In need of new TOASTER

[funnybone]

It seems I go through toasters every 3 years. I know what features I want (4 slice, and wide slots for bagels). The last one I had, Kenmore, was great, but now the inner 2 slots do not toast, thus only one side of the bread is done.

Who has had luck with toasters, and what brand? I know it depends on your usage, so with 2 boys, it does get used almost daily. I love Kitchen Aid, but really don't want to spend the $100 or so if not necessary. Any info is helpful.

[This message has been edited by funnybone (edited 03-28-2001).]

[Gail]

While I'm a toaster oven person myself, I just thought I'd ask... as long as you know you like the KitchenAid, do you by chance have a discount store such as Costco which might sell it for considerably less? I ask because it seems to me several years back I got either a KitchenAid or Cuisinart (I forget which) from Costco at a wonderful rate; what I found elsewhere for $80 was about half price there.

[aka]

I have had my heart set on a dualit for some time but just can't bring myself to pay that price.

Along with the opinions/reviews you get here, you may want to check out this site: http://epinions.com/hmgd-Small_Appliances-All-Toasters

I go to "epinions" whenever I want to check out something I'm interested in buying (such as toasters, but also my camera and other appliances). It's real people just posting their opinions on different products (pros and cons).

Lilia

[Beth]

Mine is a Sunbeam that has the same overall size and shape as the Kitchenaid. It has two long, wide slots which will fit thick slices like bagels as well as extra long pieces (like slices of a round loaf). I bought it at Costco for less than $30. The crumb tray is easy to clean and it works well. The only thing I'd change is that control lever slides very easily and can get bumped to a different setting, so you have to check each time you use it. This could be less of an issue depending on where you have your toaster (mine is on the counter with that end turned out toward the edge of the counter). Well, that and it doesn't come in cobalt blue.

[jliah]

Our family went through tons of toasters until we switched gears and bought a toaster oven. I'm so glad we did that! It doesn't take that much more space on the counter and has been reliable for years now. It's a Black and Decker. It's nice for reheating small things, too, like a slice of pizza. You don't have to heat up the whole oven that way for one little item.

[funnybone]

Thanks for your opinions.

Gail - I do go to Costco, and plan on going in a couple of days. Our toaster JUST started this "one side" thing, so I have not looked around yet.

Beth - your toaster sounds like the one I had, just different brand. I love the long slots.

aka - thanks for the website - I will visit it for sure.

jliah - I have lots of counter space, so that isn't a problem, but with the toaster oven, how do you know when the toast is ready without watching it all the time? I like for it to pop up and remind me. For other things, I had considered one in the past, but just never pursued buying one. I have double wall ovens, so I really never need the extra oven.

Thanks again.

[Gail]

Originally posted by funnybone:
...jliah - I have lots of counter space, so that isn't a problem, but with the toaster oven, how do you know when the toast is ready without watching it all the time? I like for it to pop up and remind me. For other things, I had considered one in the past, but just never pursued buying one. I have double wall ovens, so I really never need the extra oven.

Thanks again.

As long as I'm here, and happen to know the answer, excuse me for answering someone else's question. Insofar as knowing when the toast is done in a toaster oven, like a conventional oven, there are darkness controls, and instead of the toast popping up, the toaster shuts off. Now, I happen to like my toast cremated, which requires running it through more than once, but I suspect with most people, using the settings as designed works just fine. Jliah??

PS (I've got double ovens, too-- yet I find there are certain things I prefer using the toaster oven for: heating rolls, baked potatoes, small leftovers. It's nice because it takes no preheating time and doesn't get the house all hot in summer.)

[This message has been edited by Gail (edited 03-29-2001).]

[SandyM]

When our B&D toaster dies, I won't replace it, because we can toast just fine in our toaster oven. It took my DH a while to warm up to the idea of toasting things in the toaster oven "Don'tcha need a toaster to make toast????" Ya gotta love 'em.

Anyway, our toaster oven has darkness controls, just like a regular toaster.

[Luiza]

Originally posted by funnybone:
jliah - I have lots of counter space, so that isn't a problem, but with the toaster oven, how do you know when the toast is ready without watching it all the time? I like for it to pop up and remind me.

