McDonald’s in Laois gets green light for major drive-thru upgrade

McDonald’s in Portlaoise has been given the go ahead to push through with their plans to upgrade their drive-thru and restaurant.

In September, McDonald’s applied to Laois County Council for planning permission to carry out modifications to their drive-thru and restaurant in Portlaoise.

The fast food giant has been in operation at The Kyle Centre in Portlaoise for almost 20 years.

Across Ireland, McDonald’s Restaurants of Ireland Ltd have been reinvesting in their portfolio with various applications lodged in the past number of years for extensions and improvement works to existing locations.

The purpose of these works are to enhance the efficiency of drive-thru and in-dining operations.

The approved plans for the McDonald’s in Portlaoise centre around the provision of a new dual-ordering system for the drive-thru which is hoped to improve its efficiency.

The dual-ordering system will allow two customers to place their order at the same time which will speed up the ordering process in the drive-thru.

In order to facilitate this new dual-ordering system, it is required to partly demolish the existing corral and bin store area and provide for a revised corral area and new remote bin store.

Associated tactile paving is also being provided for staff to safely access the new remote bin store.

New menus and signage in the drive-thru lane have also been approved by the Council as part of the application.

McDonald’s also sought permission for minor internal alterations to the restaurant to provide a revised kitchen and dining layout.

This revised layout is also aimed at improving operations for staff in the kitchen and with food preparations as well as providing a revised ordering and dining experience for customers.

The planners stated that although the works are “minor in nature”, they will “significantly enhance and improve the overall operations and efficiency" of the restaurant.

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