Raising Cane’s files lawsuit as landlord tries to evict them for chicken smell

A landlord in Boston is trying to evict a Raising Cane’s restaurant in the Back Bay area because of complaints that the smell of chicken fingers is too strong, according to a legal complaint.

The legal issue involves the Raising Cane’s restaurant on Boylston Street. It opened in 2022 within a building about 100 years old and has a lease agreement that lasts until 2037.

New office tenants on the second floor complained about a bad smell they found offensive, and the landlord responded by saying they might end the lease.

The company’s lawsuit states that, even after attempts to address the issue, the defendant still claims their tenant’s chicken-finger restaurant smells like chicken. The company believes the defendant actually recognizes that the construction of their own second-floor office space was done poorly.

Landlord denies comment as lease dispute escalates

Court records identify the landlord as 775 Boylston LLC, which CBS Boston says is connected to Heath Properties. When contacted by WBZ TV about the lawsuit, Heath Properties declined to comment.

So, I heard Raising Cane’s actually dropped over $200,000 trying to fix some smell problems inside their restaurant. But get this – the landlord told them in January they were still kicking them out because of those ‘offensive’ smells, even after all that work! It’s pretty frustrating, honestly.

According to CBS Boston, the lawsuit claims the landlord tried to force Raising Cane’s to give up a part of their lease that guarantees they are the only chicken restaurant allowed in the building.

Raising Cane’s also alleges that the landlord is in talks with Panda Express to fill the space next to their Boylston Street restaurant, which used to be a Starbucks. CBS Boston reports that Panda Express already has one Boston location within the Boston University student union.

This chicken finger restaurant has several locations throughout the city, including one near Boston University on Commonwealth Avenue and another close to Downtown Crossing.

This isn’t the first time a restaurant has run into trouble with its landlord over smells. Last December, a property manager unexpectedly changed the locks and ended the lease of an Indian restaurant due to odor complaints.

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2026-02-11 21:18