‘Singapore kaya toast’ is among world’s 100 best sandwiches. Malaysians say it’s ‘stolen’ from them

TasteAtlas released a new ranking for the Top 100 Sandwiches, with kaya toast ranking 42, and was attributed to Singapore

Some Malaysians have taken to social media to air their grievances about how their national foods have been ‘stolen’ by Singapore

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Kaya toast was ranked among the top sandwiches in the world, according to FoodAtlas. Photo: SCMP

Published: 6:00pm, 14 Mar 2024Updated: 11:35am, 15 Mar 2024

Following last September’s 100 Best Rated Breads in the World, Croatia-based food encyclopaedia TasteAtlas released a new ranking for the World’s Top 100 Sandwiches, which has once again stirred up commotion among Malaysian and Singaporean online users.

The list, published on Monday, puts Singapore’s kaya toast at number 42 with a rating of 4.2 out of 5.0. The top place went to Vietnam’s banh mi with a rating of 4.6.

This might be a source of pride for Singaporeans, but Malaysians were not so pleased by what they perceived as a snub.

On the TasteAtlas website, its description of kaya toast calls it “a popular Malaysian and Singaporean breakfast”. However, it attributes the dish only to Singapore.

TasteAtlas’ Top 100 Sandwiches list has with Kaya toast ranking 42, and attributed to Singapore. Photo: X/TasteAtlas

Kaya toast is believed to have originated with Hainanese people who worked on British ships as cooks and later settled in Singapore, where residents “replaced the British jams with local coconut spreads”, the site states.

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