I'm not jliah, but I can answer this question http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif My toaster oven has a separate knob for toasting that you can turn to the desired "colour". When the toast is done, the oven beeps and turns off. It works very well. I especially like the way frozen bagels or baguette come out -- crispy on the outside, soft on the inside. But I use the oven "warm" setting for those, in which case you have to check the bagels occasionally. However, now I have a feel for it, so I just stick the bagel in and when I go back to take it out, it's done just right.

Luiza

[funnybone]

Originally posted by Luiza:
My toaster oven has a separate knob for toasting that you can turn to the desired "colour".



I knew by how you spelled colo(u)r that you were Canadaian. I'm a Canadian living in the US and have had to drop all the "u's" from many words (neighbo(u)r, favo(u)rite) for the sake of the kids. If they spell with a 'u', they are incorrectly spelling the word. LOL. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

Thanks for your input everyone. Maybe I will look into a toaster oven - it may be more durable in the end. When I was a kid, I used to butter my toast and stick it back in the toaster a little longer - loved the texture that way. My mom couldn't figure out why the toasters were always on the fritz. I never confessed until years later. I don't do that now, so it isn't the reason mine are lasting 3 years. LOL.

[This message has been edited by funnybone (edited 03-29-2001).]

[clr]

Delonghi makes a ToastOR. It stands up as a toaster and lies down as a toaster oven. It's always intrigued me. I haven't heard anything about it. I know they have it at www.chefscatalog.com (http://www.chefscatalog.com) if you're interested.

[Longhorn]

This is too funny, funnybone! I have an extra toaster in the trunk of my car! It was a wedding gift that we weren't able to return or give away. It only has two slots or I'd mail it to you just to get rid of the darn thing! They are "bagel-smart" slots if you're interested...

[Luiza]

Originally posted by funnybone:

I knew by how you spelled colo(u)r that you were Canadaian. I'm a Canadian living in the US and have had to drop all the "u's" from many words (neighbo(u)r, favo(u)rite) for the sake of the kids. If they spell with a 'u', they are incorrectly spelling the word. LOL. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif


Heh heh. It really stands out, doesn't it? Some spell checkers I encounter are set to American english, and it can get rather tiresome to keep telling them to "skip". http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

About the toaster oven: if you get one, you can indeed toast buttered bread! You can also melt cheese on top of bread with no trouble at all!! You can grill sausages or fish or roast garlic without having to wait for your oven to preheat!!!
[End of commercial] http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

Luiza

[WeekendCook]

You can add me to the list of toaster oven fans! I don't think I have had a "real" toaster in over twenty years. Toaster ovens are so much more versatile.

[funnybone]

Originally posted by Longhorn:
This is too funny, funnybone! I have an extra toaster in the trunk of my car! It was a wedding gift that we weren't able to return or give away. It only has two slots or I'd mail it to you just to get rid of the darn thing! They are "bagel-smart" slots if you're interested...


Thanks for the offer Longhorn, but I would keep the extra toaster if I were you. I have been married for almost 15 years and have probably gone through 5 toasters. You will need it one day. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[KValley]

Well, shoot. We just replaced our toaster a month ago with a Cuisinart, bought at CostCo, about $40. Quite happy with it- long slots for multiple pieces, bagel width, slide out crumb tray. But after reading your posts I wished I'd looked at a toaster oven- I've never even considered one.

The only thing I miss about the old toaster is that the dog would run over to get a drink of water every time toast popped up. And that it was a great shade of blue (the toaster, not the toast).

[jliah]

With my toaster oven, it has a little "switch" that you push down just like a regular toaster and also has a setting for how dark you like your toast to be. It pops up when it's done and stops toasting just like a regular toaster would. It works well for light or dark toast. So it's like having a toaster combined with a small oven.

[makedah]

I have a raggedy old toaster that I've had for about 6 years, I think. It cost me $10. But I'm not recommending it to anyone!!! Anyway, I'm glad I read this thread. I'll definitely be replacing it with a toaster oven when my ship comes in. We don't have A/C here, so I could really use that baby in the summertime.

