McDonald's fans may have more time to enjoy food from the chain's breakfast menu.
The Associated Press reported that the fast food chain is currently considering extending its breakfast hours. Plans are reportedly in the early stages, but the chain is looking for ways to keep customers interested in its offerings.
McDonald's recently admitted that its menu had become over complicated and perhaps having breakfast after 10 a.m. would keep customers engaged, since people's eating habits are constantly changing, especially Millenials in their 20s and 30s.
"We know, as an example, that breakfast on the weekend cut off at 10:30 doesn't go very well," Jeff Stratton, head of McDonald's USA, said in an interview, according to the Associated Press.
Stratton declined to provide any specifics on the when and how it would do so, stating, "We're just beginning.... We're just taking a look at it."
McDonald's customers have long urged the chain to make Egg McMuffins, Sausage Biscuits, and other popular breakfast items available all day. Yet the AP noted that trying to extend breakfast hours while offering lunch can become a problem due to the "tight kitchen spaces of the restaurants."
Lisa McComb, a representative for McDonald's, told the AP that there were no locations currently testing the "extended breakfast hours" idea. McDonald's CEO Don Thompson has hinted in the past that he would consider an all-day breakfast menu.
"Yes, we would consider it," Thompson told CNBC in April, but added, "We have to focus on our existing menu, focus on the delivery of that and great customer experiences."
Last summer, McDonald's expanded the number of 24-hour McDonald's that serve both lunch and breakfast items on the "After Midnight" menu. The menu was available from midnight to 4 a.m. The AP reported that that hours did not overwhelm kitchen operations.
McDonald's announcement comes the same day Taco Bell released its plans to shell out a breakfast menu with breakfast items similar to 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.
McDonald's has been the fast-food leader in the mornings meals, pulling in roughly 20 percent of the company's U.S. sales, with popular items such as popular Sausage Biscuits and Hotcakes.
However, the fast food chain has seen a slip in number over the recent years with competitors, such as Starbucks Wendy's, Burger King and Subway, rolling out breakfast sandwiches of its own as an attempt to take a bite of the $50 billion limited-service breakfast business.
