Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers — Restaurant in Citrus Heights

Those of you that know me already know that I don't frequent a new business on opening day. But the hype and anticipation really tempted me to see what the fuss was about. This takes me on a trip to the Birdcage Marketplace shopping center of Citrus Heights where I got to try out a very popular southern fast food establishment, "Raising Cane's".

This is a relatively new fast food company having only been in business since 1996. However, they've had a very strong presence in the south where they started in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Now most people reading this review love eating chicken (including myself). Throughout my life, I've been to some pretty amazing chicken restaurants in Texas, Mississippi, and Tennessee. But the real comparison to this place are major fast food chains such as Popeye's, Churches, KFC, and Chick-Fil-A.

Going back to the restaurant itself, this location is directly on the corner of Greenback Lane & Birdcage Street. It shares the same lot as Hobby Lobby and nearby Lowe's. During my visit (which was on their 2nd day of business on 12/19/2021), I decided to dine-in since it was a much shorter wait than the drive-thru. The overall aesthetics of this area is well executed as they did an amazing job with the parking situation. The inside is also very spacious as they offer ample seating throughout as well as a condiment station. Additionally, they also offer outdoor seating. I must say, everything flowed extremely smoothly and efficiently during my visit.

Since this was my first time eating here, I went with a very popular menu item, the "3 Finger Combo" (for $8.69 + tax). This combo included three of their crispy chicken fingers, crinkle-cut fries, a side of Cane's signature dipping sauce, Texas toast, and a medium sized drink. After I gave them my name, I sat down and my arrived very quickly, in less than 10 minutes!

So the question is.. ..was the hype real??? I must say, it's above average but not over the top amazing. The best thing Raising Cane's has going for it is the chicken. The breading is crispy and golden while the meat is extremely tender and flavorful. It has hints of pepper in it while not being overbearingly greasy. Their dipping sauce is more of a subtle thousand island flavor but tasted delicious to pair with the chicken. The fries were hot and crispy while the Texas toast had a soft spongy flavor to it.

All in all, "Raising Cane's" is a very delicious fast food restaurant and a warm welcome to Citrus Heights. I can see this place doing very well as it's in a centralized busy retail shopping area. This is the 2nd restaurant they've opened in the greater Sacramento area (the first being in Davis) and plans for a Roseville restaurant to open in early-2022. With that said and done, my rating for Raising Cane's is an above...

NOT ACCOMADATING TO PEOPLE WITH FOOD ALLERGIES!

I am blown away by the service I received today at this location. I have a sesame allergy. I politely asked if they had any sesame-free buns and they did not. I proceeded to ask if they could give me two bottom buns (typically almost anywhere that doesn't have a seedless option this is not a problem) the drive-thru employee said, "we cannot do that" I then, asked if I can pay more for it, and again I was declined... Then, I asked if I could switch my bun to Texas Toast and was informed that that ALSO has sesame seeds. Defeated, and since I had nowhere to go in the drive thru but forward since now I had people behind me and I was super hungry I figured something is better than nothing and got a 3 piece chicken finger combo and sub the texas toast with more sauce.

I drove home, and opened my box (silly me, should have checked before I drove off.) Only to feel cheated twice.. I've ordered the box before and I know that they pack that side slot with as many fries as it can hold. My fries not only were soggy and cold but there was almost half as much as there should be.

As a business minded individual, I feel my needs should have been met. All of this inconvenience lead to my frustration to even write a review. 13 dollars to be left unsatisfied and justify going out of my way to go to inn-n-out and wait in a longer line and pay half as much and have me taken care of when there is a problem (also no sesame.) From a business perspective making me happy would have continued my patronage with this company, but now I will no longer support this business. I may not put it on blast because I feel that the quality of their food is better than some, but for me personally have no reason to come...

If you DON’T like flavorful fried chicken, this is the place for you. I had high expectation’s for Raising Cane’s, yet was woefully disappointed. The staff was more delightful than the flavor of the chicken strips. While the chicken was crisped to perfection and the chicken meat tender and juicy, it LACKED GREATLY in flavor. I can’t say it enough. I ordered 6 strips alone with 1 Canes sauce and 1 honey mustard ( they charge you extra for sauce by the way, you don’t even get 1 free with your order )The Cane’s sauce is decent, it’s just a glorified version of Thousand Island dressing and the honey mustard sauce literally tasted like rusty water. ( I can’t make this up, please do not try the honey mustard, you will regret wasting your money). I hope in the future this fast food chain will consider other “flavor” options for their chicken strips, (maybe spicy, basic seasoning like salt, pepper, garlic) to enhance their product. If not, then I can’t imagine they’ll be around long. I did season the strips when I got home and tossed them in the air fryer for a few minutes and they were much better after adding my own seasoning to them, so not all was lost. Hope this review is helpful to those who’ve never tried Raising Cane’s. If you like flavorful chicken, avoid this place, it’s not for you. I gave them 3 stars because staff was great , the chicken was crispy and juicy but notably lacked...