Timbits
Encyclopedia
Tim Hortons
Tim Hortons Inc. is a Canadian fast casual restaurant known for its coffee and doughnuts. It is also Canada's largest fast food service with over 3000 stores nationwide. It was founded in 1964 in Hamilton, Ontario, by Canadian hockey player Tim Horton and Jim Charade, after an initial venture in...
. The treats were introduced in April 1976 and are now available in various flavours that differ from store to store. Flavours include chocolate, jelly-filled, "dutchie", honey dip, sour cream glazed, and apple fritter.
The "bit" in the word Timbit is an acronym for Big In Taste, which was half of the slogan for the original 1976 ad campaign "Big In Taste, Small In Size". It is also a play on the word "tidbit" (a delicate bit or morsel of food).
Other doughnut chains in Canada and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
sell virtually identical products, often called "doughnut holes". However, due to Tim Hortons' place in Canadian culture, Timbits is often used as a generic term
Genericized trademark
A genericized trademark is a trademark or brand name that has become the colloquial or generic description for, or synonymous with, a general class of product or service, rather than as an indicator of source or affiliation as intended by the trademark's holder...
for these in Canada, even when they are purchased from another chain.