Opens in a new tab

Chopstix opens Maidstone site with franchise partner RTL Enterprises

3 Min. reading time
sesame noodles in white takeout box

Chopstix opened a restaurant on Week Street in Maidstone on 19 October 2026 with franchise partner RTL Enterprises, which now runs 16 units for the noodle bar chain. The Kent opening follows RTL’s recent site in Ipswich, as the brand, majority-owned by QSRP since 2024, keeps growing its south-east estate.


The new Chopstix sits at 28 Week Street, ME14 1RN, in Maidstone town centre. The brand’s store page lists it as open seven days a week from 11am to 8.30pm, with dine-in and delivery through Deliveroo, Uber Eats and Just Eat. Kent Live reported seating for up to 31 diners and more than 10 jobs. Chopstix already trades in Canterbury and at the Folkestone services on the M20. The menu runs from Chicken Katsu Curry to the brand’s Caramel Drizzle Chicken.

RTL Enterprises has worked with Chopstix for more than four years. It opened its first unit for the brand in Romford, and Maidstone takes it to 16 Chopstix sites, shortly after an opening in Ipswich. That makes RTL one of the multi-site partners the chain relies on to expand through franchising alongside its own company-run units.

Chopstix states on its own franchise page that it has more than 150 sites and that UK territories are available now. It lists four formats: high street, food court, kiosk and travel hub. It is looking for operators for high streets and shopping centres, and says it welcomes both experienced operators and newcomers.

The page publishes no franchise fee or investment figure. Switzerland-based quick-service platform QSRP, founded in 2014, took a majority stake in the business in October 2024. City AM reported the holding at 51 per cent, with the founders keeping 49 per cent. In its last full year before the deal, to 28 April 2024, Chopstix reported turnover of £64.5 million.

Chopstix was founded at Camden Market in 2002 by Sam Elia and Menashe Sadik, who remain involved in the business. Its accounts, as reported by City AM, show how fast it grew before the QSRP deal. Turnover was £38.6 million in 2022 and £51.6 million in the year to April 2023, before reaching £64.5 million in 2024. In that last year, pre-tax profit fell from £890,812 to £281,149, as the company invested in opening new sites.

Chopstix presents Maidstone as part of a push into high-footfall high streets and shopping destinations. In the same announcement, King linked the opening to the brand’s aim of becoming Europe’s leading Asian quick-service brand. RTL’s sites named so far run from Romford in east London to Ipswich in Suffolk and now Maidstone in Kent.

The brand has not named the next sites for RTL or for its other franchise partners. Its franchise page lists the high street, food court, kiosk and travel hub formats as the options open to them, a wider spread than most fast food franchises in the UK offer.

You may also like

beer pouring into a glass with golden foam
Star Pubs opens 250th Just Add Talent pub in Droylsden

Star Pubs has opened its 250th Just Add Talent pub, ...

chick fil a express counter and menu boards
Chick-fil-A plans first Greater Manchester drive-thru in Ashton-under-Lyne

Chick-fil-A could open its first Greater Manchester restaurant in Ashton-under-Lyne, ...

kfc takeaway with fries and crispy chicken
Aberystwyth is getting a Burger King, and the opening date is set

Burger King is due to open its first restaurant in ...

barista pouring milk into latte art
Cooks Coffee systemwide sales rise 14.3% in first half

Cooks Coffee Company reported on 10 November that systemwide store ...

golden beer pour at the pub tap
Proper Pubs reaches 250 sites and plans acquisitions

Proper Pubs, the community pub division of Admiral Taverns, has ...

iced coffee with foam and cinnamon swirl
Chaiiwala partners with One Retail for hospitals and travel hubs

Chaiiwala has agreed a partnership with One Retail, the retail ...

starbucks round sign on brick wall
Starbucks UK needs nearly 100 openings in FY27

Starbucks UK beat its target of 75 new stores in ...

sculpture géométrique rouge aux motifs de tigre
QFM Group’s KFC business reports turnover of £80 million

QFM Group, the Sheffield-based KFC franchisee, has reported turnover of ...

papa john’s pepperoni pizza logo close up
Papa Johns opens third Northern Ireland restaurant in Bangor

Papa Johns opens a restaurant at 173 Clandeboye Road in ...

jersey mikes subs storefront with outdoor seating
Jersey Mike’s opens its first UK restaurant in London

Jersey Mike’s opened its first UK restaurant on Monday 9 ...