Famous Toastery is Winning the Breakfast Wars

McDonald’s recently announced that it would offer breakfast all day, trying to grab a bigger share of the booming breakfast market amid its flagging sales and revenue decline. Taco Bell launched its breakfast biscuit taco this year and Panera, Starbucks and Subway offer several breakfast sandwiches for busy worker bees on their way to the office.

Breakfast now is the fastest-growing segment of the fast-food business and no one wants to be left behind.

But Robert Maynard, CEO and co-founder of Famous Toastery, a better-breakfast spot headquartered in North Carolina, knows he’s doing it better — and will continue to stay true to his vision.

“Breakfast is the hottest thing right now,” Maynard said. “We are doing everything right. We are very competitive. We won’t cut corners. Everything will stay fresh. We won’t say ‘organic’ when it’s not true.”

But fresh doesn’t mean slow.

The restaurants have an average ticket time of 4 to 7 minutes.

“The bottom line is we do it better,” he says. “Everybody wants a good breakfast place, and our customers appreciate our excellent food and service and what we offer. We have fresh lobster every day, for instance. Not everyone can do that.”

Something else not everyone can do is eggs. A sad little fried egg on a biscuit or muffin won’t cut it at Famous Toastery.

“It’s tough to get eggs right,” Maynard says. “There’s a reason that the first thing you learn in culinary school is how to cook an omelet. You do it until you get it right. And we know how to make great eggs.”