Taco Bell to open on site of shuttered White Castle in Melville

No need for a run for the border to get a taco fix.

The site of a former White Castle restaurant on Route 110 in Melville is slated to be the home of a Taco Bell.

Last month, Taco Bell of America LLC received site plan approval from the Town of Huntington Planning Board for a restaurant at 540 Walt Whitman Rd.

The plan calls for the vacant building to be demolished and a Taco Bell with a drive-through window and outdoor seating built to replace it.

The 2,430-square-foot building will be built on the 1.045 acre parcel, with an improved layout to accommodate the drive-through, town officials said. It will be able to accommodate 50 indoor diners, have seating for 12 diners outside and 37 parking spaces.

"Even though I will miss White Castle I’m glad to see another business taking its place so quickly," said Town Supervisor Chad Lupinacci. "It shows the resilience of Huntington’s business community."

Taco Bell of America LLC applied to the town’s zoning board of appeals on Dec. 10, 2020, town officials said. A zoning board hearing was held Feb. 11, 2021, to request special-use permits for the drive-through and outdoor dining area, and variances regarding parking spaces and signage. The board approved those requests later that month.

The location, on the east side of Walt Whitman Road, had been used on at least one occasion last fall as a pop-up Donald Trump paraphernalia site, with merchandise of the former president spread out on tables on the front lawn.

The new Taco Bell will join other restaurants and coffee shops in the area, including those that serve halal and Italian foods.

Town officials said there was no formal tracking of how long the building had been empty, but the previous tenant passed its final annual Fire Marshal inspection in 2019.

Town officials said the applicant must now go to the building department for permits.