How Dualit set the standards for perfectly toasted bread

Dualit – the iconic kitchen toaster – got its start thanks to some two-ton, army surplus Bliss Power Presses. Max Gort-Barten, fresh out of the British army, bought them after the end of the Second World War, along with a factory in Camberwell, London. Tinkering away, Gort-Barten invented the Dual-Light electric fire that could heat two parts of the room at the same time (which is where the Dualit name comes from), a machine that could top and tail onions, and a cocktail shaker that whipped up custards and puddings.

But it was the Dualit patented flip-sided toaster, launched in 1946, that made the Dualit name. Today, Dualit is synonymous with toast and for commercial and home users it sets the standard for perfectly-toasted bread. Over 70 years later, the firm is still family owned, with Gort-Barten’s son and grandson at the helm still tinkering and testing to ensure that each slice of toast is as good as the last.

What makes the perfect slice of toast? It has to be crunchy on the outside while soft on the inside, a surprisingly tricky thing to get right. Gort-Barten pitched the Dualit toaster to the commercial market, where it found its way into restaurant kitchens and even aboard the QE2. But like many of the best kitchen appliances, the very qualities that make it such a boon in professional kitchens – simplicity, reliability, consistent results – made it the choice for home cooks too.

Today, the toasters are made in Crawley, West Sussex, where more than 2,000 classic toasters are made every week and sold in 54 countries. On the outside they look deceptively simple, with a streamlined, elegant silhouette that looks smart sitting on the countertop. But inside there are 141 different components for the two slice and 168 for the four slice. The Gort-Barten’s credit their patented Proheat® Elements as a key difference to other toasters. They have a protective layer of mica that covers the filaments. This, they say, makes them virtually indestructible and easy to clean.

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For us in the kitchen it means toast that tastes superb and an appliance that won’t pack in after a busy weekend with house guests. In fact, it’s not unusual for Dualit toasters to be handed down for two to three generations along with the family silver – but infinitely more practical and welcome, I’d guess. It helps that the basic style and functioning has remained relatively unchanged, and also that the Gort-Barten family and their team fiendishly check each toaster three times before they bid it goodbye from the factory floor.

Other pluses include extra-wide slots that can be used with their sandwich cages and timers that allow you to toast your bread to your heart’s desire – whether that’s pale and barely kissed by the heat, or dark and crusty. Choosing a Dualit does mean facing a gauntlet of choices. There is the original toaster with up to 6 slot, or a combi if you fancy toasting sandwiches. The bun toaster has extra wide slots for buns, bagels and teacakes and cleverly toasts one side and warms the other. Or there is a sandwich toaster with 2-4 slots. That’s before you even look at their Architect or Lite range…

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Of course, Dualit is more than toasters and you can easily kit out your kitchen from top to bottom with Dualit branded appliances. Today you’ll find Dualit juicers and blenders, hand mixers, food processors, kettles, coffee makers, mini ovens and even a corkscrew set. I’ve not test driven many of these but I can’t imagine the Gort-Barten family allowing anything to slip out of the factory that couldn’t pull its weight in the kitchen. Classic toasters start at £173.95 for the two slot toaster – not bad when you think you’ll be handing it down to your children.

And for me, it’s the Classic toaster that is Dualit. Sitting on the countertop, it says that mornings are sorted and that all is well in the world – at least for as long as it takes to make a piece of toast and gobble it down.