What's the best fire pit for roasting marshmallows?
For the full ritual — coals, smoke, that campfire smell — a wood-burning fire pit is the pick. But gas roasts marshmallows perfectly well: propane and natural gas burn clean, and the flame is ready the second the kids are. Gas also keeps the evening alive when dry spells shut down wood fires. Wood for the experience, gas for the convenience — both make s'mores.
The case for wood
Marshmallow roasting is really coal roasting — the patient turn over glowing embers, not open flame — and only wood gives you a bed of coals. Add the crackle, the smoke curling uphill, and the smell that says mountain evening, and wood remains the gold standard for the ritual itself. A wood-burning pit or outdoor wood fireplace on a proper non-combustible base, sited away from structures and overhanging trees, is heat and atmosphere you own outright — no fuel line, no grid, nothing but the stack of split oak you seasoned yourself.
The honest case for gas
Here's what surprises people: gas is genuinely good at this. Propane and natural gas burn clean — no soot on the food, no smoke chasing anyone around the circle — and the fire is ready the moment somebody says s'mores, then off the moment bedtime wins. There are no embers to babysit afterward, which matters on a dry October ridge. And when drought-season burn restrictions shut down wood fires across WNC counties, a gas appliance usually keeps the evening alive — check your county's current rules. One tip from experience: choose lava rock over fire glass for the media, because sugar drips vanish into lava and glare accusingly from glass.
Design details that outweigh the fuel question
Whichever fuel wins, roasting comfort comes from the build: a pit wide enough for four roasters to work without fencing with sticks, a broad flat rim or seat wall at lean-on height, and seating pulled close enough for short arms. For wood, think about prevailing breeze and the neighbors downwind; for gas, we run the buried, permitted, pressure-tested line — licensed work in North Carolina, and ours. Call (828) 545-0525 for a free design consultation, and we'll build the fire your family actually gathers around.
Related questions
- What's the best gas fire pit table for entertaining?
- What's the best fire media for a gas fire pit — fire glass or lava rock?
- What is the best firewood to burn in a fireplace?
- What's the best outdoor fireplace for cooking or pizza?
- What's the best fire pit for a covered or screened porch?
- What is the best gas fireplace brand?
Still deciding? Talk to a real installer.
Free assessments across Western North Carolina — no pressure, straight answers.