Raising Cane's to Open First Seattle Location
The fast-food chain Raising Cane's, which specializes in chicken fingers, will open its first restaurant in Seattle. The company has not yet specified an opening date for the new location. The expansion marks the chain's entry into the competitive Seattle market and will create new local jobs.
- The new restaurant will open on February 17, 2026, at 4345 University Way N.E. in the University District, taking over a nearly 6,000-square-foot space that was formerly an American Apparel building vacant since 2017. - Founder Todd Graves, then 24, worked as a boilermaker and a commercial sockeye salmon fisherman in Alaska to earn the seed money for his first restaurant after his business plan was rejected by numerous investors. - The Seattle location has hired more than 100 employees, with job postings for crew members listing a starting pay of $21.50 an hour. - The chain, founded in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in 1996, is named after Graves' yellow Labrador retriever, "Raising Cane". The initial business plan for the concept received a B-minus grade in a college course. - This opening is part of a larger Pacific Northwest expansion for the company, which already operates locations in Vancouver and Spokane and has future restaurants planned for Lynnwood, Covington, Silverdale, and Federal Way. - The brand’s concept is a limited menu centered on chicken finger meals, which include their signature "Cane's Sauce," crinkle-cut fries, coleslaw, and Texas toast. - To celebrate the grand opening, Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold worked a promotional shift at the new location on February 10th, following the team's Super Bowl LX victory.
