Timbits Peddler Tim Hortons Is Bringing Its Canadian Coffee to Texas

Ubiquitous Canadian chain Tim Hortons is planning a big expansion to Texas, starting with the Bayou City.

The fast-food restaurant, known for its coffee, doughnuts, all-day breakfasts, and more, will bring several drive-thru and sit-down locations to Houston, starting in the summer of 2022, according to the Houston Chronicle. The news was first announced in a commercial that aired during Sunday’s Houston Texans football game against the Seattle Seahawks.

The restaurant was founded in 1964 in Ontario by National Hockey League player Tim Horton, who spent 24 seasons with the league. Under the guidance of co-owner Ron Joyce, who took sole ownership of the company following Horton’s death in 1974, the restaurant expanded aggressively throughout Ottawa and Quebec, in many cases pushing out mom-and-pop doughnut shops. (Fun fact: the restaurant’s name does not have an apostrophe, which allows it to skirt Quebec’s French language sign laws with a single logo throughout Canada.)

Timmies, as it’s known to Canadians, initially sold only two items — coffee and donuts. Its premium blend of Arabica beans is now the most popular coffee served in Canada, alongside flavored coffee drinks like iced lattes and cappuccino.

Perhaps the chain’s most iconic item is the Timbit — essentially a doughnut hole with all the toppings and flavorings of a regular doughnut. Timbits come in flavors like chocolate glazed, apple fritter, sour cream glazed, and jelly-stuffed. Tim Hortons is also known for popularizing the dutchie, a square yeast doughnut filled with raisins and covered in glaze.

Though there are now more than 5,000 Tim Hortons locations worldwide, including in Mexico, Brazil, and China, most of the restaurants in the United States are located in the Northeast and Great Lakes regions. No word yet on if the chain’s expansion to Texas will include other cities outside Houston.

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