?McDonald's plans to include Indian breakfast dishes in its menu

McDonald's is planning to include culinary delights that range from the quaint -masala dosa burgers with molaga podi sauce -to the familiar -anda bhurji. The McBreakfast is aimed at luring consumers early in the day with new dishes, some of which will only be available in the morning, in the hope that this will help perk up business in a sluggish industry.

The new menu, a combination of continental and Indian options, will be launched by the weekend, initially in Mumbai and then across India.

Amit Jatia, Vice-chairman, Westlife Development, which runs McDonald's restaurant in the west and south India, said, "We continue to look at inspiration from Indian cuisine and bring it as a McDonald's format which will give you flavours from the west but the familiarity of Indian."

What's new; however, is the launch of an entire range as a separate menu, according to McDonald's. Apart from masala dosa burgers, it will also sell spinach and corn and hash brown brioches, along with plain and masala scrambled eggs, waffles and hotcakes. The company had a similar strategy for coffee and hot beverages when it launched the McCafe three years ago as a distinct format.

Jatia said, "Breakfast convenience on the go will increase as more people enter the segment. As a western quick service restaurant, we are going to grow the Indian breakfast market dramatically."

The eating-out market in the country is estimated at $94 billion, or about Rs 5.85 lakh crore, but only 2 percent of it is organised with national and international food retail brands. Major chains such as McDonald's, Yum's KFC and Pizza Hut and Jubilant FoodWorks, which operates Domino's Pizza and Dunkin' Donuts, have been either struggling to grow or posting single-digit growth amid an economic slowdown for almost three years now.

Abneesh Roy, Senior Vice-president, Edelweiss Financial Services, said, "Breakfast is a huge opportunity which is still untapped by organised players. But the biggest challenge is that most consumers still prefer fresh, homemade breakfasts or packaged healthier products such as masala oats. Hence, (demand) will be restricted to consumers who are travelling."