Get lickin' those fingers! - KFC opens in Sleaford today

Area manager for the Burger King franchise at Eurogarages, Jason Doe and restaurant manager Maria Lobb outside teh newly opened Burger King and KFC restaurants at Holdingham Roundabout. EMN-180627-133601001

The premises, formerly Little Chef was purchased by Lancashire-based company Eurogarages who have invested in bringing the franchise to the busy site alongside Burger King.

Sleaford area customers were already flocking to the food outlets as soon as it opened at lunch time today (Wednesday) giving staff time to iron out any issues before the weekend rush, explained manager Maria Lobb.

The old Little Chef closed its doors in February and work began on completely converting the premises and Mrs Lobb, who was in charge of the old restaurant too, said: “It’s worth the wait.

Opening today - the new KFC and Burger King outlets. EMN-180627-133630001

“The mood was sombre back when we closed, not knowing what it would be like. We had been promised by the previous owners but investment had not been forthcoming. To have a company willing to spend a lot on us to bring us up to the current era has certainly been worthwhile.”

The entire restaurant layout has been rotated to face into the car park, with the drive-thru lane looping round the rear. “This is a lot more inviting and pleasing to the eye,” said Mrs Lobb.

It has created a great deal more employment too, recruiting up to 80 posts for KFC and another seven for Burger King amounting to about 90 staff in total.

“We have had a lot of people excited about it opening. Hundreds have stopped while building work has been going on asking about it and I have been trying to keep people updated via Facebook posts,” said the restaurant manager.

She expected trade on the site to increase considerably, explaining: “It was holding us back to have a stagnant brand (Little Chef), now we have two big brands. It is the first time Eurogarages have tried having a Burger King and Little Chef alongside each other.”