The Wake

Photo by Ben Lansky

Initially when someone told me there was a new restaurant on campus that only served chicken fingers I was like, “Wow, that’s ballsy.” Devoting an entire joint to a kids’ meal entrée seemed not so much like an adventure dining spot, but a foray into adventure restaurateur-ing. When I showed up and found out it was a chain I was supremely disappointed.

I can imagine that walking into Raising Cane’s (the name is a hackneyed homage to the owner’s dog) in Minneapolis is like walking into one anywhere in the country. The ambiance is a kind of sub-standard marginalized Americana that makes kitsch-peddlers like Applebee’s and T.G.I. Friday’s look like the Tavern on the Green. The wall decor of posters featuring Yanni and a dog in sunglasses is just the height of cheesiness. Even the music was eye-roll inducing (Aerosmith’s “Sweet Emotion” without the intro – it just jumped into the easily recognizable chorus.) And, because we’re apparently easily-duped children, they threw up a few pieces of U of M and Gopher fanfare to bolster their bond with the University.

Rant aside, the menu has four meal options, and they’re all a combination of chicken strips or a chicken sandwich, fries, bread, coleslaw, Cane’s Sauce and a drink. The chicken is good for what it is. It’s not the height of culinary innovation, but it’s freshly fried and the meat is juicy.

My complaint about the food is that they only offer a couple possible dipping sauces (if you consider ketchup a dipping sauce). Cane’s Sauce is a 1,000 island-colored peppercorn sauce that isn’t that great. One would think that with a dippable entrée, a sauce selection would hold it all together. But they fall short in their selections and the meal suffers.

Our campus has so much more to offer than this banal excuse for a chain. Save your $6 and get fingered at a restaurant with the slightest shred of personality.

Overall 2/10