Jollibee, the largest fast-food chain in the Philippines where it has more than 450 restaurants, is opening a restaurant with a drive-thru in Orlando, one of the first in its plan to open 500 stores in the U.S. in the next five to seven years. The chain is known for its fried chicken.
The Orlando restaurant will be located at 11891 E. Colonial Drive — where Chuan Lu Garden used to be — in an outparcel of the Alafaya Commons shopping center. It is only 2 miles from the University of Central Florida.
This will be Jollibee’s third Florida location. The other two are in Jacksonville and Pinellas Park.
The Orlando building — for which Honeybee Foods Corp., (a direct subsidiary of Jollibee Foods Corporation that operates 37 stores in the U.S), has signed a 10-year lease — is for sale, Spencer O’Donnell, Colliers International broker, said. The new owner — a deal is close, he said — will be the landlord.
In 2020, the company’s store network expanded with the opening of a total of 338 stores – 81 in the Philippines and 257 abroad, according to the Philippine Star.
Ernesto Tanmantiong, Jollibee Foods Corp. (JFC) president and CEO, originally shared these expansion plans during a virtual event in June when he talked about the company’s great success in the U.S. market — thanks in large part to the large Filipino community in the U.S. His goal is to have half of his restaurants in the Philippines and half in other parts of the world.
Jollibee has embarked on an aggressive international expansion plan, with more than 270 international branches of its 1,300-restaurant chain in the United States (37 stores), Canada, Hong Kong, Macau, Brunei, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Italy and the United Kingdom.
According to the website for the yet-unopened store, “for the best fried chicken in Orlando, FL, nothing beats Jollibee. Our world famous fried chicken is juicy and tender and delicious inside and out. What makes our fried chicken special? Our chicken is marinated with our secret recipe, breaded to give that special crispiness and then perfectly fried. We also have a fantastic menu which includes our classic crispy chicken, fried chicken sandwiches, chicken tenders, family sized bucket meals and more.”
When is it opening?