Best of the Best: Consumers' Top 10 Chicken Chains
By Aimee Harvey on Sep. 19, 2017CHICAGO -- September is National Chicken Month, but consumers don't need a special time of year to indulge in their favorite chicken. It's both an everyday favorite, in a number of different varieties and preparations, and a classic menu offering that consumers turn to as a way to indulge.
But which restaurant chains do consumers think of when they have a hankering for a juicy, savory piece of chicken? And what are chains within convenience stores' competitive set doing to make chicken craveable?
CSP Daily News recently shared the latest Technomic data on the most craveable destinations for chicken wings specifically. Now Technomic's Consumer Brand Metrics program reveals consumers' most preferred brands for chicken in general.
Click through to uncover the 10 chains that recent customers say offer the most craveable chicken out of the leading brands surveyed by Technomic. With some help from our colleagues at Restaurant Business, the chains are ranked from 10th to first in order of the percentage of recent diners who say the chicken is craveworthy and one of a kind ...
10. Zaxby's
Score: 25.7%
Just more than a quarter of recent customers say they can’t get their Zaxby’s chicken fix anywhere else. The fast-casual chicken chain markets its food to “curb your craving,” and consumers specifically point out the Chicken Fingerz and Buffalo wings as craveable items. Wings come in boneless or traditional options that are tossed in any of Zaxby’s nine sauces.
Respondents also point out the sauces as craveable, especially the signature Zax dipping sauce (a blend of spices and zest). The variety of sauce choices may further play into the chain’s craveability. Each meal is made to order, with one consumer saying “the fresh chicken is so tender and tasty.”
9. Boston Market
Score: 29.6%
Chicken at Boston Market is a craveable item that almost three in 10 recent customers say they can get only at the fast-casual chain. It focuses on homestyle meals and boasts its never-frozen, farm-raised chicken. Consumers point out the freshness of the all-natural chicken as craveable, with one specifically saying it is “moist and succulent.” Respondents also call out the slow-roasting method of cooking the chicken, which is carved for every order, as a craveworthy feature.
Another craveable feature of Boston Market’s chicken that respondents call out is the option of white or dark meat.
8. Bojangles' Famous Chicken 'N Biscuits
Score: 30.1%
More than three-tenths of consumers say chicken at Bojangles’ is a craveable item they can get only at that brand. Consumers of the quick-service chicken chain specifically point to the brand’s signature Cajun Filet biscuit as craveable. The chicken fillet sits between two housemade biscuits drizzled in honey and butter.
Healthier options include grilled chicken, which one consumer even goes as far as saying that it is “to die for.”
7. Pollo Campero
Score: 33.7%
More than a third of recent customers say they can’t get their Pollo Campero chicken fix anywhere else. The fast-casual chicken chain traces its roots to Guatemala, which influenced the specific seasonings and prep styles of the chicken, according to the chain. Consumers point to the authenticity of the chicken, with one respondent saying the “Hispanic style” of the chicken makes it craveworthy. Specific callouts are to the Chicken Empanadas (which come in Buffalo, Verde or Chipotle) and Chicken Bites, which are paired with housemade sauces.
Consumers say the variety offered by Pollo Campero -- chicken grilled, fried or shredded in a bowl -- is a craveable feature, with one respondent saying the chain has “more variety of chicken” than others.
6. Church's Chicken
Score: 38.0%
Almost two-fifths of recent customers find chicken craveworthy at Church’s. Although the Original Chicken is the quick-service chain’s classic, many respondents cite the spicy chicken as a craveable option. It’s marinated overnight and then fried in batches throughout the day.
Consumers also point to the Tender Strips as craveable items, with one respondent mentioning the crispiness of the hand-battered outside and the juiciness of the meat as craveworthy features. Another craveable feature is the batter, with one consumer saying the chicken has “the flavor that only Church’s Chicken gives.”
5. Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen
Score: 42.6%
More than two in five recent customers crave the chicken at Popeyes. The quick-service chicken chain specializes in proprietary Bonafide Chicken, which is marinated in Louisiana seasonings, hand-battered and fried. It’s available in mild and spicy versions, the latter of which many consumers specifically point to as craveworthy in the verbatims. Also, one consumer specifically mentions “the seasoning of their chicken and the way it is prepared” as being craveable chicken features specific to Popeyes.
Popeyes recently added a new spicy chicken product, extending consumers’ penchant for the spicy Bonafide Chicken version. The new Hot Honey Crunch Tenders are the chain’s fried chicken tenders drizzled with new Red Hot Honey Sauce.
4. Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers
Score: 43.8%
More than 43% of recent customers crave Raising Cane’s chicken and say they can’t get it anywhere else. The fast-casual chicken chain’s namesake chicken tenders are the star of the menu. Raising Cane’s markets on its menu that it uses fresh, never frozen chicken breast tenderloins that are hand-dipped and breaded fresh to order and fried in canola oil. One respondent says this combination is a winner: “Tenders are to die for.”
One standout in the verbatims is the many mentions of Cane’s sauce as a good pairing with the chicken. Although the sauce is a “top-secret recipe,” per the chain, it’s said to be “tangy with a little bit of spice.”
3. Panda Express
Score: 45.2%
Four in nine recent customers say Panda Express serves up mouthwatering chicken they can’t get anywhere else. The chain has eight chicken entrees on its menu and only five non-chicken entrees (three beef, one shrimp and one tofu), making poultry by far the greatest menu focus at Panda Express. Chicken main dishes range from String Bean Chicken Breast to SweetFire Chicken Breast to Mushroom Chicken. However, consumers rank the Orange Chicken as the most craveable chicken product at Panda Express by far, per the verbatims.
The fast-casual Asian noodle chain is the sole non-chicken chain in the top 10 list.
2. El Pollo Loco
Score: 45.7%
Just slightly more consumers hanker for the chicken at El Pollo Loco than the chicken at Panda Express. Many consumers specifically mention the preparation of the chicken as a craveable feature. The quick-service chicken chain slowly grills citrus-marinated whole chickens over an open flame, a feature that many consumers enjoy: “flame-cooked chicken,” “their style of chicken” and “great tasting fire-roasted chicken served in various ways.”
Not only is the chicken available in individual chicken meals with multiple parts of the bird, as well as in bowls, burritos, salads and tacos, but the chain specializes in and heavily markets family chicken meals. Offers include 8-, 10-, 12- and 16-piece meals, and the chain recently debuted a Grande Value Meal of 10 or 14 pieces of chicken, two 24-ounce extra-large sides and a choice of flour tortillas, corn tortillas or tortilla chips.
1. KFC
Score: 49.6%
Almost half of consumers rate KFC’s chicken as craveworthy, elevating this chicken to the most craveable top spot. The quick-service chicken chain is known for its buckets of Original Recipe fried chicken made with a secret blend of 11 herbs and spices, but other chicken products include Extra Crispy, Kentucky Grilled Chicken, Popcorn Chicken and Extra Crispy Tenders, all of which consumers call out as craveable in the verbatims.
More recently, the chain unveiled Nashville Hot Chicken and Georgia Gold Honey Mustard BBQ Chicken. Georgia Gold received several mentions in the verbatims.