KFC begs 'don't all rush at once' as it re-opens two Northampton drive-thrus

Good news for Northampton's chicken lovers .. two of the town's KFC drive-thrus are OPEN!

But the fried chicken chain is begging customers not to swamp restaurants at the B&Q Retail Park, Towcester Road, and Sixfields after seven weeks without fast food.

Two of Kentucky's three Northampton sites are among 55 nationwide offering a limited menu at its drive-thru windows alongside deliveries, which started up last week. The restaurant in Kingsthorpe is open for delivery only while The Riverside restaurant remains closed.

But massive queues were reported at some sites around the country as hungry customers went for their first KFC takeaway since March 23.

A statement from the worldwide brand's UK arm said: "We’ve been working hard to responsibly reopen our restaurants and now we’re spreading our wings a little further.

"In line with government advice, we’ve decided to open the drive-thru lanes at 55 of our UK restaurants that are already open for delivery.

"We know it’s tempting, but please, please don’t all rush at once! Delivery remains the best way to get your fried chicken fix – we just want to offer a little more choice to those who are already on the road for essential journeys or on their way home from difficult shifts.

"Please, please check your local restaurant's drive-thru is open before you visit. And take a look at our limited menu – it's well worth checking – nobody wants to be queuing unnecessarily."

The drive-thrus will follow stringent social distancing and safety procedures with smaller kitchen teams, signage and floor stickers helping delivery drivers keep a safe distance, and contactless handover of food.

Both the Northampton sites are open from noon until 9pm daily for drive-thru and delivery.

KFC joins a group of fast-food outlets and coffee shops, including Nando’s, Burger King and Pret a Manger, to start phased re-openings during the Covid-19 lockdown.

On Wednesday, TGI Fridays re-opened its Sixfields restaurant for click and collect.

McDonalds will open 15 trial sites in London, Luton, Gillingham, Chelmsford, London and Luton for takeaway only next week before opening more stores.