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In a world of multicookers, the single-use toaster has fallen out of fashion. The best toaster ovens are more versatile, but anyone who's used a classic slot toaster to crisp up a Pop-Tart or get a golden-brown slice of toast knows the best toasters do their specific job better than any alternative.
For maximum efficiency and flexibility, the best long-slot toasters are designed to accommodate two slices of standard or unusually shaped bread in a single slot. We found one long-slot toaster represented the best value and the best toasting performance: the Breville "A Bit More" Toaster. It solves every common toaster problem, all while accommodating any bread product you can think of.
If you're toasting for a crowd, consider the best 4-slice toasters for more high-volume alternatives.
The Breville “A Bit More” Long Slot Toaster is a modern and thoughtfully designed, high-performance appliance with easy cleanup and user-friendly controls.
- Even toasting
- Attractive design that's easy to clean
- High-lift lever to protect finger tips
- Intuitive controls
- Toasts slowly
Design
The "A Bit More" Toaster has a sleek, stainless steel facade that suits modern and streamlined kitchens. If you're concerned about the prospect of grimy fingerprints or ugly scratches, you'll be glad to know that Breville uses brushed stainless steel that's resistant to stains or scrapes.
Two long slots run parallel along the top of the toaster, and their width makes it easy to insert bread, bagels, English muffins, frozen waffles, and more. The overall design of the "A Bit More" Toaster is polished with user-friendly controls to take the guesswork out of anything toaster-related.
Toasting
During testing, this toaster stood out because of its consistent browning. It manages to toast bread (and bagels and frozen slices) with thorough evenness. When my toast cycles ended, I found that every slice, regardless of its starting temperature or its thickness, emerged with even brownness on each side. The toaster also has a temperature slider ranging from one (lightest) to five (darkest).
In terms of speed, the Breville is slightly above average. A standard room-temperature slice of bread toasted to medium level (3 on the temperature slider) in two minutes and 10 seconds; a bagel reached that same toast level in an identical amount of time. Frozen bread took longer compared to other toasters we tested, but I achieved medium brownness in just over three minutes.
Features
While many toasters have buttons labeled with confusing symbols, Breville keeps things straightforward. Each button is marked with a word: "Bagel," "Frozen," "Cancel," and "A Bit More." The latter, which gives the toaster its name, tacks on just enough time post-toast to bring the bread to the next level of brownness, so you don't need to worry about burning.
The toaster operates with an upgraded push lever. The "Lift and Look" option nudges the lever slightly so that the bread pokes out of the slots, giving you a preview of the toasting progress. There's also a "High Lift" mode, which lets you manually push the lever even higher after it pops up at the end of the toasting process. Anyone who's ever burned their fingers trying to fish a low-sitting toaster pastry out of a searing-hot slot will appreciate this bonus feature.
Cons to consider
If you're in the market for a top-quality slot toaster, it's hard to find any criticisms of the Breville "A Bit More" Toaster. We will note that in our long-slot toaster testing, several models were faster compared to the Breville. For example, our favorite splurge-worthy toaster, the Zwilling Enfinigy 2 Slot Toaster, produced golden-brown toast from frozen bread in two and a half minutes: over 30 seconds faster than the Breville.
What are your alternatives?
While the Breville "A Bit More" Toaster was our top-rated long-slot toaster, we identified several other models as worthy options for toaster shoppers to consider:
- Best value: DASH ClearView Long Slice Toaster
Don't let the budget-friendly price fool you: the Dash ClearView is easy to operate and even faster at toasting frozen bread than the top-rated Breville. We love the front window that lets you monitor your toasting progress.
- Best compact: KitchenAid 2 Slice Long Slot Toaster
This KitchenAid model is as sleekly designed as the "A Bit More" toaster. This lean and mean toaster features a high-lift lever similar to the one on the Breville model, and this toaster proves especially effective at toasting thicker bread products like bagels.
The bottom line
Between its remarkably even toasting abilities, modern design, and helpful special features, the Breville "A Bit More" Toaster represents the absolute best of the slot toaster field. It may not be the speediest available, but we fully endorse it considering its reasonable price and its excellent performance.
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