Here’s what you need to know when ordering from Raising Cane’s. This simple trick could drastically improve your experience.
What is Raising Cane’s?
Raising Cane’s is a fast-food restaurant known for its limited but delicious menu, which focuses on one main dish: chicken tenders.
Part of the appeal is that while it only does chicken tenders, it does them well. The chain marinates them for 24 hours and cooks them fresh (never keeping them under a heat lamp for hours on end).
When the original founder duo submitted the business plan to their professor at Louisiana State University, they were immediately shut down. A restaurant with one central menu item would never work, their professor said as he gave them the “worst grade in the class,” Mashed reported.
And the banks didn’t believe in them either, reportedly refusing to give them a loan. But two years later, they opened up in 1996 and have kept expanding since.
Unlike other fast-food menus that feature an extensive menu (from burgers to salads to breakfast foods), you can count Cane’s offerings on your fingers. To accompany its chicken tenders, you can get crinkle-cut fries, coleslaw, Texas toast, and Cane sauce. You can also now get your three tenders in sandwich form.
It also has an off-menu item called the naked tender. The naked tender is an unbreaded chicken tender for those who are dairy or gluten-free. Keep in mind that it’s still fried in the same oil as its breaded brethren. So it could still trigger your allergy.
And to honor its southern roots, it, of course, has sweet tea on tap. You can even buy it by the jug.
@duly___ Raising Cane’s HACKS (Part 2) . . . #fyp #fypシ #RaisingCanes #FastFoodHacks #CanesHacks #ChickenTenders #SecretMenu #CanesSauce #DriveThruHacks #FastFoodSecrets #ChickenLovers #FoodieFinds #HackTheMenu #FoodHacks #Caneiac #CanesChicken #FoodieHacks #CanesCraziness #FastFoodTricks #CanesLife #FoodHackFriday #ChickenAddict #FoodHackTips #CanesSpecials #SauceLover #MenuHacks #FoodiesOfInstagram #FastFoodLove #Chicken ♬ original sound – Duly
An easy hack
In a viral video with more than 160,000 views, former Raising Cane’s employee Duly (@duly___) tells viewers they should always order their tenders inside of the restaurant.
“They have to lay them out on the platter, so you get the biggest, crispiest tenders,” Duly says.
He says that when you order through the drive-thru, workers give you smaller, less crispy tenders. That’s because, he says, they’re hidden in a box, and you won’t see them immediately.
“You might end up getting the smallest, soggiest tenders minutes before they’re thrown out,” Duly says. (Customers have been complaining that the tenders seem to be getting smaller as the brand grows.)
Duly explains that at most locations, tenders are thrown out after sitting in an order for six minutes, and fries are thrown out after three minutes.
To prove his advice works, Duly orders a tender combo in the restaurant and another one at drive-thru. When he puts them side-by-side, viewers see the items in the to-go box are indeed soggier.
But the hack isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
A commenter pointed out the obvious, saying, “It’s soggy because of the steam created by hot food in a to-go box.”
Commenters react
“But i like it a lil soggy tho makes it more chewable,” a top comment read.
“My girl gets mad everytime we go through drive through and I say open the box once we get it,” a person suggested.
“As someone who currently works at canes, ordering to eat in house doesnt guarantee size. It just depends on the chicken that we get through distribution,” another wrote.
The Daily Dot reached out to Duly via TikTok direct message and comment and to Cane’s via email.
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