By MADISON KORMAN
PHOTO CREDIT Madison Korman
Nando’s PERi-PERi, a casual flame-grilled chicken restaurant on the corner of Knox Road and Baltimore Avenue, closed its doors on July 29 after nearly a decade of serving College Park customers.
The owners of the building sold the property to a real estate company, according to Eynar Martínez, a manager at Nando’s PERi-PERi in Silver Spring. College Park’s economic development director, Michael Williams, said the space will be filled by another fast-casual restaurant.
“Most of these commercial lease agreements run in five- to 10-year terms,” Williams said. “They have to make a five- to 10- year commitment and right now, in this economic climate, a company has to think long and hard before they sign for another five to 10 years.”
Williams said the current economic climate has made it difficult for some businesses to justify renewing leases when they have multiple other locations in the area.
Nando’s PERi-PERi has more than 40 restaurants in the U.S. spread across Maryland, the District, Virginia, Georgia, Illinois and Texas. The chain has local eateries in Lanham, Laurel, Silver Spring and Wheaton.
For regular patrons like Jonathan Orellana, a 23-year-old Greenbelt resident, the closure came as an unpleasant surprise.
“I had no idea they had closed,” said Orellana, who was hoping to grab lunch at the restaurant on a recent Friday afternoon. “It’s my favorite place to get chicken and it’s so close to my house. What a shame.”
Nando’s PERi-PERi has not only been a destination for diners seeking peri-peri style chicken from the South African chain, but the restaurant donated $29,700 in proceeds from its soft launch in 2015 to the University of Maryland Campus Pantry.
“We appreciate all the support we’ve had from the College Park community,” Jim Popkin, a Nando’s PERi-PERi spokesman, said. “Especially our partnership with the Campus Pantry, which provides emergency food to University of Maryland students, faculty and staff in need.”
The closure also affected students at the University of Maryland.
Aida Nyaenga, a sophomore who lives on campus, said she will miss the restaurant because it is easily accessible from campus.
“I know my friends and I are going to miss Nando’s,” Nyaenga said. “The food was always so good but the other locations aren’t easy to get to without a car.”
Nyaenga said she appreciates the diverse culinary options in College Park, and Nando’s PERi-PERi was one of her favorites.
“I will say the city will miss them a lot,” Williams said. “We have a lot of residents and students who really liked Nando’s. I like it.”
Aside from the new restaurant that will fill the now-vacant Nandy’s PERi-PERi space, College Park will welcome The Greene Turtle, a sports bar, and Honey Pig, a Korean barbecue restaurant, which are both scheduled to open in the College Park Shopping Center later this year.
