Feb 13, 2008 9:18 am US/Eastern
Will America Run On Dunkin' For Lunch?
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
We all know from the ads that "America Runs On Dunkin'", but will they run on it for lunch and dinner?
The owners of Dunkin' Donuts are betting that they will. The popular coffee and breakfast chain is planning a new menu designed to attract people to stores for both lunch and dinner.
Dunkin' Donuts is targeting the afternoon and evening crowds with new flatbread sandwiches and personal pizzas heated in convection ovens rather than microwaves.
The chain hopes the moves, to be announced Wednesday, will improve food quality and bolster an expansion plan that's introducing Dunkin's restaurants far beyond its Northeastern base.
The Canton-based seller of coffee and baked goods has previously experimented with sandwiches.
But the 57-year-old chain is billing what it calls its "all-day, oven-toasted menu" as its biggest change since its launch of espresso drinks in 2003.
The goal is to even out sales throughout the 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. day maintained by most of the 5,400-plus stores in the U.S.
About two-thirds of sales come before noon, with most customers choosing snacks such as baked goods and breakfast sandwiches with coffee.
(© 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
