Back in May I posted that Nando’s, the popular South African franchise was coming to Kuwait and looks like it's now official. Yesterday two opening soon hoardings came up, one at The Warehouse Mall and a second one at Al Kout Mall announcing that Nandos will be opening this December. Nandos originally opened at The Avenues back in 2007 but ended up closing down shortly after. This time @apparelgroupofficial are bringing them back, the same company that has Tim Hortons and Jamie's Italian (which is also opening in Kuwait).

The grand opening of our newest flagship Casa in The Dubai Mall took place on 24th November in the presence of our founders and senior management with fiery fanfare. Chairman and CEO of Nando’s UAE, Suhail Gidwani said “We are very proud of this milestone, opening our 22nd Casa in the UAE, and in this grand location at The Dubai Mall, home to some of the most prestigious brands and iconic attractions in the country. We couldn’t be more grateful to our UAE customers for their continued loyalty, which has led to our expansion here.” #TheDubaiMall #emaar #restaurant #hardwork #future #nandosuae #grandopening #happy George Kunnappally Suhail Gidwani Shavez Gidwani Desky Tecson Leanne Bass Ruchika Sarfare Waqar Ali Khan GMICE Donald Fernandes Thembi Cele Klim Fernandes Savita Joshi Trudi van Niekerk Naadira Mall Navin Pinto CISCP, CISCM, CIPS Edward Cansara Ketaki Shah

International dining chain Nando’s believes it can add as many as eight new UAE locations in the next few years, bringing the total number of outlets in the country to 30, according to its country manager. Nandos, which first came to Dubai in 2011, currently has 22 restaurants – which it terms “casas” - across the UAE. “While we would love to be among the top three brands when diners think of eating out or taking away or even ordering from the comfort of their homes or offices, when it comes to grilled chicken, we wish to be the undisputed number one choice,” said George Kunnappally, managing director of Nando's UAE. “Nando’s can go up to 30 casas over the next few years, but we are very cautious in choosing our sites and the communities we would like to be a part of.” Kunnappally added that larger restaurants of between 3,000 and 5,000 sq ft are “slowly becoming a thing of the past” and said that smaller restaurants of between 1,800 and 2,000 sq. ft will be more commercially viable going forward. “We are also interested in exploring the events and catering segment via a modified container kitchen or possibly a trailer,” he said. Additionally, Kunnappally said that Nando’s hopes to raise the percentage of women in its regional workforce from 19 percent today to 40 percent by 2020, and grow the percentage of its revenue from deliveries from 20 percent to 30 percent in the next six months “by increasing our fleet strength in Sharjah, Al Ain and the Northern Emirates, where we believe there is still untapped potential.”

C V Rappai (second left in front row), CEO of Oryx Group for Food Services and Nando’s Qatar; Acting COO, Grant Ring (centre in back row); Branch Manager, Hani Ibrahim (second right in back row); Operation Manager, Steven Holloway (right in first row); Marketing Manager, Layel Kobti (second right in front row); Division Manager, corporate Communications and Marketing at Jumbo Group, L S V Perera (left); and other officials at a media dinner at Nando’s new restaurant at Doha Festival City. Pic: Kammutty VP / The Peninsula.The PeninsulaDoha Festival City, the largest entertainment, retail and hospitality destination in Qatar, has announced that household favourite Nando’s, has opened its doors at the Mall. Nando’s is the first restaurant to welcome visitors at the newly opened ‘casual dining’ area on the first floor, adjoining VOX Cinemas and what will be its cutting-edge Family Entertainment Complex.In its sixteenth year of operation in Qatar, this is the ninth restaurant located in pockets across Qatar. Nando’s, the South African restaurant chain with over 1000 restaurants world-wide, of which 40 are in the region, is famed for its flame-grilled PERi-PERi chicken and its’ warm and ambient interiors inspired by its Afro-Portuguese heritage. The new Nando’s at Doha Festival City will also be home to 31 bespoke pieces of art. Sourced specifically for the restaurant from up and coming South African artists, the artwork complements the bold design that is synonymous with the brand. Commenting on the new opening, Trevor Hill, General Manager, Doha Festival City Mall said, “Our new casual dining area is set to welcome several new outlets over the next few weeks, but we are delighted to be kicking it off with Nando’s which we know is a popular crowd-pleaser here in Qatar. The restaurant design as per Nando’s trademark also has unique quirks that can only be seen here at Doha Festival City - including the beautiful pieces of art - which makes the restaurant a real feast for the eyes as well as the stomach!” CV Rappai, CEO of Oryx Group for Food Services, which operate Nando’s in Qatar commented, “Doha Festival City is a world class leisure, retail and entertainment destination, so we are so absolutely delighted to be bringing our exceptional offering to even more people here. This will be our ninth successful restaurant opening in Qatar, which underlines the popularity of our delicious PERi-PERi chicken and great atmosphere, which will be in abundance at our new outlet.” Hill continued, “We are really looking forward to welcoming even more food and beverage concepts to join Nando’s in the casual dining area, as well as opening our Family Entertainment Complex later in the year. We have had some hugely positive feedback to date and are hoping for more over the coming months with what is still yet to come!”