A US fried chicken giant has flung open its doors to serve customers in Northern Ireland for the very first time.
Chick-Fil-A is now welcoming drooling diners to its new branch at Applegreen’s Lisburn South Services on the M1 – the first location outside of North America.
Popular menu items including the brand’s famous original chicken sandwich, signature lemonade and nuggets that are hand-breaded throughout the day.
It’s the first of the two outlets in NI with the second branch set to open at Applegreen’s Templepatrick service station in March.
Caroline Cherington, regional operations director for Applegreen in Northern Ireland previously said: “We are delighted to be bringing Chick-fil-A to Northern Ireland with this new partnership agreement.
Chick-Fil-A grand opening at Applegreen, Lisburn.
“Having successfully operated Chick-fil-A restaurants in the US for several years, we know how much customers love their high-quality food, and we’re excited to introduce this brand to a new audience.
“Our focus is on delighting our customers on the road with exceptional hospitality and the brands they love, with the aim of delivering the best experience to customers on the move.”
The new partnership will create 70 new jobs bringing Applegreen’s overall employment numbers in the region to 351.
Chick-fil-A is a major fast food brand in North America where it has more than 3,000 restaurants.
It describes itself as the “third-largest quick service restaurant company by sales volume in the US”.
The deal with Applegreen has already proven successful in the US where it has 14 food outlets at service stations there.
However, Chick-fil-A will not open on Sundays in accordance with a policy adopted across their locations to ensure employees have a day off.
Beyond the forecourt of the two sites, Belfast has been identified as one of the four UK cities the company wishes to launch restaurants in over the next two years.
The brand plans to open five restaurants across Belfast, Leeds, Liverpool, and London as part of its UK-wide investment plans.