Nando’s Australia goes cashless – and has a snarky message for pro-cash advocates

A popular restaurant chain that went cashless during the Covid-19 pandemic has been heavily criticized by Australians still frustrated by the measure.

Like many businesses, Nando’s Australia announced in 2020 that it would no longer accept cash payments due to hygiene concerns and to limit interactions between employees and customers.

But by refusing cash as a form of payment in its Australian restaurants, the South Africa-based company has sparked negative reactions from customers.

The restaurant addressed the criticism in a message to customers suggesting that concerns about the decline in cash are just conspiracy theories.

“Sorry, I guess we’re part of the New World Order now. Just kidding. Card payments mean we spend less time counting coins and more time perfecting your chicken,” it said.

‘I understand that it is a company’s right to refuse payment methods. As someone who mainly uses cards, I still think this is a very stupid move and I’ll take it somewhere else’, one old customers wrote further Reddit.

“It begs the question if card is so much more convenient for business, why are surcharges still allowed,” wrote another.

“Maybe I’m a boomer-ish Gen Z member, but it’s quite ironic that legal tender is slowly becoming something that’s only useful for purchasing non-legal items,” a third person commented.

“Just walk right back out and find a good local business with a decent owner and staff open to all forms of compensation,” a fourth added.

“Not everyone uses their cards for purchases so I think they’re going to lose customers,” said a fifth.

But not everyone was against Nando’s move.

The restaurant addressed the criticism in a message to customers suggesting that concerns about the decline in cash are just conspiracy theories

‘Not only [cash] it makes you vulnerable to robberies… it always takes so long when you have to count coins and leaves people waiting in the back,” said one.

“The problem with cash is that handling, managing and transporting cash is a business and ironically increasingly unprofitable,” added a second.

“Most people pay by card anyway so it’s not too bad unless they charge a fee or ask for a tip via a QR code,” a third wrote.

Nando staff revealed that customers often complained about the cash ban.

‘Nothing new. No charge for card, Nando’s is expensive enough like lol. It’s annoying when customers try to complain to me or scold me for it, but there’s not much I can do about that, I wasn’t even there when the decision was made,” the employee wrote.

Another worker agreed, adding: ‘I worked at Nando’s for eight months and I swear it always drove people crazy.’

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Nando’s for comment.