Nando's East Rand Mall Drive Thru — Restaurant in Gauteng

I went to Nando's East Rand Mall around 5pm on Wednesday, the 11th of June 2025. After ordering a quarter chicken with a side of wedges and a coke. I paid and proceeded to the collection window. There had been one other car behind when I paid. To my surprise, after handing my receipt and ticket for the gate, the waitress at the collection window, looked behind my car. She saw that there were no other cars and had asked me to reverse my car at the drive thru.

I was very perplexed by this because it is very unsafe to reverse one's vehicle in a drive thru, because drive thrus are intended for vehicles to drive in one direction.

She had rudely waved her hand at me, to signal that I should reverse. She did not explain why I had to reverse my vehicle. I have never been asked to reverse my vehicle at a drive thru. I have been coming to to this specific Nando's at East Rand Mall for over twenty years.

When collecting my food, I had asked the waitress if she was new, how long she had worked there. She said she's been working there for 9 months. So I explained that she wasn't supposed to ask me to reverse in a drive thru. She said the wedges were still being prepared. So I explained that when an order is still being prepared a customer can wait in the parking lot, which I've done before. She nonchalantly agreed with so much attitude, that what she did by asking me to reverse was actually wrong.

Many times at a drive thru, as a customer, one simply waits at the collection window and reaches out of their car to collect their food when it's ready.

When the other car had passed the paying point, this Wednesday, they would have been behind me at the collection point, shortly afterwards, which was the case.

I don't think the waitress understands how dangerous it is to ask a customer to reverse at a drive thru. The waitress has no respect at all, because she then rudely stuck her hand outside the window, to signal that I should approach the collection window again to collect my food.

The attitude of that waitress is something I've shared with my family, because we've been coming there for many years and that incident would result in us not coming there again.

Customers do need to be treated with respect, which unfortunately wasn't the case with me this past Wednesday. I am very disappointed because this is the one Nando's drive thru that I liked going to, until...

What a terrible visit to this Nando's restaurant. Granted I arrived and ordered just after 20:30, unaware that they were going to close at 21:00. Firstly to try and find a way to get in is ridiculous, it is within the parking area of the East Rand Mall. When I got to the counter I looked around and there were still a number of patrons in the restaurant. I ordered what I wanted and went to sit down. I waited from 20:43 and since I arrived I saw where I was going to sit, there was no one in that section but the table next to where I was going to sit hadn't been cleaned. Eventually one of the ladies that had been cleaning in the other area of the restaurant came to me at 21:00 and told me that there was no salad and that they can only give me chips. By now they were telling the other patrons that they were closed. Then most of the staff stood at the counter and were all watching me, as if to say, "ok you have your food hurry up we want to go home." I felt that I was being hurried and still the table next to where I was sitting had not been cleared. Really disgusting. I will say, I will not be going back to that franchise of...

The place is dark and not safe at night. The nandos should put on their lights around the building and arrange with the mall to put up one huge light that shows the parking. One night my car badge was stolen in their parking, I also heard that the car guard broke into another customers car. This nandos should really consider us their loyal customers by putting lighting especially for females with kids. While in the drive through there are beggars standing at the last collection window. It's so dark you can bearly even see that someone is standing there. Pics attached to...