NORMAL, Ill. (WMBD) — Fryers were fired up Tuesday Morning as the well-anticipated Raising Cane’s Chicken opened its doors to the public.
“We are here to finally open this restaurant in Bloomington/Normal. It’s been a long time coming for us, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to serve the customers and the community here,” said Kevin Ryan, regional vice president for Raising Cane’s.
This restaurant took over the location where Beauty Brands was a few months ago. The building was torn down and rebuilt to give Raising Cane’s a fresh start.
“You know, from looking at sites for the last couple of years, all the way up to the opening, typically takes probably about six months to get from ground up to build and get all these great crew members trained,” Ryan said.
People who attended the event early were able to enter a raffle to receive one of the “Lucky 20” free Cane’s for a year cards. Cane’s also gave out 100 free combo box coupons to the first 100 people who purchased a box.
The Bloomington/Normal community, as well as the town, was very supportive of the chicken place opening, welcoming them with open arms.
“They’ve been great. They’ve been awesome to work with. They’ve been nothing but welcoming and helpful and been great partners in the business. We always intend to be great partners, whether it’s with surrounding neighbors or the community. So it’s been awesome and well-received,” said Ryan.
With Raising Cane’s being a chicken place, they have sold one item on their menu the entire time they have been open. Their famous chicken fingers are the heart and soul of Canes, and will continue to be.
“We serve chicken, chicken fingers, and that’s it. We do one thing; we do it better than anybody else. We don’t try to go outside of what we were founded on. We haven’t changed our menu. And so that’s our one love. That’s the thing that we take the most pride in, and that’s all we do,” he said.
The chain plans to open a Peoria location, set to open towards the end of the year. For more Information about Raising Cane’s, visit their website.
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