to life when you increase the gas.

The first time you use the oven, you’ll want to heat it on medium-low for 30 minutes to cure the stone. This step should also be repeated, they say, if the oven has been dormant for an extended period.

If you invest in a duel-fuel option, to switch between the two fuel methods Gozney provides a small puck to cover the propane burner (located on the left side of the oven) when cooking with wood. Then, when you’re using it for propane sessions, move the puck to cover the air intake valve on the right side, ensuring you’ll always have the full surface area available as you cook.

What we like

It’s more than just a pizza oven

The best feature of the Gozney Dome is its versatility. This thing is not just a pizza oven: When used with wood, it’s also a fully-functioning outdoor oven.

When you use the oven with its steam injector, it turns into a bread oven. Reduce the airflow and affix the door, and you’ve got a smoker. Of course, you’ll need to purchase some additional accessories and get comfortable with cooking with a live fire, but the process was easier than we expected.

Some additional features are available with gas, too. Crank the heat up as high as it goes and add a cast-iron skillet to the oven to preheat. This allows you to sear steak or roast vegetables that taste as good as ones cooked on a grill.

It’s plenty big

The Dome is one of the largest outdoor ovens we’ve tested. The stone is 18 inches deep and 22 inches wide (although we measured approximately 17 inches of usable space, considering that you wouldn’t want to launch a pizza on top of the propane fire ring!).

That’s more than enough space for a 16-inch pizza, and you could definitely fit two smaller pizzas in there if you manage your space right. We had no trouble using two 12-inch cast-iron skillets at the same time, maximizing our cooking space for non-pizza items, too.

It heats up quickly and retains heat well

When using the propane attachment, it took about 20 minutes for the Dome to reach 700°F. Our benchmark for testing pizza ovens is whether they can reach Neoplitan pizza-cooking conditions in less than 30 minutes, so this oven certainly passed the test.

We were even more impressed at how well the Dome retained those temperatures. Most ovens see a drop in temperature when you add room-temperature food, and it can take a few minutes to recover before adding the next pizza. The insulation on the Dome did its job admirably, and the temperature barely faltered while in use.

It comes with two digital probe thermometers

If there was any indication that you should be using this oven for more than pizza, this is it. The Dome comes with a built-in digital thermometer that measures the oven’s temperature, and it also has two probe ports for taking the internal temperature of food while cooking. These are perfect for identifying the moment when steak, chicken, and other baked goods reach their ideal internal temperature.

It’s gorgeous

The Dome really does look like the wood-fired ovens you see in the open-kitchen artisan pizza restaurants. The large viewing window makes it possible to see exactly what’s going on inside, and the exposed flame lights up the contents beautifully. Combined with the modern-industrial stand, this unit is really sleek.

What we don’t like

It’s not portable

This unit certainly differs from the Roccbox, which we love for its portability. The Dome, on the other hand, weighs 128 pounds and it’s as large as it is heavy, so it’s really designed to become a fixture in your backyard setup.

The stand does have rolling wheels (that lock in place, as needed), so you can move it around if you like, but you’ll want to make sure you have a somewhat permanent home for this oven before you click the purchase button.

It takes a long time to cool down

Remember that great insulation we talked about that helped the oven retain its heat? This also means that the oven also takes forever to cool down. We like to keep our pizza ovens covered when not in use to protect them from the elements, and we had to wait several hours for the oven to be cool enough to put the cover in place. Not a deal breaker, but something to consider if inclement weather is on the horizon.

We had some issues with startup

One of the features we love about the Dome is that the gas hookup allows you to ignite a pilot light. That means you can easily turn the oven on and off without having to use the typical battery-powered ignitor in most gas-powered outdoor pizza ovens and grills.

Unfortunately, starting that pilot light is a little bit temperamental. It took us multiple tries on several separate occasions to get it to light, continuously holding the ignitor and listening to it click away without actually lighting. After several minutes, the ignition took hold, and it was super easy to start the oven from there, but getting to that point was a little more frustrating than we thought it should be.

Be wary of the digital thermometer

We award bonus points to any outdoor oven that contains a built-in thermometer. These thermometers make it so much easier to know what’s going on inside the oven without having to fiddle around with infrared thermometers.

While we greatly appreciate the inclusion, it is worth noting that it’s not 100% accurate. If you’re using propane, the readout tends to be a little bit hotter than readings taken on the far right side of the oven. This isn’t necessarily a negative—the thermometer still gives you a good idea of the general temperature inside the unit—but keep in mind that the number was sometimes as far off as 150 degrees from the infrared reading.

You’ll need to source small wood

The Dome has a fantastic set of features that are accessed when using it as a wood-fired oven, but you’ll need to be specific about the wood you use. The oven is not nearly large enough for full-sized wood, so you’ll want to use smaller pieces measuring 5-1/2 inches by 3/4 to 2 inches.

Depending on how much you use the oven, it might be better to seek out kindling-sized wood instead of spending a lot of time paring down larger pieces with an axe.

When it comes to the type of wood to use, Gozney recommends hardwoods and cautions against using sappy or soft woods like pine. Of course, Gozney also sells this type of wood, specifically sized for the Dome, and an accessory especially designed for loading it.

The costs add up quickly

We don’t generally like to rank something like this on price alone, but it’s impossible to ignore the financial impact of the Dome. The wood-only version costs $1,699 (at the time this article was published), and the dual-fuel option increases to $1,999.

From there, there are dozens of helpful accessories, like the stand with locking wheels, pizza peels and turners, covers, doors, and steam-injectors. Things can add up pretty quickly if you’re not careful.

Warranty

Per Gozney’s warranty disclosure, the Dome comes standard with a one-year warranty. If registered within 60 days of purchase, that warranty is extended to a five-year limited warranty for the original owner. The stone floor remains limited to a two-year warranty, and the thermometer, steam plug, and air inlet puck are limited to one-year warranties.

Gozney warrants the product will be free from defects in materials and workmanship. In most cases, faulty components will be repaired or replaced (unless they can’t be accessed externally, in which case the whole unit may be replaced). The warranty does not cover water damage, damage due to severe weather conditions, and cracks or cosmetic paint chips that do not affect structural integrity.

Warranties on accessories vary depending on the accessory.

Should you buy the Gozney Dome Premium Outdoor Oven?

Yes, if you have the outdoor space and plan to use it often.

The Gozney Dome is a surefire way to up your outdoor cooking game. It makes it easy to produce high-quality pizza, and—with the right accessories—you can use it as a fully functioning oven. It’s significantly larger than most outdoor pizza ovens, so you can take advantage of making full-sized pizzas instead of sticking to 10- or 12-inch individual pizzas, too.

Since it retains its heat well, we like this oven much better for feeding a crowd than some other ones we’ve tested, too.

That said, this oven isn’t for everyone. If you’re only casually interested in cooking outside or specifically interested in making pizza, we recommend looking into our winning outdoor pizza oven, the Solo Stove Pi, or a less expensive, more portable unit on our list, like the Ooni Koda. The Gozney Dome doesn’t do anything particularly special when it comes to making pizza, so you can save space and money by investing in a smaller model.

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Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.