Toaster that can make toast

[John Coloccia]

Perceived problem: Bagels do not fit in toaster

Solution: Make toaster slot wider

New problem: Regular slices of bread lean to one side in the wider slot

Solution: Complicate toaster mechanism by adding a centering cage

New Problem: Toaster no longer hot enough to actually toast bread because of added width

Solution: Make toaster hotter

New Problem: Hotter toaster burns bagels (which fill the entire width)

Solution: Make toaster cooler

End result: Toaster moderately burns bagels and given enough time, somewhat toasts bread. Centering cage mechanism prone to failure. Toaster takes up more room on counter.

Problem solved: Bagels fit in toaster

[Roger Newby]

You're lucky to get bagels!! Here, in the midwest, we get bland bagel look-a-likes, plain, cinnamon/raisin or some other mess. I haven't had a real bagel since I visited in Kingston, NY. Get west of PA and it is bagel desolation!! At one time we had a toaster that had a bagel setting...only one side of the heat elements came on and you put the cut side towards it. Unfortunately it shot craps several years ago and I haven't found a replacement. I now use a cast iron skillet and do the Texas toast method, though it is a bit of a hassle.

[Charlie Reals]

Whooaaa Roger, I am at least 2000 miles west of Pa. and I can get excellent bagels 7 days a week. lol. I know what you mean though, and would bet you might have to go to Denver to have a chance of a good bagel. As to good toasters, forget it, one or the other, they wont do both.

[Dan Hintz]

Solution: Create toaster that moves heating elements in unison with centering cage.

End Result: Items toasted equally, regardless of thickness.

[John Coloccia]

Don't think I haven't considered dismantling my toaster to do just that. I seriously considered it last year when I picked up "mega toaster". I wish I could just find a regular, old fashioned toaster that, you know, made toast.

[Belinda Barfield]

My friend who moved south from Harford laments at least weekly that you can't get a decent bagel in Savannah. The closest real bagel is a little deli in Charleston. As for toast, I use a toaster oven or regular oven but that's because I prefer cheese toast or cinnamon toast and haven't yet figured out a way to keep the cheese attached to the toast in a regular toaster. I have been known to eat cinnamon marshmallow toast but those occasions are rare and seem to occur in the wee hours of the morning after watching some sappy movie where everyone lives happily ever after.

[Dan Hintz]

Belinda,

Lay the toaster on it's side... the cheese will only stick to one side, but it's better than none.

And cinjamon marshymallow toast? Me thinks you needs ta stay a week or two at Mike's place so I'ze can come visits. I'll deal with any fallout from his wife!

[Pat Germain]

I have an Oster which actually manages to do a good job on bagels and toast. I've been using it for years. My brother was so impressed by it when he was visiting, he bought a toaster just like mine when he got home. And it's really not expensive:

http://www.amazon.com/Oster-6382-Inspire-4-Slice-Toaster/dp/B0038N83XC/ref=sr_1_39?ie=UTF8&qid=1292599419&sr=8-39

My exact toaster is no longer available. This model is a little fancier than mine, but very similar. Note it's currently out of stock. Either a lot of guys are going to be in the doghouse for buying a woman a toaster for Christmas, or word got around that this thing actually works.

[Bryan Slimp]

Hey Roger - If you ever get up to Omaha check out the Bagel Bin just off of 119th and Pacific. The couple that started it moved from NY to Omaha. Hard to get more authentic than Bagels from NYC.

[Michael Weber]

The only real solution is to get a toaster to do toast and do your bagels under the broiler. Butter first (real butter), broil to preferred darkness, let cool a bit, eat

[Belinda Barfield]

Belinda,

And cinjamon marshymallow toast? Me thinks you needs ta stay a week or two at Mike's place so I'ze can come visits. I'll deal with any fallout from his wife!

LOL . . . I'll let you take that up with Mike. If he gives the okay, and you guys deal with the fallout from his wife (which I suspect will be rather severe), we'll talk about it.

