Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers opened its first location in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in 1996. Today, it operates more than 200 restaurants and has been named one of the fastest-growing restaurant chains by Nation’s Restaurant News three times since 2011.
By focusing on fried chicken and simple sides, such as coleslaw and crinkle-cut fries, Raising Cane’s has helped create an appetite-busting niche that other chains have rushed to fill. But this isn’t the only thing that makes Raising Cane’s stand out from the competition; here are five things that make this growing chain unique.
History of Raising Cane’s
Raising Cane’s is a fast-casual restaurant chain serving a Southern-inspired menu of chicken fingers, coleslaw, and french fries. It was founded in Baton Rouge by Todd Graves in 1996 with the goal of providing quality food for families on the go.
The first restaurant opened its doors on August 20th of that year. Todd Graves had come up with the idea for Raising Cane’s when he was asked to cater an event where it was impossible to serve fried chicken outside because of bad weather.
That night, he developed a recipe using a pressure cooker and began selling his delicious chicken at local restaurants to see if they would be interested in partnering with him to create a new chicken finger concept. After getting no response, Graves decided to do everything himself: building a kitchen and hiring employees.
At the time of its opening, there were only five people employed at Raising Cane’s. The company continued to grow quickly as word spread about their famous chicken fingers, dipping sauces, freshly made coleslaw, hush puppies, and those perfect golden fries that have become an iconic part of the culture of Louisiana!
Founder’s Story
Raising Cane’s was founded in 1996 by Todd Graves, a restaurant industry veteran. His vision was to create a restaurant chain with fast service and quality chicken fingers, fries, and cole slaw at an affordable price.
While other fried chicken restaurants were cooking the chicken in oil that had been used for hours, Todd decided to cook his chickens in fresh oil every 30 minutes. This ensures that the food is always fresh and delicious. Some of the most popular items on the menu are The Six-Piece Dinner; Combo Meals; Chicken Tenders Platter; and Extra Crispy Tenders Platter.
They also have sandwiches, salads, sides like fries and coleslaw, desserts such as milkshakes and waffle cones, drinks such as sweet tea or Coke products, catering options available on their website (including some vegan options), corporate catering packages including party tents & furniture rental available through their website, catering menu can be viewed on their website as well.
Franchise Information
Raising Cane’s is a fast-food chicken restaurant chain with over 350 locations in the United States. The company was founded in 1996 by Todd Graves who, after being discouraged by his lack of success with other start-up companies, decided to try his luck on something he knew well: fried chicken. The company is most famous for its Butterfinger sauce and crinkle-cut fries.
Raising Canes has won numerous awards for its food as well as its franchise model. In 2006, they were named the fastest-growing chain in America and were voted best new restaurant that year by Restaurant & Institutions Magazine. With this kind of popularity, it may not be surprising that you’ve heard about them before!
In 2013, their 20th anniversary, Raising Cane’s released their recipe book where fans can find out what makes those Finger Lickin’ Good® meals so special.
Raising Canes also offers catering services which make them perfect for weddings or any type of event where you want an unforgettable meal served quickly!
Why Raise Cane’s?
Raise Cane’s is a fast-food restaurant that specializes in chicken fingers and was founded by a man named Todd Graves. He was in the food industry for 30 years before he decided to open his own chicken finger restaurant.
His inspiration came from his family, who would make fried chicken during holidays. When he found out how much sodium and preservatives were in the typical fried chicken, he wanted to create a healthier alternative for people on the go. So he created his own recipe and became an expert on what makes finger-lickin’ good food!
Today, Raise Cane’s is one of the fastest-growing chains in America with over 400 locations nationwide. It’s ranked as one of the top five QSR brands for customer satisfaction. Not only is it expanding rapidly, but it also offers new menu items like its Sweet Southern BBQ sauces, which are made with honey and molasses instead of sugar or corn syrup; Gameday Favorites (chicken fingers served in a waffle cone); cheeseburgers; and more! They’ve even introduced desserts like their Frosted Shake and Pecan Pie Milkshake.
