IT’S THE McDonald’s menu we have all been waiting for — McMuffins, hash browns and hot cakes, all day, every day.
Well, now your Mcdreams have come true. Macca’s will launch their breakfast menu in all stores across the country, with Victoria and Tasmania introducing the changes from today.
Mclovers will be able to eat bacon and egg McMuffins and hash browns any time of the day, any day of the week, with NSW and Queensland introducing the menu across their stores by February 2016. Western Australia and South Australia implemented the changes earlier this year.
The launch of the nationwide rollout follows recent successful trials with customers enjoying the option of indulging in breakfast after lunch, for dinner or even as a midnight snack.
“We know Aussies love our brekkie menu and have long wanted to be able to enjoy it at any time of the day,†chief marketing office of McDonalds Mark Lollback said.
“After the incredible success of our trials, it was a no-brainer for us to answer the calls of our customers and work with our licensees to deliver all-day brekkie to the whole country.â€
But the response of the all-day breakfast hasn’t been well received in other parts of the world, with some franchisees in the US saying the rollout has been a complete disaster, due to slower service, lowered average bills and chaos in the kitchens.
“In small stores, the problems are vast with people falling over each other and equipment jammed in everywhere,†one franchisee wrote in response to Kalinowski’s survey.
“Customers are abandoning us in droves because we are either too slow, or sub-par quality,†another said.
One franchisee called the process “erratic, distorted, disorganised direction from McDonald’s,†while another said “all-day breakfast is a non-starter. We are trading customers down from regular menu to lower-priced breakfast items. Not generating new traffic.â€
Owners also said the launch meant hiring more people, which also increased costs.
Eighteen-year-old Maddison, who works as a crew trainer in a McDonalds store, raised concerns over the implementation of the menu, especially when it came to staff productivity.
“It’s going to be harder for younger schoolkids who do the afternoon and night shift,†she told news.com.au
“They have enough problems doing lunch menus during the busy dinner period, so it will be hard for them to cater for breakfast as well. That’s because when you go to lunch, you reset the grill and other cooking items for the lunch menu. Same as for breakfast. Doing it all the time, and resetting the temperatures to cater for breakfast and lunch will be chaotic, especially with younger employees.
“It will all take time. When we do lunch, we need to do temperature checks. Now we will need to swap temperatures depending on if the order is breakfast or lunch. McDonald’s are bringing out all these new things, and it’s just hard to imagine where you will fit everything in the amount of room we have.
“When breakfast is over, usually we take the machines out of the kitchen to make room for lunch. Now they will be there all the time,†she said.
But in response to the concerns, McDonald’s said the menu changes had the full support of franchisees.
“Our Australian franchisees are supportive of the launch of all-day breakfast,†a spokesperson told news.com.au.
“It’s been received well by both our customers and restaurants in our trial markets. As we do with all new initiatives, we have trained our crew to ensure there is minimal impact to the speed of service and restaurant operations.â€
To celebrate the rollout, McDonald’s teamed up with Jafflechutes, who launched bacon and egg McMuffins from the Melbourne Elizabeth St store to waiting customers below. McMuffins sailed down from the rooftop between 3pm and 5pm today.