Taco Bell fans should get ready to "Wake Up and Live Más," because the Mexican fast-food chain announced on Monday its plans to roll out an unconventional breakfast menu. The new offerings nationally begin on March 27, according to the Associated Press.
The new menu is an effort to compete for early morning customers with McDonald's. Being offered are breakfast versions of its regular products, such as Waffle Taco, A.M Crunchwrap and Cinnabon Delights.
"Fans already like to come to Taco Bell for lunch and dinner, and they share with us their love of late night. Now they're not just asking, but telling us they want Taco Bell Breakfast," Brian Niccol, president at Taco Bell said in a statement.
The new offerings will be available from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m., which the AP noted is 30 minutes longer than McDonald's breakfast offerings. However, the items will reportedly be a bit pricier. It will be $2.49 and $1.79 for the Crunchwrap and coffee vs. $1 each for breakfast burritos and coffee at McDonald's.
Niccol thinks the chain can compete during morning hours and become a "strong No. 2" to McDonald's, which has been the fast-food leader during morning meals. The fast food franchise has pulled in roughly 20 percent of the U.S. sales, with popular items such as popular Sausage Biscuits and Hotcakes.
"We can turn the breakfast conversation into a two horse race," Niccol said.
The AP added that McDonald's has seen a slip in numbers over the recent years with competitors, such as Starbucks, Wendy's, Burger King and Subway, rolling out breakfast sandwiches as an attempt to take a bite of the $50 billion limited-service breakfast business.
In addition to the new menu, Taco Bell will be training existing workers, hiring more staff to cover the morning shifts and purchasing new equipment for its nearly 6,000 U.S. locations.
"To give customers the great-tasting food and Live Más experience, with value in mind, we have invested in our most extensive training ever for Team Members and will not require any major new equipment for operators - making for a holistic effort our teams are proud of and our owners are confident to execute," Niccol added.
The new menu will also include breakfast burritos, grilled tacos, flatbread melt, hash browns, coffee, hot coffee, and orange juice from Tropicana.
"We're going to reinvent breakfast," Nichol said.. "It's a transformational moment for the brand. It will expand our connection with consumers... We don't use buns or burgers or circular things at breakfast - that's not who we are."
Will you go to Taco Bell for breakfast?