What is your go-to fast food restaurant for the best chicken? We decided to review three of the most popular— Dave’s Hot Chicken, Raising Cane’s and Chick-fil-A— to compare the taste and value.

Dave’s Hot Chicken
RATING: 3/5
The tangy Nashville-style of Dave’s Hot Chicken is a sensational “spice challenge” around Southern California.

Though the restaurant only offers two menu items— tenders and sliders— the seven different spice levels easily accommodate for all customers’ preferences. The levels include: no spice, lite mild, mild, medium, hot, extra hot and reaper.

Both the medium and hot tenders have a mild spice and seasoning at first bite, but the heat kicks in with a tingling sensation on the tongue and lips.

The flavor of the pepper combined with the smoky aftertaste causes the chicken to taste close to burnt. While this smoky tang may not be for everyone, it certainly formed Dave’s unique reputation.

Raising Cane’s
RATING: 4.5/5
Love at first bite? We might have found it at Raising Cane’s.

Eight dollars gets customers the three chicken-strips meal, a light and crispy breaded delight. Cane’s classic sauce — a vinegary mixture of ketchup, mayonnaise and other spices — highlights the tenderness of the chicken.

On the side, Cane’s presented a tangy cup of coleslaw and some crinkle cut fries, which were thick and creamy on the inside yet crisp on the outside. The buttered toast felt crisp on the surface, yet extremely light and fluffy on the inside.

Cane’s no-fail chicken and fries are sure to please even the pickiest taste buds.

Chick-fil-A
RATING: 4/5
Chick-fil-A might seem like your average neighborhood fast food, but its variety of menu options distinguishes it from other options.

The chicken strips are tender under their crispy batter, though the pieces contain more batter in proportion to the chicken, making it less juicy than Raising Cane’s. Few places were darkly discolorated, showing signs of burntness and bitter reused frying oil.

The flavor of the chicken nuggets is similar to that of the strips but in perfect bite-size shapes and slightly more sweet compared to the nuggets.

Both the strips and nuggets were overseasoned that the extra dipping sauce seems unnecessary initially. However, the hints of chili pepper from the creamy signature Chick-fil-A sauce perfectly complement both, balancing the flavors out.