Editor’s note: This post has been updated to reflect the items available on the all-day breakfast menu.
Breakfast for dinner just became a much more viable option for fast food lovers as McDonald’s Canada officially launched its all-day breakfast today (Feb. 21) starting at 11:01 a.m.
With menu items like scrambled egg wraps, oatmeal, hash browns and BLT bagels — including (of course) its beloved Egg McMuffin sandwich — 1,100 McDonald’s locations across Canada will undoubtedly be inundated with breakfast-loving patrons well into the afternoon.
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“Folks are looking for and have been looking for this kind of offering for the longest time,” said John Betts, McDonald’s Canada CEO. “We know we’re going to do well with it.”
The company first tested the waters of extended breakfast hours midway through 2016 at its two standalone McCafé restaurants in Toronto. It then rolled out all-day breakfast at 17 locations across Ontario, British Columbia and Quebec earlier this year.
Betts said the introduction of the program was partly spurred by Twitter requests for all-day breakfast that have come through by the thousands over the last year.
Today, the anticipation on social media was palpable.
For some, however, knowing that a McDonald’s breakfast is an option at any time of the day poses some concerns about restraint.
The good news is experts say a trip to McD’s doesn’t have to be a shame-inducing outing, especially if you’re going for breakfast.
Perhaps surprisingly, the number-one item on the menu for offering a complete and healthy breakfast is the famous Egg McMuffin.
“The sandwich only has 300 calories and it offers 17 grams of satiety-providing protein,” Christine M. Palumbo, a Chicago area registered dietitian and nutrition communications consultant said to Eat This, Not That! online nutrition hub. “I stick with the whole egg sandwich because the yolk contains carotenoids, essential fatty acids, vitamins and minerals.”
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The lowest calorie option is an order of hash browns that clocks in at 160 calories.
Among the worst breakfast offenders are the Sausage McMuffin with Egg and the Hotcakes. The former amounts to 430 calories and 850 mg of sodium (nearly half a day’s recommended allowance), while the latter is 600 calories and 660 mg of sodium.
With this in mind, experts advise patrons to choose wisely. But don’t fret about feeling guilty later.
“We think of quick-serve restaurants too simply, and we paint them too black-and-white,” Roberta Duyff, author of the American Dietetic Association Complete Food and Nutrition Guide said to Health. “Be smart about what you’re choosing. Be judicious, and you can do fine at McDonald’s.”
So go on, and enjoy.
With files from The Canadian Press