Thumbs up for all day McDonald's breakfasts

April 04, 2015, 9:50 AM GMT+0

Most British people would like McDonald's to serve breakfast all day – and the Sausage & Egg McMuffin is the favourite breakfast dish

McDonald's is now trialling all day (and night) breakfast in San Diego, after years of turning away customers in need of a McMuffin after 10.30am. McDonalds’ historic opposition to serving breakfast throughout out the day is logistical – they don’t have room on the grills or in the holding cabinets for both menus, and serving a wider range impedes efficiency. Weakening profits may have forced the company to listen to public demand, however.

New YouGov research suggests there is strong demand for extending breakfast serving hours in Britain, with 59% in support and only 11% in opposition.

In the US support is even higher, at 76%. And while British people are divided over whether they like the breakfast menu more (12%) or less (13%) than the regular menu, Americans prefer it by 22-8%. In Britain, 35% say they don’t like any McDonald's food – in America, only 19% do.

The favourite breakfast dish among those who like McDonald's food is the Sausage and Egg McMuffin (17%), followed by the Double Sausage & Egg McMuffin (13%). The newer Breakfast Wrap doesn’t fare very well (4%), and the other wrap varieties are never chosen by more than 1%.

McDonald's saw a 2.2% decrease in profits worldwide in 2014, with a 4.6% decline in the US market. Their struggle in the US is largely due to increased competition from so called "fast casual" restaurants, such as Five Guys, selling higher quality fast food.