A long line of excited people formed on Princes Street, despite the snow, waiting for the international Filipino restaurant chain, Jollibee, to open its doors in Edinburgh. This marks the first Jollibee to open in Scotland, following a large-scale European expansion plan including openings in London, Cardiff, and Madrid last year, and Rome in 2020. The brand will then quickly open its second Scotland location in Glasgow on Friday, 25th March.
On the first day of opening, the brand is already proving to be very popular, with over a hundred people lined up before the 10am opening and some queuing from 6:30am. The most ordered food item was its world-famous Chickenjoy – hand-breaded with a thin delicate coating for extreme crispiness, cooked with precision for maximum juiciness, and marinated to the bone for next-level flavor.
The restaurant launched a spicy version
of its Chickenjoy at the end of 2021, which is becoming one of the most popular
items with UK customers. Not far behind is the Jollibee Chicken Sandwich,
drawing fans with its hefty chicken fillet that’s marinated in a secret recipe,
breaded to crunch-perfection, and topped with its own special dressing.
Another top-seller amongst those who queued was the Jolly Spaghetti – loved for
its signature sweet-style sauce loaded with chunky slices of beef sausage, and
generous topping of cheese; and Spicy Chickenjoy – the fiery version of the
best-selling Chickenjoy. The Yumburger, Jollibee’s take on the classic burger,
was also a crowd-favorite.
The new Edinburgh restaurant, located at 136 Princes Street, Edinburgh, will be
open 10 am to 10 pm daily with a seating capacity of 92 across two floors. The
store is located on one of the capital’s busiest streets, with an iconic
location across from the park and sharing the street with popular shopping
destinations. The restaurant expects to see lots of students and young people
frequent the store, looking for new experiences and delicious food at great
value. Both the Edinburgh and Glasgow restaurants will serve halal meat.
Ernesto Tanmantiong,
CEO of Jollibee Group, said:“We
are happy to be opening our first Jollibee in Scotland and following up with
the next location in Glasgow after a few weeks. From a single store in 2018,
we’ve now grown to a network of 10 stores across the UK. We share this
milestone with all our customers across the UK and Europe, and we look forward
to bringing joy to even more locations soon.”
Jollibee was originally founded in 1978 and has over 1,500 stores across 17
countries, including the USA, Canada, Spain, Italy, Philippines, Singapore,
Vietnam, UAE, and the UK in England, Wales and now Scotland. It is known for
its tasty comfort food including burgers, fried chicken, loaded fries,
spaghetti, and pineapple juice.
Adam Parkinson,
Business Head of Jollibee Europe, said: “Edinburgh has always been a
top destination for us, with its large student population and dynamic cuisine
landscape. To open today and see the demand from our Scottish customers is
fantastic. We are confident that Jollibee will be an exciting addition to this
great city, and I would like to thank everyone who has come through the doors
already to support us here. If you haven’t tried Jollibee yet, I encourage you
to come down and taste the great menu like our bestsellers Chickenjoy and the
Jollibee Chicken Sandwich and see why people queue.”
A bit of Jollibee history
Jollibee is a much-loved restaurant chain founded in 1978 by Tony Tan Caktiong
and his family. It is the market leader in its home country’s restaurant
industry, with over 1500 locations across 17 countries as of December 31, 2021.
The brand has many accolades to its name, including the “best
international restaurant chain” by US-based food and lifestyle website,
Thrillist. Famously, the late celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain referred to
Jollibee as the “wackiest, jolliest place on Earth” in his hit CNN
food and travel documentary show, Parts Unknown.
Parent company, Jollibee Group, now has over 5,900 stores globally across 18
brands and operates in 34 countries. It owns 80% of The Coffee Bean and Tea
Leaf® business, which is present in 27 countries, and operates Michelin-starred
Tim Ho Wan in Mainland People’s Republic of China. It also owns and operates
Chowking, Greenwich, Red Ribbon, and Mang Inasal in the Philippines; Yonghe
King and Hong Zhuang Yuan in the Mainland People’s Republic of China; Smashburger
in the US, and Highlands Coffee, mostly in Vietnam. The Jollibee Group also
owns the franchise of Burger King, PHO24, Panda Express, and Yoshinoya in the
Philippines; and Dunkin’ in certain territories in the Mainland People’s
Republic of China. Jollibee Group also recently announced that it will purchase
shares equivalent to 51% ownership in Milkshop International Co. Ltd., a
popular Taiwanese bubble tea brand. The company is listed on the Philippine
Stock Exchange.
