- I compared meals from Chick-fil-A, Popeyes, Raising Cane's, and Whataburger on value and taste.
- I ordered chicken tenders, fries, and lemonade from each restaurant.
- Raising Cane's crispy yet juicy tenders and sweet lemonade won me over.
My meal from Chick-fil-A came in a white sealed paper bag. I got it delivered, and it was warm when it arrived.
My Chick-fil-A meal cost $13.90, not including taxes and delivery fees. I ordered it through the Seamless app from my local restaurant in Brooklyn, New York.
I ordered a three-piece chicken tender, medium waffle fries, a medium lemonade, and garden-herb ranch sauce. The items came in a meal deal.
As soon as I got my order, I started off with the lemonade. It was quite pulpy but tasted homemade.
A three-piece chicken tender costs $7.65 at my location when it's not included in a meal deal.
When I popped open the box containing the chicken tenders, I could immediately smell the fried chicken.
Some of the chicken pieces looked slightly darker and more fried than others.
There were small bits of fried breading scattered on the outside, which I always love with a chicken tender.
I tried the chicken tenders on their own and with the garden-herb ranch dipping sauce.
The sauce clung to the tender.
The chicken tenders were nicely fried but still juicy on the inside.
But they weren't as crispy as I expected. I wanted a distinct crunch when I bit into the tenders, but they didn't deliver that. In the end, it's largely up to personal preference.
I'm usually a big fan of Chick-fil-A's waffle fries but was slightly let down this time around.
The fries I received were slightly undersalted, which I've never experienced at Chick-fil-A before. This was clearly because of the specific batch of fries I received and is not to say all Chick-fil-A waffle fries are underseasoned. Still, I was a tad disappointed.
But the fries were a perfect vehicle for the ranch sauce.
The waffle shape allowed me to scoop the sauce, rather than simply dipping the fries in. Chick-fil-A has mastered the perfect shaped fry.
The ranch sauce was creamy and slightly tart, but I wanted a bigger serving size. By the time I reached the fries, I had practically run out of sauce.
My meal from Popeyes arrived in a large sealed brown bag. Inside was my box of food.
I ordered a handcrafted three-piece-tender combo. It came to $12.40 before taxes and fees.
The box was heaving with Cajun fries, the three chicken tenders, and a biscuit.
I thought the serving size was very generous, especially for being slightly cheaper than the meal from Chick-fil-A.
I dug around the fries and plucked out a crispy chicken tender.
Right away, I saw how different the tender's texture was from the Chick-fil-A tenders. It was crispy, flaky, and crunchy.
The tub of ranch sauce from Popeyes was deeper than Chick-fil-A's, making it perfect for tender dipping.
The sauce clung tightly to the crispy tenders.
I really liked the crunchy outside of the chicken tenders from Popeyes.
But I was surprised by the lack of distinct flavor. I thought the chicken tenders from Chick-fil-A packed more of a buttery, savory flavor than the Popeyes ones.
Next, I tried the Cajun fries.
When they're not included in the combo, a regular-size order of Popeyes' Cajun fries costs $3.20 at my local restaurant.
The fries were crispy on the outside, with tons of spicy flavor.
In terms of seasoning, these fries easily beat out the Chick-fil-A waffle fries, at least in my opinion. The sauce added to the fries' flavor, but I still preferred the waffle-fry shape for dipping.
While visiting Austin, Texas, I ordered the same meal from Whataburger.
My order came to $8.57 before taxes and fees, making it cheaper than the meals from Popeyes and Chick-fil-A.
I ordered a Whatachick'n Strips three-piece, a small french fry, and a medium lemonade.
Unlike the other chains, Whataburger doesn't have its own signature lemonade. I tried the Minute Maid Zero Sugar Lemonade and thought it was light, but it didn't taste as sweet or homemade as the other chains' lemonade.
A three-piece chicken tender costs $4.44 at Whataburger, which I thought was a great deal.
The chicken tenders were large and perfectly fried.
I ordered ranch dipping sauce from Whataburger, and I loved the container it came in.
It came in a large tub that was perfect for dipping.
The ranch sauce perfectly coated the tenders.
I thought the tenders could only be described as "classic" — they weren't anything out-of-the-box, but I enjoyed them. The meat inside was juicy, but I thought the fried coating outside could have had a bit more crunch.
The ranch sauce was creamy and tangy. It was my favorite in terms of flavor out of the ranch sauces I tried, and I also liked the tub shape the most.
Next, I tried the fries.
I thought they were well-salted and crispy. They were actually among some of the best fries I've tried at a fast-food joint, and they only cost $1.99 before tax. However, in my opinion, they didn't have as much flavor as the Cajun fries.
If I had any complaints, it would be that I wanted more.
I thought the serving size was a little small, but that could obviously be because I ordered a small.
While in Austin, I also decided to try out Raising Cane's to see how it compared to other chicken chains.
Raising Cane's is commonly regarded as a Southern fast-food chain, though it actually has locations in 29 states. In comparison, Chick-fil-A has locations in 47 states. While visiting Austin, Texas, I stopped into a Raising Cane's restaurant to try out its famous chicken tenders.
I tried the chain's chicken tenders, Cane's sauce, fries, Texas toast, and lemonade. A three-finger combo meal at Raising Cane's costs $6.38, not including taxes and fees.
The chicken tenders looked super crispy.
Raising Cane's doesn't offer ranch, so I tried the chicken tenders with the chain's signature sauce. The chain is famous for its Cane's sauce, and after biting in, I could definitely see why. It had a slight kick to it, was super creamy, and surprisingly tangy. It paired perfectly with the chicken and was unlike any other sauce I've ever tried.
The chicken tenders were super crispy and juicy on the inside.
The chicken tenders were thick — I could actually see the strips of white chicken underneath, which, in my experience, you don't always find with fast-food chicken tenders.
The Cane's sauce also paired well with the fries.
For me, the crinkle-cut fries were just OK. Still, they were soft and fluffy, and there was a generous serving.
I also enjoyed the Texas toast, though the meal was already carb-heavy.
I didn't feel like it was totally necessary, but I did enjoy it. As a new visitor to Raising Cane's, I wasn't sure whether I was supposed to eat it with the chicken fingers like an open-faced sandwich, dip it in the sauce, or just eat it on its own.
Regardless, I thought it was perfectly fluffy and had a nice crisp on the outside of the bread.
The lemonade wasn't overly pulpy and had a subtle sweetness.
It was perfectly sweet and sour.
In the end, I had to give the win to Raising Cane's.
While I preferred the waffle fries at Chick-fil-A and the Cajun fries at Popeyes to Raising Cane's crinkle-cut fries, everything else about the order from the smaller chain blew me away. I loved the crispy yet juicy chicken tenders, the signature sauce, the lemonade, and the addition of the Texas toast.
I'll continue to visit Chick-fil-A and Popeyes in my native New York. However, the next time I'm in a state with a Raising Cane's, I'll definitely be swinging by.
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