Toasteria in Thiruvananthapuram serves global flavours on the humble toast

The Hindu

a day ago

Right outside the Mahatma Gandhi College campus at Kesavadasapuram, Thiruvananthapuram, a convoy of street food kiosks come alive after sunset. Neon signboards on commercial buildings light up one side of the road, while, on the other side, a row of stalls located on the footpath — selling desserts, chaats and other treats — brighten up the lane. Each one has a mixed crowd of regulars and rookies, wondering whether to stay or switch to the next stall. And amidst this food fleet is a small plain yellow booth serving sandwiches, Toasteria, run by the husband-wife duo, Muhammed Shafy and Reshma Shafy.
The couple showcases their renditions of flavours across the globe, sandwiched between slices of toasted bread. Tastes from Turkey, Japan, America and India find a place on the affordable menu with dishes starting from ₹70. 'We often try new sandwiches at home. So when we thought of starting a business, we immediately thought of flavours on a toast. It is also a quick and convenient way to present savoury flavours,' says Shafy, who picked up these dishes through travel and social media.
Tamago sando, a Japanese egg sandwich made with mashed boiled eggs, is one of the hot sellers at the eatery. The open sandwich has the mashed egg mixture seasoned with parsley and a few other condiments to suit the desi palate. The flavoured filling is spread on butter-toasted brown bread like all other sandwiches at the stall, say the owners. The Turkish delight sandwich features poached eggs in the filling, accompanied by a special dip. The creamy toasty is seasoned with dry garlic powder, parsley and chilli flakes. Bell peppers and onions are also added generously to the dish.
'However, my favourite is the Bombay sandwich,' says Reshma, a former homemaker, while assembling the sandwich step by step—spreading mint chutney on the bread, adding chopped carrots, red cabbage, onion, and cucumbers, placing a cheese slice, brushing butter on the bread and finally toasting the sandwich on the manual gas toaster.
The menu also includes two chicken sandwiches — chicken kheema toast and chicken burger toast, made with an in-house patty. 'We were not planning on having meat sandwiches, but people kept asking us if we plan on adding such options,' says Shafy.
'We also have a choco power B-nut sandwich, an open sandwich with banana and a choco-peanut butter spread, topped with crushed peanuts. Some people think it is a dessert, but it is a meal on its own,' adds Shafy. The menu features a dessert option with Nutella lava toast.
Customers are mostly people looking to grab a quick light meal, especially people working late evening shifts, say the owners.
One of their customers, Asha Cherian, a school teacher, says, 'Their food is something new, flavourful and healthy. Even my eight-year-old daughter, who is a picky eater, used to enjoy going there to have a chocopower B-nut sandwich in the evening.'
A refreshing grape 'wine' juice, fermented for a day, is also available at the kiosk to go along with the sandwiches.
The owners believe the stall is evolving and is still in its nascent stage, with new dishes soon to be added to the menu. 'We are also going to bring a Korean sandwich variety, which would have an omelette wrapping the bread and the rest of the sandwich filling. We are also planning on serving our play on a panini sandwich with Italian flavours,' says Reshma.
Toasteria, near MG College, Kesavadasapuram, is open from 7pm to 11pm on all days