Raising Cane’s is coming to Tampa Bay
By Breanne Williams
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Jan 7, 2022

Raising Cane’s Restaurants will enter the Tampa Bay market with a location in Clearwater.

The Louisiana-based restaurant chain, known for its chicken tenders, Cane’s sauce and Texas toast, purchased the lot currently home to the Village Inn at 2525 Gulf to Bay Blvd. in Clearwater for $4.5 million in late December, according to a Pinellas County deed.

A Raising Cane’s spokeswoman was not immediately available for comment Friday.

A building permit that the restaurant filed with the city on Wednesday shows plans to build a drive-thru restaurant on that site. The property Raising Cane’s purchased is near the intersection of Gulf to Bay Boulevard and U.S. Highway 19, adjacent to a Sam’s Club plaza. It is directly across the street from Raising Cane’s competitor Chick-fil-A.

Raising Cane’s has been considering an expansion into the Sunshine State since at least 2020, when sister news organization the Orlando Business Journal reported the chain’s plans to enter Florida. In November 2021, the chain announced a flagship location in Miami’s South Beach would open in February and that Raising Cane’s intends to have a “statewide expansion” and will add around 20 additional locations in Florida.

There are more than 500 Raising Cane’s locations across the U.S. In Tampa Bay, Raising Cane’s will go head-to-head with fried chicken restaurants, from Chick-fil-A, a giant in the space, to Tampa-based PDQ, which is also known for its tenders. King of the Coop, which launched in Tampa’s Seminole Heights in 2019, sells Nashville hot chicken and is rapidly expanding across the Bay area.

Los Angeles-based Dave’s Hot Chicken has also signed an agreement with franchisees who envision up to eight restaurants between Hillsborough, Polk and Pinellas counties.