Dunkin' (DNKN) has never particularly focused on offering healthy fare. The fast-food chain may have dropped the "Donuts" from its name, but it's still best-known for two things: those high-calorie treats and its coffee.
Now, the chain is unveiling a delightfully unhealthy new menu item -- Snackin' Bacon. It consists simply of eight half-strips of bacon "wrapped in a portable sleeve for on-the-go snacking ease," according to a press release.
Dunkin' has described its new menu item as a "bag of bacon." Image source: Dunkin'.
Wait ... it's just bacon?
Snackin' Bacon may actually be better for Dunkin's customers than most of the options on its menu. An order has 190 calories -- significantly fewer than the 270 calories of a chocolate-frosted doughnut with sprinkles. Of course, 57% of the calories in the bacon treat come from fat, so it's not exactly a kale salad.
The company is unblushing in its enthusiasm for Snackin' Bacon:
If you've ever reached for an afternoon snack and found yourself wildly disappointed, our new Snackin' Bacon with Sweet Black Pepper seasoning will cure those afternoon blues. Here at Dunkin', we've been working hard to formulate the perfect afternoon pick-me-up and really, what's better than a bag full of bacon?
Given the way bacon mania (yes, the phenomenon has a name) has developed over the past couple of decades, Dunkin' will probably find plenty of takers for this dish. Certainly it gives its menu a rare new option that will appeal to people on low-carb diets.
And Dunkin' isn't just going after the demographic of "people willing to eat a bag of bacon." It has also been adding plant-based meat sandwiches to its menu.
This appears to be one piece of a larger strategy of trying to serve the widest possible audience, since both healthy people and less-healthy ones probably drink coffee. We'll see if it leads to an increase in average check size as more people upsize their orders.
