When Rishi Sunak revealed his favourite Nando’s order, who knew that a side of broccoli could provoke such passions.

It certainly split the Glasgow Times newsroom and two colleagues in particular engaged in a debate more heated than the recent one on TV between the Prime Minister and Keir Starmer and definitely more gripping.

At its height I was wondering, would this be the first time HR had to be called in to resolve a dispute on the acceptability level of a lemon and herb chicken?

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In the end, it was not destined for disciplinary action because it turned out what united the warring factions was their horror at the revelation I had never been to Nando’s and, therefore had no idea what the fuss was all about.

When the editor was informed of this it was duly decided that, as Political Correspondent, I must go to the nearest Nando’s and try out Rishi Sunak’s go-to grub.

Time to find out why, for some people, this meal was more important than tax, defence, immigration or the NHS.

Firstly, I was invited to order through the app and a QR code which really bugs me, but hey, get with the 21st century.

So, half chicken, (medium) chips and broccoli. The Sunak Special.

(Image: newsquest)

Apparently, Sunak said he can eat at Nando’s as much as twice a week.

At £14.45 a pop for his favourite, it’s just as well he and his wife have a combined wealth of more than half a billion pounds.

Waiting for the meal to arrive, I could see the influence Nando’s could have on the Prime Minister.

All around I was surrounded by young people and at the very next table was a group of senior boys from a nearby independent school.

I could imagine if Sunak was here, he’d be thinking obviously they’ve got too much time on their hands. Nothing a spot of National Service won’t sort out.

I had to look up where Nando’s originated. Turns out it is part Portuguese and part South African inspired by cooking from Mozambique.  I had no idea.

I bet Sunak did the same research, looked at the map and spotted Rwanda further north and had a Eureka moment.

The plate arrives, from friendly, welcoming staff, and it looked promising. I like chicken, I like chips and I like broccoli, so maybe Rishi’s dish will get my vote.

The chicken coating was tasty enough and I finished the meal with just the bones to pick over, but I could have been a bit more adventurous had I been allowed to stray from the Prime Minister platter.

(Image: newsquest)

The chips were crispy, as promised, but a little more flavour wouldn’t have gone amiss, it was the bland option.

What about the broccoli, the item that caused the most controversy?

Well, as I said, I like broccoli, but this was a little bit wet and insipid.

Why Rishi Sunak would order it, well, you can draw your own conclusions.

The overall verdict: it looked the part and promised much but in the end, given the alternatives on offer it could have turned out so much better.