€1M UPGRADE AT MCDONALD’S

MCDONALD’S AT DRINAGH, ONE OF THE BUSIEST IN THE COUNTRY, WILL NOW BE ‘ONE OF THE FANCIEST’

MCDONALDS restaurant in Wexford is undergoing a complete refurbishment at a cost of more than €1 million to transform it into one of the most modern premises within the franchise in Ireland.

The Drinagh restaurant which is one of the busiest in the country, has closed its doors for renovations and will re-open on Wednesday, November 29 with a brand new look including self-service kiosks in the lobby and two drive-through lanes instead of one.

‘It will be a total refurbishment. When it’s finished, it will be one of the fanciest in the country,’ said John Byrne, operations manager for Bernard Byrne who owns both the Wexford and the Carlow McDonalds franchises.

Wexford is among the first to benefit from the global rollout of a McDonalds upgrade programme called ‘Experience the Future’ with the UK, Europe and Australia leading the way. ‘Wexford won’t have seen anything like it. There’s a new digital service system and even table service,’ said John.

Self-service kiosk machines are being installed in the lobby, allowing customers to order and pay for their food before sitting at a table where McDonalds staff will bring them their food. A counter service will still be available.

The kiosks are currently only in operation in a handful of restaurants in Ireland including, Dublin, Cork and Kilkenny.

The work will also include a full refurbishment of the kitchen with a new gourmet burger range to be introduced in January.

Wexford is one of the most popular McDonalds restaurants in the country and once the improvements have been carried out, business should ‘go

through the roof ’, according to the operations manager.

‘Our aim is to be in the top five in Ireland which is a fair achievement given that there are 90 MsDonalds in the country’, he said.

McDonalds Wexford which employs 80 staff, including 40 full-time personnel, has served over 4 million customers in the eight years since it opened in Drinagh Retail Park in 2009.

The restaurant is offering its original furniture and fittings to a charity or voluntary club that may have a use for them. ‘We have them on site. They are in perfect condition but they will be going to the skip unless someone takes them.

‘We would be happy to hand them over to a charity or youth club,’ said John who can be contacted by emailing byrdanlimited@gmail.com

LEFT: How the revamped Wexford McDonald’s will look when it reopens to the public at the end of the month. ABOVE: The Drinagh restaurant and drive-through is currently closed as work continues.