Jollibee arrives in Cardiff for first location in Wales
Taking over the former Burger King location on the corner of Queen Street and Charles Street in the centre of the city, the two-story site will have a seating capacity of 124.
It will be Jollibee's fifth UK site, and closely follows the recent launch of the group's new flagship restaurant in London's Leicester Square.
Similarly to that site, Jollibee Cardiff will feature a new store design and branding that reflects Jollibee's Filipino heritage and is based on a customer-first approach designed to cater especially to 18 to 30-year-olds.
The building will be painted in a deep purple, with one side of the building covered in a wall mural.
Jollibee was founded in the Philippines back in 1978, and currently operates close to 1500 locations worldwide.
The chain is best known for its Chickenjoy fried chicken; Jolly Spaghetti, which is topped with chopped up hot dogs and tomato sauce; and a breakfast dish of corned beef with garlic rice and egg.
It opened its first UK restaurant in London’s Earl’s Court back in 2018.
The group has previously confirmed that it intends to open at least six new UK locations this year, with sites in Edinburgh, Newcastle, Leeds, Nottingham and Reading already confirmed alongside the restaurant in Cardiff.
Jollibee aims to have at least 50 stores across the UK by 2025. It also hopes to grow its presence in Italy, Spain and other European markets.
“Opening our first Jollibee in Wales is part of our continued commitment to expand across Europe and bring our delicious crispy fried chicken to more people around the world,” says Ernesto Tanmantiong, CEO of Jollibee Group.
Adam Parkinson, business head of Jollibee Europe, recently told MCA, BigHospitality's sister site, that Jollibee's ambition is to eventually overcome the dominance of KFC to become the number one fried chicken brand in Europe.
He said: “KFC has a long history in Europe, and to be number one you have to have the store count. Our first goal is to fend off some of the smaller players that are coming in, to settle just underneath KFC.
"There should be no reason why we eventually can’t take the top spot in certain countries, if not in the whole of Europe. But it takes time, so we’re not jumping to that right now."
