The new Goleta Raising Cane’s grand opening drew a large crowd of excited community members early Monday morning, and the raffle for free chicken even prompted some people to camp out the night before to secure a spot in line.

Equipped with lawn chairs and pillows, Rex Blevins, a Dos Pueblos High School student, and a group of friends arrived at 9 p.m. Sunday to get in line, 11 hours before the grand opening celebration at Hollister Village Plaza.

The event began at 8 a.m. and featured music, free merchandise, and a raffle for 20 people to win free Raising Cane’s for a year.

Not only was Blevins one of the first in line for the grand opening, but he was also the first to win free Raising Cane’s for an entire year.

“I’m just so excited. It’s been great already; I get to hang out with my best friend outside of Raising Cane’s,” Blevins said “First in line, and I win, this is just amazing.”

He wasn’t the only one who set up camp in front of the new restaurant. 

About 200 community members lined up Monday morning, according to restaurant officials’ estimates. 

Joshua Gerthoffer, a Santa Barbara City College student, had been waiting in line since 11 p.m. the night before, hoping to get free Raising Cane’s food and merch. 

“That would actually mean a lot to me because it wouldn’t be just for me, it’d be for my friends and my family as well,” Gerthoffer said.

Others arrived in the early morning on Monday.

Raffle winner number 13 and UC Santa Barbara student Jordan Nicodemus arrived at 7 a.m.

She is not only celebrating the fact that she won free Raising Cane’s for a year but also that she and her roommates no longer have to drive to Santa Maria to satisfy their chicken cravings.

“This opening is the best day of our lives, and we did not think we were gonna win this,” Nicodemus said. 

She plans to eat at the restaurant at least once a week. 

While people stood in line, ready to enjoy crispy chicken tenders and savory Cane’s sauce, PETA activists protested the event, shouting into a megaphone and holding a reenactment of a chicken being slaughtered. 

An activist wore a tan-colored bodysuit, covered herself in fake blood, and hung upside down while another activist held a fake knife to her neck. 

“Raising Cane’s celebrations neglect to mention the chickens who are suffering on factory farms before they’re violently killed in a slaughterhouse and stuffed inside of a fast food bag,” said Mason Melito, senior campaigner for PETA. 

Melito told Noozhawk he hopes the demonstration reminds people that chickens feel pain, just like dogs and other animals.

“If we wouldn’t deep fry a dog, we shouldn’t be deep frying a bird because dogs and birds both have families and friends,” Melito said. “They form friendships. They feel fear, love, pain, and joy, and want nothing more than to live their lives in peace and it’s never been easier to go vegan.”

Melito could be heard over the megaphone throughout the opening celebration, shaming Raising Cane’s and calling on people to not eat the chicken. Raising Cane’s solution was to point two large speakers towards the demonstration in an effort to drown them out. 

In line for the restaurant opening, people waited with their pets and babies, played card games, and some students even skipped their Monday morning classes to be there.

Brett Becker, a UCSB student, sat in an inflatable pool float in the parking lot with his friends sitting on chairs and blankets in their makeshift “living room,” enjoying donuts before the grand opening. 

They arrived at the fast food restaurant at 6 a.m., and there were already around 30 people in line ahead of them. 

“I’m not the biggest fan of Cane’s, but when I heard that there was free Cane’s for a year, that’s when I was like, ‘I need to be there,’” Becker said. “Because we’re all college students and don’t really want to be spending too much on food. So free Cane’s for a year was something you can’t pass up.”

The opportunity did not pass Becker as his name was the fourth called in the raffle.

Along with the raffle, a Cane’s navy trucker hat and free Box Combo card were given to the first 100 people who purchased a combo in the restaurant. 

The celebration also included a $1,000 check donated to Dos Pueblos High School.

Zach Wittenberg, the restaurant manager, welcomed the large crowd on Monday.

“We’re more than thrilled to be here and we’re ready to serve you guys,” Wittenberg told the crowd. 

The storefront at 7000 Hollister Ave. used to be a Kyle’s Kitchen location. The Kyle ’s Kitchen moved to 6831 Hollister Ave. Unit D near the Target, a short drive away from its former spot.

See more photos from the grand opening below.