Dip the crispy fried chicken fingers into the savory sauce, take a bite of steaming soft bread and sip on the fresh lemonade as you take communion the same way hundreds of others did at the grand opening of Raising Cane’s in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.
The chilly December morning drew crowds massive enough to close down roads. I seriously doubt chicken fingers are reason enough to stay overnight like Ozell Cruz, the first person in line for their 10 a.m. Caniac Box Combo.
And he wasn’t the only one.
“Me and my friends we kind of decided on a plan to camp out in a tent overnight, get here as early as possible,” said one customer, Francis Henry Cooper, to WQOW 18. “We got here late last night at 11 p.m. and been in there ever since, trying to stay warm.”
WEAU 13 reported crowds forming outside the small restaurant as early as 6 a.m. that morning. Even a week later, the line to get food took almost an hour, and as each minute was spent in an awkward drive-through all I could think was, “this better be good.”
It was not.
I am of the firm belief that the KFC of my childhood is the best fried chicken I have ever had. I also believe, when opening a fried chicken place just a block away from Chick-fil-A, you need to actually have something special.
Even now, I do not understand the hype, yet when I say I don’t like Raising Cane’s, there are shocked gasps from people passing by.
In the name of fairness, I will give credit to the southern origins of this company similar to companies like Mooyah, In-n-Out, Five Guys. These chains are slowly migrating north, but unlike Raising Canes these food joints deserve to migrate into locations near you.
Business Insider provides a stark contrast to my opinion. Reporter Erin McDowell credits the iconic tangy, slightly spicy Cane’s sauce alongside the “juicy full” tenders with making Cane’s a great fast food option.
Digging a little deeper, I found the Reddit page titled r/RaisingCanes filled with complaints about prices going up, worshiping Cane’s sauce, and talking about the experience of working there.
Price is a big decision point for me. To me the under-seasoned chicken, even if there are large portions of it, isn’t worth the hefty price of a fast food meal in addition to the unappealing nature of the food.
After weeks of keeping my mouth shut about my unpopular opinion, I found an article of Jeni Nance from the University of Delaware’s review of Raising Cane’s in 2023. She had an incredibly similar experience to myself trying Cane’s only to be confused at the underwhelming meal she received.
So, maybe I am not alone in thinking Raising Cane’s chicken fingers are not the stroke of genius people accredit it to be.
Pawlisch can be reached at pawliswj0471@uwec.edu.