Ingredients & Nutrition Info
Raising Cane’s is a quick-serve restaurant that specializes in chicken fingers. They offer four different types of sauces: mild, medium, honey mustard, and hot sauce. All of the chicken fingers are breaded with a breading that includes milk, eggs, and flour with seasonings such as salt and black pepper.
The moist breading results in tender chicken fingers that are crispy on the outside and flavorful on the inside. Raising Cane’s also offers sides such as coleslaw, baked beans, macaroni & cheese, and potato wedges. They have a variety of drinks including soft drinks like Coca-Cola®, Diet Coke®, Dr. Pepper® or Sprite®, iced tea, and sweetened iced tea. They also serve lemonade and iced water.
Their milkshakes come in three flavors: chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla. There are five dipping sauces available at their restaurants: ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard, pickle juice, and ranch dressing.
The Menu Items at Raising Cane’s
The menu at Raising Canes includes a variety of chicken fingers in different sauces. The most popular are spicy and mild, but can also include sweet chili, buffalo, honey bbq, and more. There is also a side to go with your chicken fingers. It can be fries or curly fries, coleslaw, or macaroni salad. Also, you have an option of adding dipping sauce to any order.
To complement your meal they have drinks such as milkshakes, lemonade, sodas, and iced tea. They don’t just sell food though! They sell gift cards so you can give them as gifts or use them for yourself when you want some delicious chicken fingers.
Franchises & Opportunities
Raising Cane’s is a franchise operation that specializes in fried chicken fingers. The company was founded by Todd Graves, a former executive of Mcdonald’s Corporation and PepsiCo., with Lousiana roots. Raising Cane’s first restaurant opened in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on the corner of Highland Road and East Florida Street in 1996.
Since then, it has grown to over 300 restaurants across the United States and Canada. In order to become an owner of a Raising Cane restaurant, you must either purchase an existing store or sign a franchise agreement for a new location.
A typical store will cost about $350,000 to open and about $400,000 to operate annually. There are three different formats available: Company Owned stores- which are corporate-owned locations; Franchises- stores owned by individuals; Corporate Development Stores- stores owned jointly between Raising Cane’s and individual operators.
Employment Opportunities at Raising Cane’s
The hiring process includes an initial phone interview, a background check, and a drug test. Applicants who are selected for an on-site interview will be asked to fill out a job application during the interview. Those who pass the interviews will be required to complete a pre-employment physical examination and drug test.
On average, it takes 2 weeks from start to finish before someone is hired at Raising Cane’s. Employees are compensated based on experience and tenure with the company with starting salaries ranging from $10/hour up to $12/hour.
All new hires receive a two-week orientation period which includes one week of hands-on training in addition to seminars and meetings that cover such topics as quality control, safety procedures, policies and protocols, ethics, customer service standards, nutritional guidelines, etc.
Company Culture at Raising Cane’s Restaurants
Culture is the most important thing in running any restaurant. It’s what keeps people coming back and it’s what separates us from everyone else. They have a culture at Raising Cane’s Restaurants, Inc., where they value their customers, employees, and franchisees.
They believe that if they take care of their people and they take care of the customer, then all will be well. This culture has been in place since the first day of operation at our first restaurant in 1996. Their culture has set us apart as one of America’s fastest-growing chains by providing consistent service and high-quality food at an affordable price.
The key to understanding this is understanding what makes it different than other restaurants. For example, each employee must greet every customer with a smile when they enter the restaurant and offer them water with their meal for no charge.
Their operations manual dictates that an employee can only get help on other tasks after giving food to every customer in their shift- whether you work for one hour or 12 hours you still have to serve every single person who comes through your line.
Conclusion
To summarize, chicken fingers are a delicious food item that is served at many fast-food restaurants. They have been voted as one of the most iconic dishes in the United States and are enjoyed by people of all ages.
I would recommend them to anyone who enjoys chicken and doesn’t mind not being able to choose what they want on their sandwich, which is something that can be off-putting for some people. If you’re looking for more articles about food, I would recommend reading about “Garlic butter sauce” or “Big mac sauce“
Hi I’m Bilal Malik, a digital marketing and blogging expert holding years of experience.
