The crisp golden breading holding that juicy, freshly fried chicken. The pinnacle of fried food. Not all chicken is the same; places like Popeyes, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and Chick-fil-A all cook it differently. Which restaurant is the real supreme-level chicken?

I would like to say I have no issue with these places. I would gladly eat at any of them again and I think they were all exceptionally clean and friendly. However, unfortunately, for the majority of these fried chicken restaurants, I am just about as picky as it gets when it comes to good chicken.

For those of you who happen to enjoy KFC, I’m sorry, you deserve better. KFC is an interesting place. When I went, I found the place to be extremely understaffed, with only one employee during rush times. While KFC’s one employee was amazing, the chicken, on the other hand, was mid-tier, being rather dry with no crunch. Overall, its juice score is 3/10, taste 4/10, crunch 1/10, and service 9/10. Not the best choice of chicken, but not the first worst either. What can I say? I’m American, I’m not going to turn down chicken… unless there’s an A at the end of its name. 

Speaking of, Chick-fil-A should immediately be renamed Chick-fil-F because they failed, miserably! They have the popularity but unfortunately they lack the taste to back it up. Why people call Chick-fil-A their favorite chicken I will never understand. Desperate times call for desperate measures if you’re hungry enough, apparently. Personally, I found the chicken to be as dry as a cotton ball, and found the breading to be soft. The only place I would ever see as unappealing would be Chick-fil-A. The service was amazing, with their employees being very friendly, but that’s not enough to redeem them. I would rank Chick-fil-A at bottom tier chicken. Juiciness 0/10, crunch 2/10, taste 2/10, and service 10/10. 

Next, Raising Cane’s. Simply the best chicken on this list. There is no greater meal then the box combo; in my opinion, it’s best paired with extra Texas toast. I don’t want any of that “ranch-y” coleslaw stuff. If I’m going to clog my arteries with fast food I’ll be darned if I don’t get to enjoy it. The chicken itself is the best to me because, unlike the other competitors, the chicken is juicy and flavorful. Although the downside to the juiciness is that if you leave it in the to-go box for the entire trip home with the lid closed, it loses its crunch. Not that I’m speaking from personal experience or anything. My overall rating is juiciness 10/10, crunch 8/10 but if it’s left in the box the crunch would be reduced to a 2/10, taste 9/10, and service 7/10.

Finally, the worst news of all for  chicken lovers. A crime, in fact (well, it should be). Who made this atrocious decision, I will never know, but regretfully, there is no Popeyes in Bellevue. The only location where one can find a  Popeyes is on the military base. Thus no Popeyes for the rest of Bellevue unless you’re willing to drive all the way to Papillion or Omaha. It is a true shame to have to drive for near eternity to get Popeyes. I’m sure we all know that hungry time works differently than regular time, so attempting a Popeyes dinner is the longest journey of the day.

At the moment it seems pretty clear what the best chicken is but there are plenty more places that weren’t explored, especially Popeyes. For now, the title of best chicken of Bellevue belongs to Raising Cane’s chicken.