[John Coloccia]

The only real solution is to get a toaster to do toast and do your bagels under the broiler. Butter first (real butter), broil to preferred darkness, let cool a bit, eat

Have you tried to buy a toaster lately? They're all built all messed up like this. They all have little buttons where none should exist. There should be a slot for toast, a handle to drop it, and a little knob to choose "Warm", "Charcoal" or anywhere in between. An elementary school student could do this for a science fair project and probably do better than the "Toastzilla" I have.

Mine is two sided (i.e. does four slices of toasts, a pair on each side). I got the two sided one because it only had two buttons. One says "Cancel", and I think the other one says "Frozen", or something like that. The rest of them looked like the instrument panel on an airplane. Mine has this feature where if you put the toast on the left side, only the left side goes down, but if you put it on the right side, BOTH sides go down. It drove my wife nuts. I had to explain to my wife, an otherwise smart women with a PhD and licenses to practice psychology in half a dozen states, how to use our toaster.

But it's a feature! It's a stupid feature. To pop the toast out prematurely, I can't just lift it. I have to hit "Cancel". Cancel, of coarse, cancels both sides, so I can't even pop out toast for my wife while letting mine go a little more. If the one I want first happens to be on the left side, I have to manually transfer the remaining toast from the right side to the left side. Why? Because if I just push it back down (the right side) both sides automatically go down. Normally this would be OK, but when the next guy wants toast, I can't just drop the toast in the left side because that side is down too and the toast alignment cage is in the way. If only the left side is down, I can drop his on the right side and push the right side down. Of course, there's only one timer so the left side will pop up sorta done (actually both sides), and then I have to transfer from right to left again to finish off the toast introduced mid-cycle.

I'd like to tell them, "I know there's empty slots but please just let the toaster finish it's cycle. You don't understand. You have no idea how much work you're causing me.", but I'd feel like an absolute idiot asking someone to wait for my toaster.

[Jason Roehl]

Hey, John, it sounds like it's a good thing that your wife has a license to practice psychology! ;)

[John Coloccia]

LOL. There was no avoiding that, was there? :)

[Les Heinen]

...And is further complicated by the fact that bagels are not sliced in the middle. There is a fat side and a skinny side which will toast at different rates. Why aren't bagels sliced right down the middle so each slice is the same thickness?

[Jim Koepke]

Our toaster tried to get the better of me, but I just do not let it.

I love the rant about the toaster by Hugh Jackman in Kate & Leopold.

My toaster reminds me of that scene every time toast is wanted.

One of the problems may be the desire of the manufacturers wanting to be "energy compliant." I think that has caused a lowering of the wattage of the heating elements to get the "energy compliant" rating.

So now to get good toast with these new toasters we have to juggle slices and go through the cycle twice.

Who said convenience was easier?

jtk

[Garrett Ellis]

Toaster ovens for the win.

[Jason Roehl]

LOL. There was no avoiding that, was there? :)

Nope. It was kind of like playing slow-pitch softball. :D

[Lee Schierer]

We have a Krups 4 slice toaster at work that does a good job on both bread and bagels.http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41ETPS41SJL._SL500_AA300_.jpg Not a cheap date though.

[Bryan Morgan]

Huh?

Step one: plug in toaster

Step two: Put in bread or bagels

Step three: push the bagel, toast, or (whatever the 3rd one is, I don't use it) button

Step four: set the knob to desired doneness

Step five: press lever

Step six: go do something else for a little while, ears open

Step seven: click heard, return to toaster

Step eight: retrieve food, careful not to burn yourself. Prepare profanity just in case

Step nine: apply butter, cream cheese, or whatever else

Step 10: eat toasted stuff

Step 11: ????

Step 12: ????

Step 13: Profit!

[Bryan Morgan]

Toaster ovens for the win.

Those are only for drying/hardening paint on small items. :)

[John Coloccia]

What's funny is I just tried to toast a hamburger bun in Toastzilla. I ended up with 3 sides that are a little warm, and one side that's scorched. LOL. It just can't be this hard.

