Taco Bell to open first New Zealand outlet next month

Mexican fast food chain Taco Bell reportedly will open its first New Zealand store at The Brickworks in New Lynn’s LynnMall.

Clark Wilson, general manager of Taco Bell NZ for Restaurant Brands, confirmed the location of the first store to NZ Herald.

“We’re thrilled to reveal Taco Bell will be opening its doors in Auckland, early this November,” Wilson said.

Restaurant Brands operates the New Zealand franchises for KFC, Pizza Hut and Carl’s Jr, and operates a KFC franchise in NSW, Australia, as well as Taco Bell and Pizza Hut franchises in Hawaii, Guam and Saipan.

The NZX-listed company earlier this year said it would open 60 Taco Bell stores across Australia and New Zealand over the next five years. In September, it revealed the locations of the first new stores to open in Australia, with stores set to open in Melbourne, Sydney and Newcastle.

The Taco Bell in LynnMall in West Auckland will feature an open kitchen, customer-curated music playlists and free WiFi. The store also reportedly will serve alcohol.

The Brickworks is a relatively new dining precinct at LynnMall, launched in 2015. It currently is home to Turkish and Greek restaurant Bodrum Kitchen, meat and wine bar Cleaver & Co, pizza and pasta restaurant Goode Brothers, Vietnamese restaurant Hansan,