McDonald’s expands all-day breakfast menu

CHICAGO – McDonald’s this fall is expanding its all-day breakfast menu to include McGriddles and the option of biscuits for a wider swath of the country.

When all-day breakfast first launched at the fast-food giant in October, there was a divide between McDonald’s restaurants: Most of the country served sandwiches on English muffins, while most of the Southeast instead offered biscuit sandwiches. Many customers took issue on social media with lacking both options at their local McDonald’s in the first weeks of the new menu.

McGriddles, breakfast sandwiches served on maple-flavored griddle cakes, were not part of the original all-day breakfast menu but have been in expanded tests around the country for months.

It’s a good time for McDonald’s to expand its all-day breakfast menu, which has been the most visible sign of a transformation at McDonald’s in the past year. The post-10:30 a.m. breakfast menu has been extremely popular but has been boosted by heavy advertising, and the company and observers have expected sales to level off as it becomes more of an expectation for customers rather than a novelty.

All-day breakfast has driven steady sales and earnings growth for McDonald’s since its launch. But the world’s largest burger chain, based in suburban Chicago, has made scores of changes behind the scenes that are making a big difference as well, including cutting a bloated menu to make room for breakfast items to be served all day. McDonald’s said a focus on paring down the menu has led to shorter wait times and improved customer satisfaction.

McDonald’s said all-day breakfast was the top request of customers before it was launched in October. Traditional breakfast hours end at 10:30 a.m. The new menu items will be added in September.