Fancy a Cheeky Nandos with the Lads?

So a "cheeky nandos" has become a popular slang in the UK. Nandos is essentially a Portuguese restaurant specializing in spicy chicken that uses various kinds of sauces from the per-peri (a type of pepper). Lad culture, which as far as I understand it is the young men at university who do stupid things, came up with the phrase "cheeky nandos" within the last few years. It used to be a nice (albeit somewhat pricey) restaurant people could go to with their families. Nothing about it was crazy or cheeky.

This changed and suddenly it became a "cheeky" place to go to with the lads and perhaps have some banter (another British slang that could be used to describe people joking with one another but using very rude and deprecating humor, or can simply be used as an all inclusive word people use when they don't know what else to say; I have often heard it used in place of gossip). A lot of times the cheekiness of Nandos is because it is done at the last minute and is unplanned. However, "cheeky nandos" can also just mean spicy chicken, and therefore the "cheeky" word comes to mean spicy.

I have heard all of this explained to me in many different ways. Everyone I have talked to has explained it in a different way, and I have tried to created an all-inclusive definition. It still doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me, and so this is still a very general way of explaining it.

Since this is such a huge part of the culture, the people here are shocked and disappointed that I had never gone to Nandos. They even insisted that there were some in the United States (there are a few, but not anywhere near me). This was at the first Slytherin House social (a part of the Hogwarts Society I have joined). As a result, the next social was made to educate those in the society who had never experienced a cheeky nandos.

The experience wouldn't be truly Welsh without casually passing a castle on the walk over.

And I wouldn't truly be an American without taking a selfie with it.

 It was interesting to use Swansea castle as a navigation point on Google maps, but I am slowly starting to get used to the aspect of huge, thousand-year old structures being a natural part of the scenery. Just not quite used to having that juxtaposed by a shopping center and a street dedicated to clubs and bars.

When I first arrived, I thought I had made a terrible mistake as I looked up and saw a shoddy place called "Mandos." Did I really just find myself on a Saturday night on Wine Street (place for students to get drunk and do dumb things)? Where was the Nando's then? After looking up from the maps on my phone, I saw another member of the Slytherin house standing beneath a lit sign for Nando's. Phew.

I wasn't sure what to expect from Nandos. I am not a fan of spicy food, and so I was honestly prepared for disappointment. It has been common for the people around me to love burning their tongues off, while I just order something "mild" and still silently suffer. But I was not about to say no to this. It's just another cultural experience to have while in the UK.

We waited for a bit until the head of house came (and any other members who had not yet made it) before settling into a booth. Surrounding me were experienced Nandos customers, one of which immediately suggested we try a Wings Roulette (a variety of chicken wings each with different spiciness levels unknown to you until you eat it). Each of us chipped in for that in addition to our main course.

The menu seemed intimidating to me as I had no idea what was good or bad, and there were a lot of options available.

I asked someone what was good and they told me to just get a burger. At first I thought they were being rude as in all an American will eat is a hamburger. I asked why I would get one of those at a chicken restaurant, and then they replied that the burgers are made with the chicken and it is what people typically get. Oh. I felt stupid.

Since I am also bad with spicy food they suggested I go with the medium heat. Anything higher than that is just too much. But afterwards they all joked saying that they get the medium spice, but pour on the hottest sauce on top of it.

When I went up to order and pay (this is common, as rarely there are waiters there to service you), the lady at the cashier let me try the medium sauce to make sure it was okay before ordering it. I didn't see a problem with it and agreed to that amount of heat. There was only a small kick to it, and once all of the toppings are on it, the dish will really cool down (and it did).

A look at the restaurant. People order in the top left of the picture. Our booth was further to the right (not pictured).

Closer look at some of the decor.

First I tried the wing roulette. The first one I grabbed was just a lemon and herb one with very little heat. Less than the medium option. Temperature-wise, it was scalding though. The second one was "hot" and was surprisingly tolerable.

After that, my main meal came in. Two chicken thighs on some amazing bread, complete with a cole slaw (not American and unrecognizable to our traditional cole slaw flavor wise). Of course, there were chips on the side. One of the pointed to me as I ate and said, "Everyone! First bite!" It was a lot of pressure and since I happened to only taste the bread I had to put on a bit of a show. It was amazing, but the real treat wasn't until I reached the chicken.

There is Nandos sauce at Tesco supposedly (our supermarket). I want to track it down and make my own version of their delicious meals. And bring plenty back to the states for my family to try.

All in all, it was a great time with some great people. I really am enjoying my time in Slytherin. Who can dislike people that take you to Nandos? Plus afterwards we went to watch Robin Hood: Men in Tights at one of their houses.

It may not be a trip to Paris, but I think the little things like this are still important to have. Just having a better and more personal experience of a cheeky Nandos is a big thing to me. And I am honored that they all want to share their culture with me.