By Wilred Pilo
KUCHING, Oct 23: A 47-year-old entrepreneur, Rain Ting, owner of Toast Bar, has always been a fan of a good, hearty breakfast.
Having grown up enjoying simple Western-style morning meals: fried eggs, bacon, ham sausages, baked beans and toast—all paired with a cup of coffee, she developed a lifelong fondness for them.
Four years ago, following the Covid-19 pandemic, Ting decided to turn that passion into a business by opening her own American-style breakfast stall.
Although she had previously managed a café with her brothers for several years before the pandemic, she said it still took some convincing to venture into the Western breakfast niche.
To better understand her potential customers, Ting even serves as a waitress at the very café she now operates, conducting her own basic research and demographic study on local breakfast habits and preferences.
“I wanted to learn more about customer behaviour and worked at the café to gain confidence.
“The goal was to observe local customers’ breakfast consumption patterns personally,” she told DayakDaily.
According to Ting, offering Western-style breakfasts is relatively easy, requiring minimal operation.
“Everything is ready, and all you need is a frying pan and a toaster. The rest of the ingredients are more or less readily available and ready to use.
“Four years ago was the right time for me, as my children were in college and more independent, and I wanted to do a culinary profession I knew and liked,” she shared.
When it comes to the demands for Western-style breakfasts, Ting remains optimistic, noting that many local patrons, especially young working adults, are now more open to trying something different.
She shared that her own children grew up enjoying such meals and still appreciate them today. Now that they are young adults, she said, they often opt for simple options like bread and butter or toast and coffee for a quick breakfast at home.
To make Western-style breakfasts more accessible, Ting focuses on keeping her prices affordable while offering flexible menu options.
For that reason, she prefers to serve American-style breakfast compared to an English one, which has a fixed menu.
“American-style breakfasts are open-ended, with more combinations, but locals may not know much about them unless they have been to England or the US (United States).
“For my American-style breakfast, it is simple yet filling,” she said.
Her best-selling breakfast plate, the “Simply Morning”, which includes toast, a sausage, baked beans, chicken ham, and one sunny-side-up egg, costs RM7. Another popular choice, the “Sunshine Delight”, offers double portions of the Simply Morning and is priced at RM10.50.
“I know customers like the portions and have other options on my stall list. I like it that way, and for the price they pay,” she said.
In addition to her signature breakfast plates, Toast Bar also serves sandwiches, submarine buns, paratha, and wrap rolls, priced between RM4.50 and RM10.50.
Toast Bar is located at the Excellent Delight Food Court, Jalan Stutong (off Jalan Tun Jugah). It operates daily from 7.30am to 1pm. For more information, call 016-898 9006. –DayakDaily
