Nando's PERi-PERi — Restaurant in Oak Brook

My fiancée and I eat at Nando's quite a bit and we almost always get the same thing because it's consistently good. The thigh chicken sandwich! Wow! But last night we went there and everything was HORRIBLE! The chicken was burnt and overcooked, it smelled like burnt plastic if you every smelled that, the fries were not crispy and horrible and not seasoned like we like it, we ordered on the app for 9pm and we got there at 8:52pm and asked if we can actually change it to dine-in cuz we were hungry. Then the young slender lady with short green hair (at the oak brook location) said that next time I should not order ahead but just being the app so that we get the rewards still and do it at the register. I said thank you and I understand and I was polite about it and told her that we were just hungry and didn't want to wait for it long. Asked if we could get a seat and if we can change it to dine-in. She said she wasn't sure and did not think so because there weren't many tables left.

My honey and I looked and the restaurant was only filled max 30% of the restaurant. So much room. So we don't know why she said that. She said we can sit at table 18 and she will bring the food out when it's ready. We wait. We wait. It's 9:05.its 9:10.its 9:15pm. No food. I went to go check at the registers where is our food that she said she would bring to us. It was sitting there and like I said earlier, fries were soggy and not seasoned, chickens were burnt, burnt plastic smell. Worst experience we ever had there and got no apologies, no one checking on us.

We were looking forward to our date night and tried to make the best of it but that lady with the short green hair and the cooks just gave 3+ strikes. So disappointing. Unless Nando's makes it right, I'm going to keep spreading this consistently over several platforms. Minimum free meal. We spent about $35 on our receipt because she got one side and I got 2 sides for our chicken sandwiches. She got the thigh chicken sandwich and I got the one with the pineapple and cheddar. Please...

What an Awesome Experience! Despite the Long Line which testifies to great food and service, Leah fid a great Job; Multitasking with Smiles, doubling on Take Out orders and In- Dining. Thanks Leah. Taquan was great too. I observed him looking out for all customers efficiently.

Update: August 4, 2024

Had a terrible experience..Funny how things can decline in 3 months. A badly behaved 'Manageress' that shows that what we thought was 'human error'-[ A missed item that was paid for]..was the norm for her and probably intentional. No apologies for the omission, rather a defence till she could not get out of it, with Table Proof , a Receipt and the 4 Customers. Such a shame! We share the good and the bad so we all get our Money's Worth, Rewarded Loyalty and the Restaurant gets a chance to pay and employ those that embrace their culture and promise. She refused to give her name at 4:30pm on Sunday August 4, 2024. The Woman was very Rude, tried to start arguments to which i did not take the bait but showed she is probably newly hired or just promoted ad in the years we have met up there montly all Managers have been efficient, capable and professional. This is a sad anomaly, but other innocent customers/ victims will suffer this for their Loyalty if not addressed immeadiately. She had no accountability! I will get my refund of $4.69 + tax or the missing item.having spent $ 146 for the evening. Thank you.

UPDATE: OCT 2024 UNBelievable! I've had to retrieve my first review. Todd and Mateo were awesome. Got our missed order with smiles and no aggravation Love you...

This was a really great experience. This South African/Portuguese fast(er) food is quite delicious. As you enter, you are greeted by a walk-up order station. Menus are by the door, so make sure you grab one as they don't have any where you order. (This is a suggestion to management...)

They have an extensive variety - we tried a few appetizers - olives, hummus and pita, nut. Their salad was very good - fresh and the dressing was perfect for the mix. But, the Peri-Peri Chicken is probably one of the best I've tried. They marinate it in a sauce with peppers, garic, oil, spices, and a few other things which permeate the meat. Then, I believe they grill it but there is a distinct smokey flavor. You can get it with a variety of sauces or you can get the sauces on the side. I tried a few of them, but being a person who likes hot, I first tried their medium (not hot enough) then their hot (better but still not quite the burn). They did have one that was hotter but I didn't know until after I was done.

After, I was so impressed I got take-out - two whole chickens, an order of their brussel sprouts, and a few bottles of sauce. The servings are quite large and the chickens made for four very large meals.

While I understand there are over 1,200 of these around the world, we learned there are only a few locations in the US - Washington, DC and Chicago markets. There are other PERi PERi options around which I plan to try, but if the food at these other stores are anywhere near what is served at Nando's, I expect PERi PERi chicken to spread wide and become a...