Cork's first Taco Bell to open in Ballincollig next month

Applegreen to open at Classis Lake in Ballincollig and at Lusk Northbound in Dublin before the end of this year, creating 60 new jobs.

Aaron Duggan, Applegreen; Nayana Melton and Vaida Dekaminaviciute, Taco Bell; and Ian Cranna, Taco Bell, at the opening of Ireland’s first Taco Bell in Dunshaughlin in September. Taco Bell's first Cork outlet opens in December.

A new M&S Food outlet and Cork's Taco Bell will open in Ballincollig next month, Applegreen said on Wednesday.

Applegreen will open two new Taco Bell restaurants, at Classis Lake in Ballincollig and at Lusk Northbound on the M1 in Dublin before the end of this year, creating 60 new jobs.

Applegreen will also add new M&S Food shop-in-shop outlets and Crafted Kitchen & Deli operations at each site. 

The upgrades, which are part of Applegreen’s €50m-plus investment plan in the Irish market this year. “We’re delighted to transform our existing sites at Lusk Northbound on the M1 and at Ballincollig in Cork with these new brands and significant in-store enhancements,” said Applegreen Ireland managing director Seamus Stapleton.

Applegreen opened Ireland’s first Taco Bell restaurant at Dunshaughlin in Co Meath in mid-September and has plans to add further outlets across its Irish portfolio as part of a partnership with the US-based company.

The M&S Food outlet have access to more than 400 M&S product including fresh flowers, lunch and dinner convenience food, sandwiches, fresh fruit, cakes, and salads. 

It will also feature a new Click & Collect service for M&S Clothing and selected Home product ranges, providing customers with the convenience of ordering quality clothing, home and beauty essentials online at www.marksandspencer.com/ie and picking up their purchases for free instore.

With these new stores, Applegreen will now have 35 M&S Food shop-in-shop outlets and has plans to grow this number to more than 60 outlets in the medium term.

“Applegreen’s growing partnership with M&S supports our leading customer proposition in the Irish market and we are excited to continue investing in this first to market offer,” Mr Stapleton said.

Applegreen is also investing it is own branded offers through the Crafted Kitchen & Deli range including chicken fillet rolls and breakfast rolls.

The significant enhancements at Ballincollig and Lusk are part of Applegreen’s €1bm plan to expand its business in Ireland, the UK and the United States over the next five years. 

Applegreen has a significant business overseas, with operations in Britain and the United States, and a total of more than 430 locations and more than 700 branded food offers across its global network.  Applegreen currently employs about 16,000 people across its business and has further plans for growth in all of its major markets. It had a turnover of almost €4bn in its most recent annual accounts and its outlets serve about 180 million customers annually.

In the US, Applegreen has 181 sites, and more than 300 branded food outlets. It recently started work on a new $70m project to build four new highway service plazas in Colorado.

In the UK, Applegreen’s Welcome Break business operates 60 sites, including 36 motorway service areas, and 31 hotels. Applegreen plans to invest £400m in its UK business, which employs more than 6,000 people, over the next five years.

Applegreen is also planning a €85m investment to further expand its EV charging networks in Ireland, the UK and the United States. 

Applegreen opened its first service station in Ballyfermot in Dublin in 1992 and now operates almost 200 locations in the Irish market.