We Tried Nando's New Sides And Salads And Here Are Our Thoughts

"I feel like Nando's really cares about me getting my 5-a-day"

This month Nando's have added brand new salads and sides to their ever-growing menu!

Kris Kirkham / Nando's

The new additions, which include a watermelon and feta salad and long stem broccoli, are part of Nando's plan to add "more colour" and "more balanced items" to their menu – just in time for summer!

As a team who goes to Nando's literally every week, we of course decided to try out these new menu items immediately. Here are our thoughts...

Watermelon & Feta Salad

Kris Kirkham / Nando's, BuzzFeed

I’m totally surprised by this addition, watermelon and feta is boujie AF – are we on a Med island? I love this food combo and I love Nando’s, so I was excited to try this! I tried it with some chicken which made it taste even better – the spiciness of the sauce (I’m a hot thank you) with the coolness of the watermelon was really nice. I think when it finally gets warm here and I want something light and refreshing, it'll definitely something I’d order! – Remee

I’m a big fan of watermelon so when I found out this side was being added I was HYPED! The feta really compliments it well and it’s the perfect accompaniment to a spicy hot wing when you’re in need of a little cool down. I would definitely order this but I’d throw some of the hot sauce on the actual watermelon for a taste sensation. – Ben

I love watermelon so I was very excited to try this, but a bit apprehensive about eating it with cheese. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised – the sweetness of the watermelon gave the salad a tasty kick, and I can imagine this would be really refreshing in the height of summer. I wouldn’t typically get a salad from Nando’s, but I think the watermelon makes this feel like a bit of a treat, so I’d definitely order it again. – Hani

Two words: Watermelon chaser. It worked well to refresh your mouth after eating some hot chicken. I would definitely order this. What's more, the fact that it’s chargrilled is something a little out of the ordinary, would def recommend! – Nyall

Overall Verdict: 9/10

Grains ‘n Greens

Kris Kirkham / Nando's, BuzzFeed

This salad is the ultimate health kick. It was a bit heavy on the spinach, but the broccoli and cucumber gave it a nice crunch. While it does seem a bit like they threw in every green vegetable they could find, it actually kinda works. I also loved the grains in this – but it definitely needed some Nando's sauce on top! If I was trying to cut down on my carbs I’d definitely order this, but I don’t think I’ll be swapping it for my creamy mash just yet. – Hani

I mean this salad seems like too much “health” for me personally. I'm here for the broccoli, but it needs something else – like halloumi or avocado, or a creamy dressing to give it a bit more oomph. – Remee

I’m not the biggest salad person but I enjoyed this. I would have appreciated more grains in it, this seemed like the greens outweighed the grains by quite a lot. – Nyall

I’ll be honest, I wasn’t that excited for this. I think if you’re feeling like you need to go for a healthier option this is a great choice, but personally, if I’m going to Nando’s, I'm all about the chicken and carbs. That being said, the salad was nice and fresh and the crunchy broccoli was a really nice addition. I would definitely eat this if it was ordered with lots of different sides, but I wouldn’t order this instead of my regular sides. – Ben

Overall Verdict: 6/10

Long Stem Broccoli

Kris Kirkham / Nando's, BuzzFeed

I feel like Nando’s seem to really care about me getting my 5-a-day and I appreciate that. I mean, this was just broccoli (well, long stem – so the fancy kind) so don’t expect for your mind to be blown eating it on its own, however holy crap am I glad this side exists. I feel like Nando’s is a place where you can eat a well-balanced meal, unlike other restaurants, and so them upping their veg is only a good thing in my eyes! Would definitely order (but obvs with chicken and mash). – Remee

Broccoli is literally my fave vegetable so this was always going to be a good side for me, It was definitely tasty and healthy but at the end of the day, it was just broccoli. I think if it had a little something extra to it like a special sauce I would be more likely to order this but seeing as it’s something I make at home like every day, I don’t think I will be ordering it out. – Ben

