The outside sign of the Charleston Dunkin’, this sign faces the drive thru and parking lot. Photo by Megan Russell.
The closest town to campus has started quite a few new projects in the past few months, some being larger than others. The most exciting addition to this cast of new places is the new Dunkin’ Donuts, located outside the Cross County Mall and next door to the Alamo restaurant. This location will be the second location built within the local area in the past 2 years, the first one having been built directly off the Eastern Illinois University campus in Charleston.
Dunkin’ Donuts was founded in the 1950s by William Rosenburg of Quincy, Massachusetts. The critically acclaimed breakfast fast food diner was famous for its 50 plus different donut flavors and types as well as brewed coffee and hot breakfast items. In 2018, Dunkin’ Donuts rebranded a mass amount of stores to be further known as Dunkin’, having since expanded the food menu to more than just donuts. In a short summary of Dunkin’s history, published by Dunkin’ News, it states that in just the first few years of Dunkin’ Donuts being founded, there were over 100 stores founded within the US.
The beloved fast food breakfast and coffee franchise has been getting started for the past few months, as the new building has emerged gradually. The new location in Mattoon will cause some problems for some of the local coffee shops, such as Milk and Honey located on Charleston Ave. and the well-known and popular Starbucks, located further towards the interstate on route 16.
When asked about the new location, a few of the employees at the mall expressed a love for the franchise, but also were nervous about their own bank accounts after the grand opening directly outside their place of work. One employee specifically, who asked to stay anonymous, answered that they were excited about the opening, possibly bringing more life to the mall and surrounding shopping district. They expressed how opening a food place outside the mall, as well as having the one featured inside the mall, was a great option for those who wanted a variety and to grab outside attention. The Mattoon area is no stranger to the breakfast and sweet food genre, sharing the town with locations like Honey Bee Cafe and Cracker Barrel.
Though construction is still underway, the location currently has a new refined look that is inching its way to an opening date. It is suspected by many different articles and Facebook posts that the location will be opening late fall or early winter.