[Adriana]

I've had toaster ovens for years and I don't think they make toast quite as golden as a toaster does.

I find both of these appliances tend to be disposable - I'm in the market for a new one of each.

[SusanT]

I can't bring myself to pay the price of the Dualit either, so we've decided to just replace the toaster when it goes on the fritz.

I bought a Hamilton Beach Intelletoast (yes, finally an intelligent toaster!) and we've been pretty happy with it. It has a setting for bagel or bread and toasts really evenly. It was $19 at my local department store.

[Chefmom]

Oh, Oh, I have had a Black & Decker (base model) toaster oven since college (some 16 years ago) and it finally crapped out on me.

Right before it gave out I was looking for another one anyway (foreshadowing!), and now there are different B&D to choose from. I was shopping at K-Mart and B&D has a Cadillac model that is priced FAR above the others. Well, I put it on layaway, and wouldn't you know it. The week my old one crapped out on me was the week that I picked up the new one.

But, I LOVE THIS ONE SO MUCH BETTER!!!!!!! It's a mini oven and it toasts evenly on BOTH sides, though the one side (bottom) has stripes from the grates it sits on. I do TONS of things in it. Bagel sandwiches, french bread pizza, bagel pizzas, heat up chicken patties for the kids, heat up fish filets for my husband and I, small batches of things that you normally do in the oven. I heat up frozen goodies like muffins, frozen bread gets a PERFECT crisp crust and a soft warm crumb inside.

I also finish in it. When I am making waffles, I heat it to warm, about 200-degrees and since my waffle maker only makes one at a time the oven keeps them warm. I also finish any sauted meat, like chicken in the little oven.

I have always just heated up the whole oven for these things, but when the oil prices started soaring, you would NOT believe how high the propane for my stove/oven became. So using the little oven for little things is just PERFECT! You can also order mini muffin pans and a mini cake pan to fit the oven. I have a mini air bake sheet pan and a mini baking sheet for it and they come in handy.

It takes up the same space as my old model, but it is taller, it heats up MUCH faster, it holds the temperature as good as my full sized oven.

Now, it is a lot more expensive, instead of the $30 for the cheap model, I paid $100 for this one BUT it does now cost $80. Go figure, as soon as I bought one the price came down. Also, I have seen it for the $80 price in Bed, Bath & Beyond.

I will NEVER go back to a regular toaster after having this model oven. It is used MUCH more than my microwave oven.

Tami

Oh, also the bottom slides out the front for cleaning. My old one had to be turned over and you had to drop the bottom out to clean it. Nevertheless it didn't get cleaned very often. I'm able to clean this one weekly and it doesn't smoke like the other one did. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[Luiza]

I actually do own a 4-slice space-age Philips toaster with wide slots and a special bagel setting to get the bagels evenly cooked. You can even put frozen bagels in it, although I haven't tried that yet. We got this as a present and we're not using it very much because we didn't like the results of the bagel setting. But I just realized last night that obviously the toaster hasn't been field tested with Montreal-style bagels! (Montreal bagels are more like a dense bread with a crispy crust.) The toaster does do a good job on the occasional New York-style bagel that lands in our house, so it's something to consider.

But I would still go for toaster oven. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

Luiza

[This message has been edited by Luiza (edited 03-30-2001).]

[funnybone]

Thanks to all who convinced me to buy a toaster oven instead of a toaster. I bought the Toastmaster toaster oven/broiler with the removable (and dishwasher safe) liner. That was the selling feature for me. I also had a 20% off coupon at "Linens 'n Things" so the price was about $55, pre tax - almost half the price of the Kitchen Aid 2 slice toaster.

So far it is working well. Thanks again for your input.

[Gail]

Tee hee!

Glad you're happy with your purchase. It's a little funny to me that you ended up buying the toaster oven rather than the conventional toaster, though I'm sure you'll be happy with it as the rest of us are. Considering all of us here have such different ideas as to what is and is not an essential in the kitchen, I was reluctant to push a product you at first seemed inclined not to want.

Welcome to the toaster oven club! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif