Auburn residents will wake up this morning with one new choice for food and coffee after losing another.

Canadian coffee chain Tim Hortons opened its store on Grant Avenue today. The Auburn location is part of a company campaign to expand into central New York markets.

But right across the street, Quiznos closed one of two local sandwich shops only one year after it opened. Tim Hortons officials remain optimistic about the location's ability to provide enough business.

Spokesperson Rachel Douglas said Tuesday that the new coffee shop will start with between 20 and 30 employees. The restaurant, which opened at 6 a.m. and includes a drive-thru window, will offer a handful of limited-time promotions as part of its grand opening, Douglas said.

“We are very excited about opening our Auburn store,” she said.

Local Quiznos owner Brett Davenport directed inquiries about the closure to a message advertised in Sunday's edition of The Citizen. The message stated that the restaurant on Grant Avenue was “not able to remain open.” However, the Quiznos at the Fingerlakes Crossing will remain open, according to the message.

He did not make any other comment on the closure. The same note was posted on the front window of the empty Grant Avenue location.

Douglas said Tim Hortons still expects to attract a good number of customers despite the other business' struggles.

“We're on the side of the road where all the morning traffic is going by,” she said. “We're really looking forward to being part of that neighborhood.”

Based in Hamilton, Ontario, the first Tim Hortons opened in 1964. Though focused mostly on coffee, pastries and breakfast, the restaurant's menu features sandwiches and soups, as well.

When the chain merged with Wendy's International, Inc. in 1995, the company began to expand into the United States, according to the company Web site, www.timhortons.com. Buffalo was the first U.S. city with a Tim Hortons. Tim Hortons became an independent company again in 2006.

There are 2,750 Tim Hortons locations in Canada and approximately 400 stores in the United States, including locations in New York, Connecticut, Maine, Rhode Island, Ohio, Michigan, West Virginia and Kentucky.

The Auburn restaurant is one of a half-dozen new locations in central New York. A store opened last month in Cortland, and new establishments are planned for East Syracuse, Syracuse, Dewitt and Oswego.

Douglas said it is a “natural progression” for the company to move into this region after opening in Buffalo and Rochester.

“There are enough people familiar with the stores after seeing them on long highway trips,” she said.

And for the next few days, some customers of the Auburn coffee shop will be rewarded with free food. The first 100 customers after 6 a.m. will receive free breakfast sandwiches through Sunday, and the company has been circulating various coupons good for other free items.

Staff writer Christopher Caskey can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or christopher.caskey@lee.net.

To learn more

Visit www.somethingisbrewing.com for more information about Tim Hortons in Auburn and central New York.