Applegreen plans four Taco Bell openings across Ireland

Applegreen plans to open four more Taco Bell restaurants in Ireland before the end of 2026, creating 80 jobs and taking its network to nine outlets. The expansion adds locations in Dublin, Galway and Kilkenny to a sub-franchise operation that began serving Irish customers in September 2025.

Four locations named for the next rollout

The newly announced restaurants are planned for Swords Village and Inchicore in Dublin, Tuam Road in Galway, and Paulstown in County Kilkenny, according to Travel Extra’s report of 7 November.

All four are scheduled to open before the end of the year. The announcement therefore sets out a near-term expansion programme across three counties, rather than a longer-term ambition without identified locations.

The 80 new jobs relate to the four-restaurant expansion as a whole. That employment commitment accompanies a planned increase to nine Taco Bell outlets within Applegreen’s network, with eight in the Republic of Ireland and one in Northern Ireland by the conclusion of 2026.

These remain planned additions. The year-end total should be read as the expected size of the network once the announced restaurants have opened, rather than the number already trading at the time of the announcement.

Growth follows the September 2025 Irish debut

Applegreen introduced Taco Bell to Irish consumers in September 2025, opening the brand’s first Irish restaurant at its M3 plaza in Dunshaughlin, County Meath. The plaza represented a €15 million investment.

The latest announcement follows further additions during 2026, including a Taco Bell location at Junction 9 on the M7 in Naas. Together, the initial launch, subsequent additions and four newly named sites show how Applegreen has developed the brand’s Irish presence through a sequence of openings.

The planned year-end network would span both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. That distinction matters when assessing its scale: the nine-outlet figure covers Applegreen’s operation across the island, while the Republic of Ireland total is eight.

For Ireland’s franchise community, the story is a specific example of a brand expanding through an established operating partner. Applegreen is the business behind this rollout, with the new restaurants forming part of its Taco Bell sub-franchise operation.

Expansion sits within a wider investment programme

The Taco Bell rollout forms part of Applegreen’s multi-year €1 billion strategic growth and investment programme across its travel plaza network.

That wider figure provides context for the operator’s development plans, but it is not the investment value of the four Taco Bell restaurants. Similarly, the €15 million associated with the Irish launch refers to the M3 plaza in Dunshaughlin, not solely to the Taco Bell restaurant within it.

Keeping those figures separate gives a clearer picture of what has been announced: four additional restaurants, 80 new jobs and a planned nine-outlet Taco Bell network by the end of 2026, within a much broader Applegreen investment programme.

Travel Extra also reports that further locations are planned for next year. For now, the four named sites provide the clearest immediate milestones against which to follow the expansion.

What the announcement means for prospective franchisees

The development is relevant to people tracking new brands and openings in Ireland’s franchise community, but it should not be confused with an invitation to take on one of these restaurants.

The announcement concerns growth within Applegreen’s sub-franchise operation. It does not advertise the Swords Village, Inchicore, Tuam Road or Paulstown locations as businesses available for prospective franchisees to acquire or operate.

For anyone comparing franchise opportunities, that is an important distinction. A brand’s expanding footprint can be useful market context, but an opening announcement is not, by itself, confirmation that individual franchise applications or territories are available.

Practical takeaway: Watch for confirmation that the four named restaurants have opened, and distinguish Applegreen’s network expansion from any separately advertised opportunity to become a franchise operator.