Ireland’s quick service restaurant chains added a net 32 outlets in the year to August 2026, lifting the combined estate to 1,603 locations in Meaningful Vision’s latest data. Chain outlet numbers rose 2.0%, a turnaround after a 2.5% fall the year before.
Chicken did most of the heavy lifting. The segment grew 19.6% year on year, well ahead of every other category, while bakeries, sandwich shops and coffee chains kept shrinking.
Which segments grew and which shrank
Ethnic fast food was the second-fastest riser, up 9.3%. Pizza gained 3.7% and burger chains 2.3%. On the other side, bakery and sandwich outlets fell 3.6%, coffee shops slipped 0.9% and the catch-all “other quick service” group dropped 4.6%.
| Segment | Change in outlets, year to August 2026 |
|---|---|
| Chicken | +19.6% |
| Ethnic fast food | +9.3% |
| Pizza | +3.7% |
| Burger | +2.3% |
| Coffee | -0.9% |
| Bakery and sandwich | -3.6% |
| Other quick service | -4.6% |
The total is still slightly below where it stood in August 2024, so this year’s gain recovers only part of the ground lost before it.
Who is opening, and who is closing
The chicken surge comes from newcomers. Wingstop, Popeyes, Dave’s Hot Chicken and Slim Chickens all appear among the entrants, alongside German Doner Kebab, Taco Bell and Wendy’s. Wingstop, Slim Chickens and German Doner Kebab arrived in December 2025, and Popeyes and Dave’s Hot Chicken opened their first Dublin stores in the second quarter of 2026.
Established names kept growing too. Apache Pizza, Esquires, Insomnia Coffee Company, McDonald’s and Nando’s all added locations in the second quarter, when 26 stores opened across 17 chains.
Closures were concentrated among older brands. Costa Coffee closed 11 outlets, Starbucks and Thunders Home Bakery 8 each, O’Briens and Abrakebabra 6 each, and Pizza Hut and Freshly Chopped 5 each. Those are closure counts, not net changes, so some of these chains may also have opened sites over the same period.
What Meaningful Vision says it means
Maria Vanifatova, chief executive of Meaningful Vision, described the shift as “a redistribution within the market”. She had earlier said that, because the Irish market is relatively small, a single store can make an impact, and that operators need to work out whether new brands are growing demand or pulling visits from nearby rivals.
Operators are advised to read openings and closures alongside traffic, competitor prices, menus and promotions. Meaningful Vision also found Dublin menu prices were about 10% higher than Belfast in 2025, though higher prices do not automatically mean higher margins once local operating costs, taxes and demand are counted.
Why UK and US brands keep coming
Ireland makes sense for UK and US brands: a shared language, cultural similarities and an international customer base. Each opportunity still has to be judged locally. At the end of 2025, Meaningful Vision also noted investment shifting towards formats that do well at lunchtime and in the afternoon, which suits the chicken and ethnic fast food chains now expanding fastest.