[Caspar Hauser]

This thread needs a sound track,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfMmPpNhOVM

and if you think your toaster is irritating,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRq_SAuQDec

[Dan Hintz]

Reminds me of Heywood Banks' "Yeah Toast!"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_aHkrjPo7A

[Jason Roehl]

This one's better, it's an actual video of Heywood live. :D I first saw him live 20 years ago in HS when Bob&Tom did a live remote at Ball State. I may or may not have been in all my classes that day. ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BILAFuSi-i0&feature=related

[Mike Cutler]

Hey John

The Krups Model 57012, the two slice version of the one in Lee's post, will toast a bagel you'd be proud to serve in the Carnigie Deli, and do toast just as well.
Or you can visit Chef's Supply on Rte. 5 in Wallingford and get that $400.00 commercial model in the back of the store.

[Scott Shepherd]

John, you have now found the reason for my response to a previous thread that was about "What do they make today that's not better than it used to be?" (a thread aimed at suggesting most all things are better built now than they were then).

My reply was "Toasters". I stand by that.

[John Coloccia]

Hey John

The Krups Model 57012, the two slice version of the one in Lee's post, will toast a bagel you'd be proud to serve in the Carnigie Deli, and do toast just as well.
Or you can visit Chef's Supply on Rte. 5 in Wallingford and get that $400.00 commercial model in the back of the store.

I'm seriously considering the Krups.

Speaking of toast, anyone ever see "True West"?

[Don Alexander]

"energy compliant" now theres an interesting term thrown around by the infamous "they" said term meaning "it puts out less power thereby forcing you to run it 2-3 times or more toget the disired result sortof" which of course means that it is decidedly not energy EFFICIENT

go figure

[Brian Elfert]

There really isn't way to make current electric toasters more efficient since resistance heating is basically 100% efficient. It takes a certain number of BTUs to brown bread into toast. I suppose someone could invent a toaster with a heat pump, but it would take an hour to toast a slice of bread.

[Bryan Morgan]

Hey John

The Krups Model 57012, the two slice version of the one in Lee's post, will toast a bagel you'd be proud to serve in the Carnigie Deli, and do toast just as well.
Or you can visit Chef's Supply on Rte. 5 in Wallingford and get that $400.00 commercial model in the back of the store.

Wow thats expensive for toast and bagels! Ours does both (and a third thing but I never press that button so I don't know what it does) and was like 50 bucks. Its a Black and Decker. No issues with bread or bagels...

[Michael Weber]

Bagels....Broiler..... Won't say it again!;)

[John Coloccia]

The problem is that I can find a toaster that only does toast anymore. They all do bagels, they all have the toast alignment cage, and they all stink with the possible exception of that Krups that I'm going to check out.

[Don Alexander]

can't find a cellphone that just does phone calls and voicemail anymore either :(:(

[Jim Koepke]

can't find a cellphone that just does phone calls and voicemail anymore either

My cell phone burnt my leg when I put it back in my pocket too soon after making toast.

jtk

[Don Alexander]

:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:
:D:D:D:D:D:D

good one Jim hehe

[Gary Lange]

Living down here in Nixa, Mo. all I can get is Sara Lee Bagels. Used to love stopping at Duncan Donuts and getting a Toasted Bagel with Cream cheese and coffee while I patroled our trailer lots. Stopped at Panera Bread and ordered one and they gave me the cheese in a small container. I wanted to eat it while I drove home not fix it myself in the parking lot.

[Bryan Morgan]

can't find a cellphone that just does phone calls and voicemail anymore either :(:(


Have you looked at the Jitterbug? :)

[John Coloccia]

Update:

Last night, out of the blue, we were talking about Christmas and my wife said, "I almost bought you a $400 toaster for Christmas." I chuckled and showed her this thread. Afterwards, she agreed that it was an excellent move marrying a psychologist.