A new Taco Bell was planned for Granite Street in Westerly, but a power issue pushed back its anticipated opening. In September, the town said power needed to be turned on and final inspections completed before it could issue a certificate of occupancy.
The planned return followed years of anticipation. Westerly's previous Taco Bell had closed more than a decade earlier.
A Long-Awaited Comeback Years in the Making
Interest in a returning Taco Bell had surfaced on social media. A Facebook page had previously been created to try to save the original restaurant when it closed, and social-media users expressed impatience as the new location's opening approached.
Those delays had concrete explanations. According to South County Star, a power issue pushed back plans to open by Oct. 1, with Town Manager Shawn Lacey saying at the time that the latest information pointed to an early October opening instead. The same report noted that Westerly had not yet issued a certificate of occupancy, with the town saying power needed to be turned on and final inspections completed first.
Inside the New Granite Street Location
Rather than build new, the franchisee renovated the existing 2,575-square-foot building that had previously housed a Dunkin' on Granite Street, per the same South County Star report. The finished restaurant includes 44 seats, a drive-thru lane, a pickup window, a menu board and an illuminated “Late Night” sign, and now features touchscreen order kiosks, a front counter, an order pickup area, a side entrance and a dedicated late-night pickup window.
Those late-night plans got formal backing in September. The Westerly Licensing Board unanimously approved extended hours for the restaurant on Sept. 15, allowing it to stay open until 3 a.m., though the approval stopped short of permitting service before 6 a.m., according to Uprise RI.
The Franchisee Behind the Planned Restaurant
Desert de Oro Foods is the franchisee for the planned Westerly restaurant.
