Kent is getting its very first Taco Bell as the popular American fast-food chain bids to increase its presence in the UK.

There are only 17 Taco Bell restaurants across the country, compared to almost 6,000 in the US, but the 18th is set to open in Dartford.

It will be taking its place in the town’s High Street in a unit to be left vacant by KFC, which is in the process of moving into the nearby Priory Shopping Centre.

KFC in Dartford High Street, soon to be moving to the nearby Priory Shopping Centre

Signage has started to go up for the new KFC near the Lowfield Street entrance to the shopping centre and a planning application for illuminated Taco Bell signs to go up at the High Street unit has been approved.

Once open, the menu will consist of a range of Mexican favourites like burritos, quesadillas, and — of course — tacos, available with beef, chicken, pork, various cheeses, vegetables, and sauces.

For now the closest Taco Bell to Kent is across the Thames in Essex, at Lakeside Shopping Centre in Thurrock, but it will join a number of similar chains already doing business in Dartford’s town centre, including McDonald’s, Wimpy, Subway, and the aforementioned KFC.

Planning documents show what the unit looks like now (left) and how it'll look once Taco Bell moves in (right). Picture: Dartford council planning portal

Another KFC recently opened nearby in Crayford, next to the new Aldi supermarket.

Reaction to the prospect of an additional fast food restaurant in Dartford has been mixed, with Public Health England last year revealing that it was more densely packed with such diners than almost anywhere else in the county.

Dartford also had the second largest percentage of older primary school children in Kent who are overweight or obese, topped only by Gravesham.

There is no word yet on a potential opening date, but KentOnline has approached Taco Bell for comment.