US coffee chain opening cafe at south Belfast shopping centre

The brand is taking on a unit at Lesley Forestside, and will join cafes such as Caffe Nero and Jamaica Blue at the centre on the Saintfield Road.

It appears to be taking a unit outside the main building itself, close to the roundabout and entrance of the centre on the Upper Galwally side.

It will be the latest new hospitality business to plan opening at the centre, just months after it was purchased by former KFC tycoon Michael Herbert.

Fried chicken brand Popeyes looks set to open its first restaurant at the centre.

The US-headquartered chicken business has agreed deals to open its first restaurants here.

The firm announced it was planning on rolling out more than 300 locations right across the UK, and initially has eyed sites such as Glasgow, Cambridge and Cardiff.

Popeyes, which competes directly with global chicken giant KFC, has around 3,400 restaurants across the world.

It said it has a goal of opening 350 UK restaurants over the next 10 years, after rapid growth in continental Europe in recent years.

And Peri peri chicken giant Nando’s looks set to open its latest restaurant here at Forestside.

The South African-owned firm will take one of the newly-constructed units at the centre, just off the Saintfield Road, according to new plans.

The newly-named Lesley Forestside will soon be home to a range of food operators. That also includes US fried chicken firm Popeyes, while it’s also expected burger business Five Guys could take a unit.

Nando’s now has around 10 locations in Northern Ireland, and opened its ninth restaurant at the Odyssey complex in Belfast.