| Product: |
Nandos |
| Date: |
29.05.08 (82 review reads) |
| Rating: |
 |
Advantages: Great food and atmosphere. Prices good, especially on refillables.
Disadvantages: Very limited menu, not really worth going if you don't like chicken.
Nando's is a Portuguese themed restaurant that specialises in chicken (in fact, it serves little else as a main meal other than vegetarian burgers/pittas and salads). I've eaten at various Nando's' in London, Sheffield, Nottingham and Manchester, so this review will be quite general.
A little background: despite emphasising everything Portuguese, it's actually owned by South Africans. Though they are contemplating franchising in the future, at the moment all the restaurants are operated solely by Nando's people. This has the advantage of standardising the menu and service. Despite this, however, it's not predictable visually as each Nando's restaurant is styled differently, though keeping the same colours and atmosphere. This makes gives a nice variety for each restaurant, whilst keeping the food and the service the same, including the quirky statements like a chicken's top speed and 'we love vegetarians - all our chickens are vegetarian'.
One definite advantage of Nando's is the price. At £4.95 for a chicken pitta (with salad, mayo and sauce), it usually costs two of us around £15 to eat in total (including bottomless fizzy drinks and sides of chips). This way, as students we can go out to eat without feeling guilty, and my local Nando's is next to a cinema which charges £5 for a hot dog, so it's great as part of a night out (fill up at Nando's, then not tempted to spend a ton on cinema snacks). I also love Nando's fat free bottomless yoghurt. Fill up as many times as you like from one (usually random) of vanilla, chocolate or strawberry - guilt free and great value for money.
Those who dislike Nando's complain about having to go to the till to order rather than have waiter service from the beginning. However, I don't particularly mind this as it reduces the time spent waiting for food and a server and there's none of that 'Do you need another minute?' etc. wasting time on the waiter's side. After you've placed your order at the till (with optional tip, which is a bit odd as you haven't received a service yet) and collected drinks/glasses, it's time to make a pit stop to collect Nando's famous sauces, typical condiments like vinegar and ketchup, collect cutlery and any extra plates, and fill empty glasses. Nando's sauces range from Wild Herb and Garlic to the super spicy Extra Hot. Word of warning: too much sauce can give you massive stomach cramps that last for a day or two and are not fun, so don't go crazy with it.
After you've sorted everything at your table, your food should arrive soon after and you can tuck in. During your meal, your server should grab the coloured chicken from your table and check everything's ok with your food. At this point you have the chance to order anything else you might want and pay at the table.
Summary: A cheap night out, but feels like you've spent a lot.
|
|
