A landlord is suing its tenant, a Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers franchise, over complaints that the property now has an “offensive” chicken smell.
The dispute centers on the location at 755 Boylston Street in Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood. The mixed-use building features the restaurant on the ground level, with offices and apartments above. Raising Cane’s opened its franchise in the roughly 100-year-old building in 2022 (though the lease was signed in 2021).
The building is leased through at least 2037 by Raising Cane’s from the landlord, 755 Boylston LLC. Raising Cane’s argues that the lease explicitly authorizes the preparation and sale of fried chicken finger meals, the chain’s signature menu items. The lease also requires Raising Cane’s to use “all reasonable efforts” to minimize odors and noises beyond the scope of the permitted use, but it does not state that all odors must be eliminated.
The landlord claims that after moving tenants into the second-floor apartments (or offices, as some reports describe the space), tenants began complaining about an offensive chicken odor that permeated the area. Raising Cane’s spent approximately $230,000 on odor-elimination measures, including charcoal odor control, sealing vents, and exhaust system cleaning. The chain also hired a consultant, who concluded that negative pressure in the building was drawing air and the chicken smell upward.
On January 8, 2026, Raising Cane’s stated that it was refusing to pay for any more work, which it considered “unreasonable demands” to eliminate the chicken odor. On January 15, 2026, the landlord issued a Notice of Termination and Notice to Quit, citing the “repeated release and emitting of offensive and/or nuisance odors” as a lease breach.
Raising Cane’s filed a lawsuit against the landlord in late January 2026, alleging that the odor complaints are a pretext. Some speculate and the lawsuit claims that the landlord’s actions stem from an exclusivity clause in the lease, which states that no other business can sell deboned chicken at the address without Raising Cane’s consent. On August 7, 2025, the landlord notified Raising Cane’s that it planned to lease adjacent space (previously a Starbucks) to Panda Express. Raising Cane’s refused to waive the exclusivity clause, which would be violated because Panda Express sells deboned chicken.
A Raising Cane’s spokesperson told media: “We’re Chicken Finger fanatics — litigation is not what we do. We hate that we’re in this position and haven’t been able to come to terms with our landlord … We believe this situation can be resolved amicably.”
The landlord (755 Boylston LLC, associated with Heath Properties) has not issued a public comment on the lawsuit. The case is ongoing.
