McMuffin
The McMuffin is the brand name for a breakfast sandwich available at McDonald's consisting of a slice of Canadian bacon, a grill-cooked egg, and a slice of cheese on a buttered, toasted English muffin. A sausage patty may also be selected in place of the Canadian bacon (in which case it would be called a Sausage McMuffin with Egg).
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In the UK, the standard McMuffin is served without bacon to provide an additional menu option for vegetarian customers. One must order a "Bacon Egg McMuffin" to receive the equivalent of the United States' standard version. In Australia one must order a "Bacon & Egg McMuffin" to receive the US standard, or a "Sausage & Egg McMuffin" for the sausage patty equivilent.
This trademarked McDonald's egg sandwich was invented in 1972 , and was important in the history of the company. Former McDonald's President Ray Kroc writes that Herb Peterson, and his assistant, Donald Greadel, the operator of their Santa Barbara franchise, asked him to look at something, not telling him what it was because it was
- "...a crazy idea—a breakfast sandwich. It consisted of an egg that had been formed in a Teflon circle with the yolk broken, and was dressed with a slice of cheese and a slice of grilled Canadian bacon. It was served open-faced on a toasted and buttered English muffin.... The advent of the Egg McMuffin opened up a whole new area of potential business for McDonald's, the breakfast trade."[1]
In the 1970s, some McDonald's restaurants served Egg McMuffins all day as a special promotion
The Egg McMuffin is the lowest-calorie breakfast sandwich McDonald's offers. A complete Egg McMuffin has 300 calories, versus 450 or more for biscuit sandwiches and McGriddles. Removing the cheese and margarine lowers the fat level and calorie count significantly (230 calories).
Several countries serve Egg McMuffins around the clock, since the egg is used more often in other meals besides breakfast in countries besides the U.S. The U.S. restaurants usually restrict the item to the "Breakfast Menu," and sell them only until 10:30 a.m.(11:00 a.m. on certain days, usually Saturday and Sunday, depending on the location.)