The toastie has long been associated in British culture as an indulgent comfort food.
The British favourite typically contains just cheese, but toasties can have a variety of other fillings.
Now many chefs have elevated the cheese toastie with their own gastronomic twists on the sandwich, with a ‘posh toastie’ now offered by many pubs and bars on their snack and lunchtime menus.
Deeney’s, spread over three locations in London, has a Scottish inspired toastie, the Macbeth – hot haggis, cheese, mustard, caramelised onions and rocket on granary bread.
Cinnamon Soho in Soho, London, offers a Tandoori chicken and chilli toastie with a mustard mayonnaise (£5.70) on its express lunch menu.
Mishkins lunch time menu in Covent Garden, London includes its Reuben on Rye toastie – pastrami, sauerkraut, swiss cheese and thousand island dressing (£6/£11).
The Dairyman’s Daughter, on the Isle of Wight, currently offers a pan-fried garlic mushroom toastie (£7.15) and a tomato, bacon and chorizo toastie (£7.15).
At The Canton Arms in Stockwell, London, a range of toastie fillings including foie gras or Montgomery cheddar with fruity chutneys are on offer.
Trish Hilferty, bar manager said: “I’d never seen anything like it before; I thought anything you can put in a pie, you can put in a toastie.”