They say "America Runs on Dunkin,'" and if Dunkin' Donuts has its way, that will literally
be true, as CNN reported in 2018 that the chain plans to double the number of locations
to a whopping 18,000. That's even more than Starbucks! Don't panic, though, because we're
here to prepare you for your new breakfast overlords with an in depth look at the untold
truth of Dunkin' Donuts.
"A lot of my friends go in there, get the cold coffee. Iced coffee, I guess it's called."
Founding father
Dunkin' Donuts was founded by William Rosenberg. Growing up in Depression-era Massachusetts,
Rosenberg dropped out of school in 8th grade and went to work to help support his family.
After World War II, he popularized the now-familiar concept of the food truck with the roll-up
sides, and made a small fortune catering to construction sites. After realizing that his
biggest sellers were coffee and donuts, though, he decided to specialize, and founded a restaurant
called Open Kettle in Quincy, MA. Stocked with 52 varieties of donuts, it was his architect
who came up with a new name for the place in 1950: Dunkin' Donuts.
Within five years, the chain had expanded to six locations, but after a falling out
with his business partner and brother-in-law Harry Winouker, the two split the business
with Winkour renaming his locations Mister Donut. Rosenberg then turned to franchising,
founding the International Franchise Association in 1960, which helped normalize the idea of
franchises - and helped Rosenberg put a Dunkin' Donuts on every street corner.
Time to make the donuts
Rosenberg passed away in 2002, but his belief in offering a dizzying selection of donut
varieties lives on. Though the chain no longer offers 52 flavors on the regular - according
to a 2017 report, the standard was less than 20 - they compensate with a rotating selection
of regional and seasonal flavors, ranging from flower-shaped Peeps donuts in the spring
to classic fall pumpkin spice donuts.
And things get even stranger overseas. In 2013, Dunkin' locations in South Korea began
serving the New York Pie Donut, which some people felt was a direct ripoff of the infamous
Cronut that became a sensation earlier that year.
And since Chinese consumers aren't used to having sweets for breakfast, Dunkin Donuts
franchises in China instead serve up an array of alternatives including a curry beef donut,
corn crumb donuts, donuts dipped in a green tea glaze, donuts sprinkled with seaweed,
topped with chili oil, and even sporting slices of dried pork.
Vanilla nut what?
In 2016, Saturday Night Live put out an instant-classic fake commercial featuring Casey Affleck as
a typical Dunkin' Donuts customer.
"C'mon, pal. It's a movie. Tell him your favorite, how you like the Vanilla Nut Taps."
"The what?"
"The Vanilla Nut Taps!"
It didn't seem very flattering, but Dunkin' Donuts apparently appreciated the joke, because
for April Fools Day, 2017, they announced an very unexpected new type of Munchkin. Looks
like your daily trip to Dunkin' just got even better!
"The best part of my is when I'm at Dunkin."
"You think that's sad?"
"Yes, very."
"Real customers know, the holidays run on Dunkin!"
Donuts and beer
If you thought their donut flavors were unusual, wait until you try Dunkin' Donuts beer. Yep,
it's true: in 2017, Dunkin' joined forces with Worcester's Wormtown Brewery to create
a donut-inspired dark beer brewed from their coffee. According to CBS Boston, the beer
was carefully designed to go perfectly with Dunkin's Double Chocolate Cake Donut, and
it was called the DDark Roasted Brew. The limited edition beer was, sadly, only available
at the brewery's own tap room, but it was all for a good cause, with over $11,000 in
profits donated to a local food bank.
Controversy
Like any major company, Dunkin' Donuts has had its fair share of controversy over the
years. 2017 was a particularly bad year, though, as the chain faced three separate lawsuits
over their ingredients. In March, a customer sued over some franchises replacing butter
with margarine, while in June, another lawsuit was filed claiming the meat in their steak-and-egg
breakfast sandwich was beef, not steak. And in July, their blueberries came under attack
for not actually being blueberries.
On the plus side, at least 2017 wasn't 2013, which is when Dunkin Donuts came under fire
after a franchisee in Thailand ran what the group Human Rights Watch called "bizarre and
racist" ads featuring a woman in full blackface. Dunkin's CEO for Thailand, Nadim Salhani,
dismissed the criticism as, quote, "paranoid American thinking."
He told The Associated Press,
"We're not allowed to use black to promote our donuts? I don't get it. What's the big
fuss?"
Hopefully next time, they'll just do the safe thing and hire Al Pacino to be their spokesman.
"You want creamy goodness? I'm your friend. Say hello to my chocolate blend!"
Donut vs. doughnut
Dunkin Donuts hasn't just had an effect on your tastebuds, the chain has also helped
rewrite the dictionary. It's true: though the preferred spelling has been "doughnut",
with a U G H in the middle, ever since the word first appeared in print back in 1809,
around 1950, the alternate spelling suddenly enjoyed a big boost in popularity - right
around the time Dunkin' Donuts became a thing. And with "donut" the preferred spelling for
people online, it's no wonder that both spellings are now considered acceptable by most reputable
dictionaries.
Talk about a Dunkin paradise!
"Ooh, summer's nice. Ooh, Dunkin ice. Ooh, yeah. In the summertime, livin' in a Dunkin
paradise!"
Dunkin' Donations
Most companies support charitable organizations, but Dunkin' has a very personal connection
to their charities. Founder William Rosenberg laid groundwork for supporting a wide range
of causes long before his passing in 2002, and one of the best examples is Rosenberg's
donations to medical organizations and research. The Dorchester Atheneum says he gave millions,
and in 1986 he founded the William Rosenberg Chair in Medicine at the Harvard Medical School,
in partnership with the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. He was also a trustee at the institute,
and years later he helped fund the Vector Laboratory at the Harvard Institute of Human
Genetics.
Good donuts and good people? Now that's a recipe for something truly delicious.
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