Question for Americans - what is the PROPER toaster ? :)

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

So we have this budget toasters in our apartments, I have one at my home, my daughter has it, my mother has it and we have the same one in our holiday home. We use it all the time for sandwiches and for toasting the bread  🙂

Our American guests said we should get a PROPER toaster !

I would like to know what the hell is it? Is it something like Mercedes among toasters? Does it bake the bread, make sandwitches and bring them to you in the bed? Does it babysit too ...?  :)))

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

interesting thing @Barry-and-Lera0 ... pop up toasters were popular here some 40 y. ago... but now is commonly used this sandwich toaster ... and nobody knows who is George Foreman 😄 .... but I googled

[Robin4]

@Branka-and-Silvia0

Let me tell you an intersting bit of info about George Foreman Branka.

He has 5 sons, and he called them all....... George! no kidding.

He said it was one of his smartest moves, when he wanted something done all he had to do was shout out ...GEORGE.....and there was never a shortage of who would come running!

On that same vane, my mother Madge was from a bygone era, she had heard of, but never knew who George Foreman was.....she used to call her grill her George Formby!!  no kidding!

Cheers......Rob

[Lawrene0]

@Branka-and-Silvia0, here is the toaster I supply for my guests. First they must build a fire, then they must stab the bread and hold it over the coals. Tell your guests they don't know how lucky they are.

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

hahahahaha @Lawrene0  😄 😄 yes, that's it.... back to the roots.... stay at home you spoiled whiners!  😄

[Ange2]

@Lawrene  @Branka-and-Silvia0  

Ha! I have one of those, but in wood, so guests who feel the need to stab their bread while it's in the toaster don't get electrocuted !  I added it after someone tried it with a metal fork

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[Emilia42]

Toaster = 

Panini Press = 

[Beth80]

@Branka-and-Silvia0. I have a microwave and the grill in the guest kitchen. I had a toaster oven until it got left on too long and burnt everything to charcoal. I guess it was too complicated to use. 😕

[Marit-Anne0]

@Branka-and-Silvia0

Some upright (proper) toasters come with a little drawer for the crumbs, just vacuum them and you are good to go.  Just make sure the toaster is metal or they will end up like mine (all toasted and plastic melted) after this season (it has lasted some 13  years so I am not complaining really 🙂 

[Robin4]

@Branka-and-Silvia0

Branka, the rest of the world is right, what you have is called a snack/sandwich maker everywhere else...we have one here and if I can give to a little tip, before trying to heat anything in there put a sheet of alfoil under and over what you are heating and the appliance always stays in immaculate clean condition. No need for washing or even wiping,  just bin the alfoil and put the snack maker away!

When it comes to toasters (I don't but)  I would prefer to put one like this in the cottage........

The problem with todays toasters, there is too many gadgets on them for timing, thickness and all that stuff. Guests blame the gadget when they knock on the door wanting more bread because  it didn't turn out just right saying....... it was too complicated.

With my idea they have no one to blame but themselves if they burnt the toast!!!   K I S S!

Cheers.....Rob

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Robin4good tip -alu foil, never thought about it 🙂

This type of toaster my parents had in 60-es, I didn't see anything like it for decades 🙂

I realized on the very beginning of my hosting that everything has to be as simple as possible. We host people from all over the world and too many of them can't handle the simplest things the right way.

I bought this grill-toaster because I have the same one at home, it is very simple to use and to clean and you can toast one slice of bread or the entire sandwich.  In 2,5 y of hosting and 500 groups of guests, nobody asked for PROPER toaster until now so I don't intend to change it anytime soon. Even if I would replace it with a proper toaster I bet someone would say we should have a grill toaster  🙂

Did I say they were middle-aged guests? Oh, I would like if I could set max age requirement, my generation is such a pain .... 🙂

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[Lisa723]

THIS is a PROPER toaster:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5ukQr_0VaE

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Lisa723

o yes, this is a good toaster but.... here it costs 160€, which is 1/3 of a monthly salary of a waitress. ( In USA it's cheaper, 130€ )

As I have to replace a toaster-grill every year because some guest washed it under the tap water or scratched it with a knife, no way I would buy it for my ABB (or for me) It is just too expensive.

I know some of my guests probably have expensive appliances at home but expecting to have the same in a short term rental, where 100 groups of guests change every year is just unrealistic.

[Lisa723]

@Branka-and-Silvia0 sure, just answering your question. We actually have this one in our vacation rental house and guests love it; it has even been mentioned once or twice in our reviews. Nobody has ever put water, butter, or jam in it. On the other hand, we rent primarily to americans, who know how to handle a PROPER toaster. 😉

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@Lisa723I know 🙂 Actually I mentioned our discussion to my friend over our morning dog-walking/coffee-ritual and she immediately started talking about Smeg toaster 🙂 She said she would like to have it... if she would eat toast ... 🙂 

[Sarah977]

I can buy a brand new, simple toaster in Canada or Mexico for about $25US. i can't imagine why they'd be so expensive where you live- I know there's new-age ones with bells and whistles, but a simple pop-up toaster is cheap. And mine, that I think I paid about $20 for, still works perfectly after 11 years.