Broccoli is the king of the vegetables, and long stem broccoli is the king of broccoli so it’s no surprise that I really enjoyed this, and can wholeheartedly say I would order this. -– Nyall

I think we can all agree that broccoli and chicken are a delicious duo, so they’ve made a wise choice here. I enjoyed this, but there wasn’t anything that “Nando’s” about it. If you like broccoli, you’re gonna love adding this to your chicken, but I think it could do with some salad dressing or garlic sauce. – Hani

Overall Verdict: 7/10

Roasted Sweet Potato & Butternut Squash

Kris Kirkham / Nando's, BuzzFeed

As a long-time fan of the sweet potato wedges, I can say that this was always going to be a tough sell for me. And after eating it, I know I’m right to stick to my usual wedges – it just wasn’t as good. Wouldn’t order, but appreciate it anyway. –Remee

I’m actually going to be controversial here and say that sweet potatoes are better than regular potatoes, so I was definitely looking forward to this side. Unfortunately, I was a little disappointed with it, the potatoes were a little bland. With a little bit of sauce and peri salt, it was definitely a lot better, but I don’t think this would be my go-to side. – Ben

Nothing against this dish itself, but I don’t want to eat root vegetables with my peri-peri chicken. Maybe if I was going in there in the heart of winter, and it was a Sunday I might be tempted, but for me, some of the other dishes had more of a natural place on the menu. I am sure a lot of people will be happy this is now available, but I will not be ordering this. – Nyall

In theory, this is great. Butternut squash and sweet potatoes are my go-to healthy foods, but I have to say, I wasn’t blown away by this. Maybe my expectations were a little too high, but I felt like this could have done with a touch of peri-salt or marinade. Despite this, I’d still order it in the future – I can imagine it’d be really delicious dipped in perinaise. – Hani

Overall Verdict: 5/10

House Salad

Kris Kirkham / Nando's, BuzzFeed

I like how colourful and bright this is, it definitely looks very fresh and tasty. The Nando’s olives are low-key great, so having them as part of this is ticking boxes for me. The salad is a little too basic for me though, I think if it had some cheese, or maybe a spicy dressing I could really get on board, but as it is, it’s just not for me. I would much rather get just the olives. – Ben

Is there a small version of this? Because I regularly get the small version of the mixed salad as a side and I've always thought it needed something else – like peppers or olives, which is exactly what this salad seems to be (so thank you for reading my mind Nando’s!) I don’t think I’d get this as a main, but I’d def get as a side. – Remee

The chargrilled peppers and olives are the stars of the show here, they were both delicious and I would happily order either of these as standalone sides. As a salad it’s good, but it’s not Macho Peas level I’m afraid. – Nyall

The colours of this salad are lovely and bright, and as far as salads go, it’s decent, but I can’t say there’s anything particularly spectacular about it, and I wouldn’t order it again. – Hani

Overall Verdict: 4/10

Saucy Spinach

Kris Kirkham / Nando's, BuzzFeed

This did not look that great to be honest, so I was pleasantly surprised by how it tasted. It has a spicy coconut flavour, so was a bit curry-like and so could imagine it would be really good with the creamy mash. Would definitely get it – Remee

This was really different to everything else I’ve had at Nando’s and at first glance it didn’t really get my mouth watering. It's got quite a nice zestiness to it and the chickpeas gave it a really good texture. On it’s own I wasn’t completely blown away, but paired with the peri-peri chips it was really tasty! I would definitely order again. – Ben

I am really into this. It reminded me of a curry, and I am a big fan of spinach in curry so there really isn’t much not to like with this dish. For me, it was the most diverse new addition we tried, in the fact that it really brings something new to the menu. I would definitely order this. – Nyall

I’m gonna be really honest here – when I first saw this spinach I didn’t want to eat it at all. So I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by the zingy flavours of this dish. The spinach tasted really healthy and hearty, but still had those signature Nando’s flavours. Despite my first impressions, I’d definitely order this again – it would go great with garlic bread. – Hani

Overall Verdict: 8/10

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All of the menus items tested are now available in Nando's nationwide.