Oh Canada! Canuck Coffee Chain Tim Horton's to Open China Branches

Oh Canada! Canuck Coffee Chain Tim Horton's to Open 1,500 China Branches

Kyle Mullin | Jul 12, 2018 12:44 pm | 1 comment | 3012 reads

Dunkin' Donuts are about to look like a bunch of hosers, eh?

That's because infinitely superior Canadian coffee and sweets chain Tim Horton's has just announced that it's making its way to the Middle Kingdom. Timmy's plans expand to China with a whopping 1,500 coffee-and-donut shops over the next 10 years via a deal with a New York-based private equity group, according to the Canadian Press.

For China-residing Canucks, this development is a dream come true. Many of us have long pined for our homeland's no muss, no fuss cups of joe when navigating the typically more uppity and latte saturated café scenes in China's first-tier cities. Workday mornings often simply call for a stronger, simpler, and cheaper quick double-double (the standard two teaspoons of sugar and two creams menu option that many in the Great White North are hooked on). Dunkin' Donuts renewed push in Beijing in 2016 (after a failed launch a few years prior) made for a decent substitute, but its blander coffee and drier, less fluffy donuts made Canadians in the capital wistful for the Timmy's sweets that provided enough calories to shovel waist-high snow drifts out of our driveways or strap on some skates and head oot into frigid temperatures to play a few rounds of pond hockey.

Sure, there is some overlap between Tim's and DD when it comes to menu items like Boston Cream donuts and bite-sized donut balls (they're called Timbits up North). But for the uninitiated, there'll much to be enjoyed once these beloved, more unique Tim Horton's donuts grace Beijing shelves:

Maple dip donut
Nothing screams Canada like the incredibly sweet flavor of maple sugar, a long beloved treat tapped from maple trees deep in the forests in the midst of winter. For those of us who didn't want to get so chilly, popping into our local Timmy's for a donut slathered in golden maple frosting was the next best thing.

Honey cruller
If the maple dip is just too sugary for your liking, and you favor texture over flavor, one of these bad boys will hit the spot. With a Goldie Locks-worth of "just right" honey sweetness, the emphasis on this treat instead lies with its twisty, knotted shape, which leaves you with more to chew on than the average donut. Added bonus: Chinese patrons will likely be reminded of their own tangly máhuā 麻花 fried dough treats while chomping on this Canadian favorite.

Sour cream glazed
Fans of more tart treats will be glad to see that Tim's menu isn't entirely sweet-centric. The sour cream glaze is understated in terms of flavor and gives the donut a crisp exterior that contrasts well with its pillow-soft, melt-in-your-mouth insides.

Apple Fritter
I know, it's not a donut per say. But this crumbly, fruity, wholesome pastry sets itself apart not only because it's one of Timmy's unique items but also because it's so damn satisfying. Its subtler flavors and superior will make the stodgy ol' dirty buns that DD has adopted on its China menus pale in comparison.

Toronto Maple Leafs donut
Finally, we have this vanilla and blueberry icing combo donut. It's sweet and delicious enough to offer consolation to diehard fans of the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey team whenever they sadly fall short of winning the Stanley Cup (an unfortunate annual tradition that'll likely continue for years to come).

So as you can see, there's potentially plenty to look forward to once Tim's makes its way to China. Let's just hope they don't stoop to Dunkin' Donuts style China pandering with pork floss and seaweed donuts. On the flipside, the less that's said about Tim's poutine the better.