Fried chicken, more specifically to chicken tenders, have become increasingly popular over the recent years. In comparison to wings, this delicious concoction allows for the eater to not have to worry about bones in the way, but still have the chicken contain its juiciness and pull-apart texture. Now, don’t get me wrong, I am not the kind to pick boneless wings over bone-in wings, because boneless never gives me the best experience, but tenders bring a whole new feeling to feasting. These two locations that I will be comparing, Raising Canes and Chicklet, both located in the Naperville area, have a 3 piece tender meal that are quite similar in contents, making the judgement close to fair. The price for these two meals also are quite similar, varying in cents, making this comparison of my two favorite fried tender locations quite a battle.
Raising Canes:
As some of you may know, Raising Canes is known for their chicken tender combos, and a lot of other meals containing this well known fried chicken, such as their sandwiches. One of their most popular demands is their 3 piece finger meal, which includes 3 fried chicken tenders, their famous canes sauce, a piece of texas toast, crinkle-cut fries, and a regular fountain drink/tea. Their most popular pick from their customers is their box combos, which contains another tender and coleslaw, but for fair judgement purposes, I will be commenting my thoughts on their 3 piece finger meal. This meal happens to include a drink option, which Chicklet does not, offering you an array of soda options as well as their lemonade for only 20 cents more. The canes sauce is a selected sauce, meaning it is your only sauce option (not counting the complimentary extra ketchup packets), which limits the consumer’s sauce options. However, I personally love the sauce, although it is on the saltier side which may bother other individuals. The fries…are my least favorite part of this meal, as crinkle-cut fries have never really been my favorite type (unless they are from Portillo’s, but that’s another story). They can sometimes be drier than to my liking, and not as “fluffy”, or poofy in potato size as regular, waffle, curly, etc. fries are. The texas toast is honestly my favorite part of this package, and is what I always choose to eat first, dipping it into their sauce. It never disappoints, is always fluffy, and just melts in your mouth. Now, last but not least – the talk about the chicken itself. To be completely honest, I like the tenders from Chicklet more than from Canes, as they are not as juicy, fresh, hot, or just plain good in terms of poultry.
Chicklet:
This location may be known less to the people of Naperville, as it is a family-owned operation with just one location (to my knowledge). NNHS students however may know of this establishment the best out of the residential areas, as the drive from NNHS to Chicklet is less than 5 minutes, and could be used as a popular joint for off campus lunch. The restaurant is owned by a Chinese family, and always produces fresh chicken in their dishes (the heat and juiciness speaks for itself). Drinks do cost extra, around a dollar more, which could be seen as a disadvantage, but the pricing would still stay similar to the ones of Canes as Chicklet’s price was a little lower from the start anyways. They offer drinks such as canned sodas, arizona teas, and water to their customers (I personally favor the mango arizona tea). A big benefit that Chicklet offers is their array for sauces, giving you the option for around 10 or more different dipping options. Their most popular one is called the “Yummi sauce”, which just so happens to be my favorite as well, and is essentially a garlicky mayo sauce, far less thick than the canes sauce. The Chicklet fries are also quite good in my opinion, especially if you choose to add on a seasoning such as the cajun one for 50 cents more, but even without, they definitely beat canes in that area. The toast here is also to my liking, more of just a regular white-bread slice toasted in butter, and is also what I choose to eat first. Compared to the texas toast of Canes however, the fluffiness from canes’ toast is what tips it over the top for me. Finally, the chicken…straight up immaculate. It is always burning hot (everything in this meal is), juicy, flavorful, fresh, and probably the best fried chicken I have ever had.
Overall, I really can’t decide which restaurant I like better, as both have their perks. If I were to make myself the superior meal, I would definitely want the drink option from Canes included, the toast from canes, the chicken and fries from chicklet, and the sauce could matter less as they both compliment the chicken well to me. Definitely go try both, and support the small owned business of Chicklet in Ogden if you can!