In what year did McDonald’s start serving breakfast?

Question: In what year did McDonald’s start serving breakfast?

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1972.

McDonald’s, the global fast-food giant, introduced its now-iconic breakfast menu to the masses in the 1970s. Before this, McDonald’s was primarily seen as a place for lunch and dinner. The inception of the breakfast menu stemmed from the innovative idea to capitalize on the morning hours when the restaurant remained closed.

The Egg McMuffin, a hallmark of McDonald’s breakfast offerings, was created in 1971 by Herb Peterson, a franchise owner in Santa Barbara, California. Peterson’s vision was to create a quick-service version of Eggs Benedict. The result was the Egg McMuffin, which consisted of an egg that had been cooked in a Teflon circle with the yolk broken, combined with a slice of cheese and grilled Canadian bacon, all sandwiched between a toasted English muffin. This item became the cornerstone of the McDonald’s breakfast menu.

Recognizing the potential success of this new product, Ray Kroc, McDonald’s Corporation’s CEO at the time, decided to incorporate the Egg McMuffin into the national menu in 1972. It didn’t take long for the breakfast menu to expand, introducing a variety of other items over the years, such as breakfast burritos, hash browns, and a diverse range of breakfast sandwiches and beverages.

The introduction of breakfast was a game-changer for McDonald’s, establishing the chain as a major player in the fast-food breakfast market and changing morning dining habits for millions of people worldwide.