McDonald's is testing McChicken McMuffins and Blueberry McGriddles as it tries to boost breakfast sales
- McDonald's is rolling out breakfast tests across the US, including items like the McChicken McMuffin, Blueberry McGriddle, and Chicken McGriddle.
- A McChicken McMuffin - inspired by a menu item sold at Japanese McDonald's locations - will be sold at nearly 100 stores in Connecticut starting in mid-August, according to documents viewed by Business Insider.
- Boosting breakfast sales has been a major focus at McDonald's recently, with CEO Steve Easterbrook saying in a call with investors in late April that morning sales were improving in the US.
- "We're still in a market share fight overall because there are more and more people offering breakfast as a competitive play," Easterbrook said.
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McDonald's is testing new breakfast menu items across the US.
A McChicken McMuffin will be sold at nearly 100 stores in Connecticut starting in mid-August, according to documents viewed by Business Insider. The dish, inspired by a Japanese menu item, features a McChicken patty, mayonnaise, and lettuce on an English muffin or biscuit.
In the Washington, DC, area, the chain is testing Blueberry McGriddles at more than 100 locations. Customers can order any of the classic McGriddle options with a blueberry, syrup-infused "bun."
Read more: McDonald's is now testing Blueberry McGriddles for a limited time
Brand Eating reports that Chicken McGriddles and McChicken Biscuits have hit menus in Los Angeles. The Chicken McGriddle places a McChicken patty between McGriddle buns, while the McChicken Biscuit does the same with two halves of a biscuit.
McDonald's representative Lauren Altmin told Business Insider in an email that the chain has been serving chicken for breakfast locally for years, especially in the American southeast.
"While the options have been mostly available locally, franchisees have recently expanded these options in new markets as a limited time offer," Altmin said. "We use information from our local markets to gauge the potential of expanding options beyond local, regional and limited time offerings."
The tests come as McDonald's is working to boost American breakfast sales, with internal documents calling morning sales a "key system business priority." In a call with investors in April, CEO Steve Easterbrook said that breakfast sales at the chain were finally improving, following the successful rollout of Donut Sticks.
"We're still in a market share fight overall because there are more and more people offering breakfast as a competitive play," Easterbrook said.
In November, McDonald's debuted Triple Breakfast Stacks, breakfast sandwiches with three times as much meat - the chain's first new breakfast item in 15 years. The chain followed that up with Donut Sticks, which launched in February as the chain's first new breakfast baked good in years.
In addition to new menu items, executives said McDonald's has used local deals during morning hours to bring back customers. The chain is also working to speed up service during the morning, with a focus on impatient drive-thru customers.