Nando’s

For some reason you cannot franchise Nando’s in the US.
My wife loves this place and was so enamored it caused the interest in franchising.
Nearest place for a fix is Canada!
Everything chicken and spicy here.
If you come for lunch, you have to come early or there will be a looooong line. It’s almost the equivalent of comfort food in the UK. It’s hard to go wrong here.
We shared a chicken with some sides, the corn was overcooked but otherwise everything was good. Had some good company on our most recent visit.
Always got time for a Nando’s.

I’m going to break my «don’t review chains that everyone already knows about» policy because Nando’s is the only tasty option I have found for lunch in Canary Wharf. Hopefully there are still more delicious options to be found, otherwise I guess its good if the food is bland so I’m motivated to lose weight.
If you live in London you probably already know what Nando’s is. If you are like me (in Canary Wharf on business) then: its grilled chicken with spicy sauce.
Yeah, I know, that sounds shitty (are we cool with saying «shitty» on Unilocal London? Oh well), but its not. It is actually a quality piece of chicken, well marinated, grilled to a good texture on the outside but still juicy on the inside, with an appropriate amount of sauce on top. Most importantly: they have multiple levels of spicy for the sauce. The «hot» option has the most flavor but if you are used to eating moderately spicy foods in NYC you are going to need to grab the extra hot and the double X hot.
The sides are fine, the other food is probably ok, but that open chicken with some spiceyness? After about a week in London I NEED that. I also like that the portion sizes aren’t trying to turn me into a fatty.
Thank you Canary Wharf Nando’s. Thank you for your salvation.
(oh, also, yes, its in a mall that gets slammed with people every day at lunch, be a reasonable human and expect stupid décor, loud area, focused staff, and ~ 10 pounds for your meal)

A group of us came for a lunch so we called for reservations and had our table ready.
Décor: It’s noisy since it’s not in it’s own restaurant and is in the ‘open’ in the plaza/​mall. But I like that, because it feels roomier. It does take away from the Nando’s typical style (wooden, more ‘wild’ lol) because the plaza is all white and open. If you go on a weekday, expect lots of business suits! It’s canary wharf!
Service: You order at the counter and they bring the food to you (so big hint if you’re going during some work lunch. read the menu WHILE standing in line!) Remember to pick up your sauces/​choices of dressing inside by the cashiers too!
Food: I got a mango salsa chicken leg with a mixed green side. The chicken leg was delicious because the marinade was yummy! We picked up a few of the sauces that you could dip in, but none of them came even close to having it just as they had marinated it. The salad was fresh.
While my meal filled me up okay, it was smaller than I had thought for what I paid for (less than 10 pounds, around 7 maybe?).
If any of you guys are from the U.S., think El Pollo Loco’s roasted chicken legs… with (better and more variety) marinades… and a bigger price tag on it.
Bottom Line: I like the idea of the restaurant, but cheaper prices or more food would have made it better.

Do you like chicken? You better.
First, you decide on what kind of sauce you want. Fiery spicy? Or plain? For those who want plain, you can choose lemon herb or 1 more flavor.
Also, do you want you just the chicken? Or would you like it in a hamburger bun? PIta bread?
Next you choose your sides. There are a multitude of options, with normal sides and «premium» sides. You can choose one normal side for price A, or choose 2 normals sides OR 1 premium side for price B. Normal sides includes corn on the cob, whipped potatoes, spicy rice, coleslaw etc. Premium sides include sweet mashed potatoes, ratatouille etc.
There is no waitress service here. You go up to the counter and order, and pay. Also, remember to take a table number beforehand, so you can tell the cashier your table number and they will bring the food to you. I had the chicken pita with whipped potatoes and corn on the cob. It was pretty good. The cashier asked me if I wanted pineapples or cheese in my sandwich, both cost a little extra. You will have to serve yourself drinks from the machines at the side, and grab your own silverware.
And for those of you that don’t eat chicken, there are vegetarian options too like vege burgers.