We’ve been wondering what was on the way at the former Wimpy / Steers / Chicken Cottage, next to Debenhams on Lavender Hill.  The builders have been in for a couple of weeks now – and it’s clearly a big building project, not just a minor refit, the whole place is being completely reorganised.  We can now reveal that it’s set to be Battersea’s second branch of Nando’s.

Or, more specifically, it’ll be a Nando’s nino, which is a smaller branch with a bit of seating (circa 17 seats), but which does much of its trade as a takeaway / delivery branch.  Looking at the plans, well over three quarters of the unit will be taken up by the kitchen and back office!  It’s a new concept for Nando’s, with a slightly different menu (the first one is up and running in Twickenham), and by taking much of the delivery trade it should help take a bit of the pressure off the overcrowded Battersea Rise / Northcote Road branch.  The location – a stone’s throw from the station – is likely to do a healthy takeaway trade too.

The plan is for the current shopfront to be completely tidied up – wooden window frames, more subtle signage, a rather smart looking curved window, and moving the entrance – as well as to add windows on to the currently blank wall facing Debenhams.  This seems a good development for the site, and should hopefully give some stability to a restaurant unit that seems to change hands every couple of years.