Anyone for a bit of Peri Peri sauce? (Nandos)

Member Name: frankie1984

Product:	Nandos
Date:	20/04/08 (415 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good food, staff and a great ambiance

Disadvantages: Can be sometimes very busy if you don't like that

I have been in Nando's quite a few times and in particular the Trafford centre Nando's and so thought I would share my views on the place and the review will be of this particular branch.

The Nandos is located just inside one of the main entrances in the Orient area where all the restaurants and bars are located. It is on the ground level and is to the left hand side as you walk in. The restaurant now even has more tables outside of the main building since they refurbished the Trafford Centre to make more room and this was much needed as this place is always so busy at weekends that the queue to get a table is always long out the door. When you sometimes see the queue it can be quite off putting as it seems it will be a long wait but as the branch in the Trafford Centre is quite large there are always tables becoming available so the queue actually moves quite quickly!

The food:
The main dish served at Nando's restaurants is chicken. They use mainly Peri Peri sauce which dates back from when the Portuguese discovered it in Africa. Some of the branches do serve steak as well for those who fancy something else and the particular Trafford Centre branch also serves halal chicken. When you choose which meal you want you can also choose which sauce you want ranging from mild to extra hot or you can order without any.
Nandos also serve a variety of appetisers and deserts too which include things such as Peri Peri nuts and crunchy lemon pudding.
They serve a wide selection of drinks from hot and cold drinks including soft drinks and wines of which all soft drinks have free refills on.

How it works:
One of the things about Nando's that I like is that you can almost feel like you're at home as they have it as part self service and part waiter service. When you first go in depending on how busy it is you'll either go and find yourself a table or wait to be seated. Then once you've chosen your table you can go up and make your order at the till for your meal. Once you have ordered you can collect your own cutlery from the stand along with any sauces that you'll want to add to your food. The waiter or waitress will bring your drinks over as well as the food once it is ready.

Ambiance:
The Nando's restaurants are always decorated in quite a jazzy style with rightly coloured walls and African type art on the walls. The tables are always dark wood and so it does give a pleasant atmosphere inside. The music is always upbeat and even when it's busy I personally finds this adds to the atmosphere with all the chatter going on.

Sauces and marinades:
The sauces that are used in the Nandos restaurants can be bought in the restaurants or even in some high street stores such as tesco. However you can purchase them online at their own store which is at:
www.nandos.co.uk
At the website they also have recipes to try and other information that is quite detailed so it is worth checking this out.

Advance bookings and events:
Nando's don't really take advance table bookings as they are not that kind of place however if you have a really large group and are looking to visit on a day that would usually be very busy they can make arrangements to save a table for your group. Nando's also deal with outside catering for private events and this needs to be booked very far in advance. To arrange this you are best off contacting them to make arrangements.

Children:
Nando's believe that food for children should be enjoyable so they do a range of dishes that are suitable for them with less sauce on them - of course if you're children do like spicy food you can ask them for a sauce of their choice though! They call the menu for under 10 year old the ''Nandinos'' which is quite cute!

Prices:
I personally think that Nando's prices are really good as you are paying for really fresh food which is cooked in front of you - plus the food is always really tasty and a average meal for one person costs around £10 -12 which would normally be with a starter, main and drink along with a side dish.
Nando's also have a stamper card of which you can get stamped every time you order a meal of a certain kind. Once you have 6 stamps you can claim a free half chicken - not bad at all!

Another thing which is nice about the Nando's restaurants is that the food is cooked in the main restaurant so you can see it being done for you. Always much better if you ask me! Plus another bonus is that Nando's offer a take away service so you can always enjoy it at home if you want.

Overall Nando's is one of my favourite places to eat, especially in The trafford centre as it is a really relaxing place to sit down and chill in after shopping all day. The staff are always really nice in this particular branch and because of the shape too there are lots of tables that are tucked away in corners - perfect if either you've gone there for a romantic meal or just want a bit of peace away from everybody else!
Also, this particular branch considering how busy it is, has always been really clean when I've been in which for me is another big advantage it has over other restaurants in the Trafford centre.

Summary: A great place to eat out that feels homely whilst not having the bother of cooking yourself!