Read the full article here.

By Manuela Silva

Raising Cane’s is coming to Morningside Heights.

The popular fast food chain plans to open a new location in fall 2025 at 2850 Broadway, the previous site of the beloved Mel’s Burger Bar, a Raising Cane’s spokesperson confirmed to Spectator on Monday. Construction will begin in early 2025.

“We are on a Chicken Finger takeover in the Big Apple!” the spokesperson wrote in a statement. “Our goal is to open doors in the fall of 2025, bringing our ONE LOVE – craveable Chicken Finger meals – to Morningside Heights.”

Raising Cane’s signed a lease after Mel’s Burger Bar’s Upper West Side location closed in December 2023. The bar, popular among Columbia students, closed after more than 10 years in business. New York City Council member Shaun Abreu, CC ’14, posted on X Monday about his excitement for the Raising Cane’s.

“Great news coming to Morningside!” Abreu wrote, referencing the new location. “My favorite spot when I was in NOLA for law school.”

The fast food chain currently has seven other locations in New York City, with the closest one to Columbia currently located at 124 W. 125th St. Raising Cane’s is rapidly expanding, having opened 100 locations in 2023 alone, including a flagship location in Times Square. It is also currently on pace to meet its goal of reaching 850 Raising Cane’s locations by the end of 2024.