Looks As Good As It Cooks: Primus Alika Camp Stove Review

Growing up in a mountaineering family, I remember only using Primus stoves. Primus has been a mainstay in expeditions since the company invented the first pressurized-burner kerosene stove in 1892. Cooking on one is to join the ranks of explorers whose Primus-made meals fueled them to achieve firsts, including reaching the South Pole and the summit of Everest.

My family’s original Primus was a single-burner backpacking model that had to be pumped up to create fuel pressure. It was such a beloved member of our camping family that when I was a teenager, my friend and I even wrote a song about it. But in my adult years, I strayed from the brand, mostly buying cheaper stoves that I regarded as little more than utilitarian tools. 

No more. Since testing the Primus Alika Camp Stove, I’m solidly back in the Primus fold. This marvel of engineering is my new everyday camp stove, and its fine simmer control has even expanded the range of meals I bring car camping. Here’s what we’ve learned about it so far, after 8 months of field tests.

In short: Low-simmering capabilities are enough reason to buy the Primus Alika Camping Stove ($330), but it offers so much more. From a compact design to an array of well-thought-out and novel features, including a removable lid and flexible fuel hose, it’s a must-have for those who like to invest in top-quality car camping gear.

To see where the Primus Alika Camp Stove stacks up in the larger camp stove market, check out GearJunkie’s Best Camping Stoves guide.

Primus Alika Camping Stove: Review

First Impressions: What a Looker

When we first saw the Primus Alika, we were drawn in by its charming aesthetic: a matte black powder-coated finish, rustic oak lathes across the top, and various brass accents. It’s rare for a camp stove to go out of its way to look sleek. 

However, our initial admiration was followed by some expletives over the price tag. “Yikes!” Why would anyone shell out nearly three bills for something that’s sure to be relegated to a lifetime of pasta sauce splatters and rattling around in the back of the car? We soon found the answer: because it is a joy to use. 

First, it travels well. It has a slightly smaller footprint and lower profile than most two-burner stoves, a comfy webbing carry handle, and a regulator that stows neatly underneath, held in place by a spring-action lock. That, combined with two exterior locks, means this stove doesn’t rattle obnoxiously while you’re rolling down the road. 

After a long day of doing just that, we unpacked it at an isolated outpost in Dinosaur National Monument and started cooking. 

Evolved Features

Setting it up, we quickly noticed a few of the Primus Alika’s stand-out features. Instead of the standard metal bar/regulator setup, this stove has a long, flexible hose. That means you have options on where to place the propane canister, so it’s not teetering at the edge of the table, or taking up space between the stove and prep area. It also includes a butane adaptor kit, so you can be flexible with fuel choices. 

Another bonus — at least for non-windy days — is a removable lid, which makes it possible to use larger pots and pans, plus center them better on the burners. This feature is especially helpful for using our large cast-iron skillet, which is one of our favorite pans.

It also enables cooking from all sides, so you don’t have to walk around to the front of the stove if you just want to give something a quick stir. Plus, those fancy oak lathes on the lid also function as a hot plate.

Exceptional Simmer

For the first trial, we chose a dinner that would be a particularly good test for burner quality: fettuccine alfredo. That might not sound like an overly fancy concoction, but to cook it properly, a camp stove needs to have enough oomph to boil water quickly at elevation and simmer a cream sauce without burning it or causing it to shoot splotches over the sides of the pan. 

The Alika passed the alfredo test with flying colors, and here’s why: The stove has stout grates, which help even out the heat. That’s important since most camping pots are thin-walled. The Alika also has two burner sizes: 12,200 BTUs and 13,300 BTUs. Some camp stoves come with a bit higher output, but these were ample for us, as we didn’t notice any lag in boil times. 

Not only does the Alika cook camping staples well, but using it has expanded our menu into rice and other grains, which we had previously avoided before having a stove with such a low simmer. We’ve also had success keeping delicate Béarnaise sauces warm, and even a makeshift brownie bake. 

Quality Design

It’s clear that the engineers who designed the Primus Alika camp stove actually go camping. The Primus website even says that one of the visions behind the removable lid was to create a “360˚ gathering spot, and a place to connect over drinks and a steaming plate of food.”

Fortunately, the brand also envisioned the aftermath of that and included a removable drip tray and enameled steel pot supports to make it easy to clean. 

Primus stoves have always been built in Europe, originally in Sweden, with today’s factory in Estonia. Of course, that’s not to say that other parts of the world don’t make quality products, but the Primus Alika feels infused with that old adventuring spirit, where functionality was more important than cost and tools were expected to be durable enough to last for a lifetime.

One Notch From Perfection

The only part of the stove that we felt strayed in quality was the windscreen. While it accomplishes its task decently well, it could benefit from smaller gaps on the bottom and slightly larger wings. Also, the metal hooks that hold the wings in place are oddly chintzy compared with the rest of the stove. 

Finally, we found the igniters to be rather unreliable, but that could have just been a glitch with our particular stove, since the high-end piezo ignition systems do have a reputation for quality. At any rate, it was nothing a box of matches couldn’t remedy.

Primus Alika Camp Stove: Conclusion

The Primus Alika Camping Stove has it all: a streamlined, lightweight design, sturdy grate, flexible fuel hose, spring-locked regulator storage, removable lid, two different-sized burners, high BTU output, low simmer capabilities, and removable drip tray.

Sure, $330 is certainly a pretty penny to shell out, and while it’s not quite the upper end of camp stoves today, it is near the top. For those who are looking for a similarly sleek camp stove (but maybe don’t have the room or want to spend as much as the Alika), the Primus Kinjia is equally good-looking. The stove’s 19″ by 12″ footprint takes up less space on picnic tables and in the back of your trail rig. And, it can be had for $100 less.

Coupled with Primus’ 133-year reputation as a trusted brand in the most remote and harshest locations on the planet, this is a tool that should last you a lifetime. As long as you don’t mind spending a little extra, consider Alika your new bestie for car camping, picnics, tailgating, and wherever else your stomach might lure you.