Fast food giant McDonald’s is taking its coffee concept McCafe to India with the first outlet planned for South Mumbai.

McCafe is a coffee-house-style food and drink chain owned by McDonald’s, usually located within or outside the fast food restaurant. It was created and launched in Melbourne, Australia in 1993 by McDonald’s licensee Ann Brown.

India’s coffee chain market is growing at an anual rate of 30 per cent according to Technopak Advisors.

“McCafe is about affordable luxury, where we offer a premium product at a reasonable price,” said Amit Jatia, vice chairman at Hardcastle Restaurants, which operates McDonald’s in India.

“It will act as an extension to the core McDonald’s offering, with consumers now having the option to enjoy an assortment of food and beverages at an outlet,” he added.

Hardcastle plans to open 75-150 McCafes within the next three to five years.

Currently, there are around 1700 coffee outlets in the top 40 Indian cities. That number is expected to rise fast as chains plan further expansion.

Local chain Cafe Coffee Day plans 1000 new outlets by 2014 in addition to its existing 1200. US coffee giant Starbucks, which tied up with Global Tata Beverages, plans to open 50 this year, 21 of which are already trading.

Other foreign players, like Lavazza of Italy and Dunkin’ Donuts of the US, are also planning to open more outlets in the world’s third largest economy.