Cracker Barrel has fallen

#76
#76
Not to mention what they did to the hash brown casserole.

Yeah, changing the recipes for vegatables to appeal to Vegans and Vegatarians isnt what the customers wanted.

People arent going to the Cracker Barrel for quinoa.

Plant based meats isnt what the customers wanted..
 
  • Like
Reactions: OrangeTsar
#78
#78
I think your crowd might be an exception to the rule. Almost 50% of their customers are over 55 years old. The menu, decor, the store, etc., doesn't exactly scream Millennial or Gen-Z. Their older, conservative crowd doesn't like the changes and the younger crowd they are trying to appeal to can see what they're doing. My grandparents really got rubbed the wrong way when they started selling alcohol.

CB is an extremely well-established brand; everybody knows what it is, and so it is difficult for them to broaden out. And I think another issue of theirs, as you and others have suggested, is that the food simply isn't all that good. That part is probably the easiest to fix - Chili's definitely has done that over the last few years and has reinvigorated itself Millennials, who famously "killed chain restaurants."

It isn't like things were going great there, then they made all these changes, and now everybody hates them. Their brand, product, etc., had been trending negatively for quite a long time, and they stuff they're doing to try and fix it isn't working. The exact same thing happened to Bud Light and ESPN.
So what, Chili's sucks now. Always thought it was one of the better one's. Loved the southwest egg rolls and hte country fried steak and gravy. We just happened to be infrequent patrons for whatever reason. Not sure why cause we always liked it. We did have some fundamental service issues last time we went 2-3 years ago and that's last time we visited the local one. But food was still good.

But, if texas Roadhouse ever screws it up I will be pissed. Only decent chain steak left in the country. I can get a full 16oz sirloin there with not one single bite of grissle. Texas Roadhouse is the only place I will not complain about what's on the receipt.

I don't mind the CB update. No biggie. The shift in food quality is obvious and detrimental to the brand. last 3-4 years maybe we began to notice. Moreso even last 2. CB used to be the gold standard of really good home cooked food at a fair price on anything you ordered. This is an epic shift backwards for them.

CB should have studied Applebee's for what happens when food quality declines. But, in it's peak days, I tore me up some riblets and house sirloins. Ironically the bourbon street sirloin always lacked in flavor and tenderness, but the house sirloin was perfection for years.
 
#79
#79
I don't remember that. Obviously never ordered it. Guess it'd basically be a pepperoni stick hoagie.

In all these burger discussion threads, a burger from Shoney's or Big Boy in their peak days would have beat out erry one.
You would think that is what it was; but it beats no resemblance to the snack stick other than the name
IMG_2440.jpeg
  • Slim Jim®​

    Grilled, smokehouse ham served on a toasted hoagie with melted Swiss cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, pickles and our signature Shoney's® sauce.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Smallvol#1 and GVF
#85
#85
Yeah, changing the recipes for vegatables to appeal to Vegans and Vegatarians isnt what the customers wanted.

People arent going to the Cracker Barrel for quinoa.

Plant based meats isnt what the customers wanted.
.
Only way that dog food gets in my body is if the morgue stuffs me with it.
 
#86
#86
Is it just me or does their new logo look like an icon for a mobile ordering app?

I really hope they didn't pay good money for that.
 
#90
#90
Our company provides the new banquette seating and front of house cash wraps. They claim market studies were indicating they were too dark and needed a updating.

My opinion is the fall off in the quality of CB food even in just the last few years. We don't do CB often, but the last 3 times we have it might as well have been IHOP food. The cult classic hashbrown casserole is anemic in flavor and texture compared to the past. And doesn't even seem fresh anymore. Like they went to pre-prepped and packaged corporate dishes that just get thawed/reheated on the kitchen line. Like Red Lobster or Olive Garden.

Oddly, the Mt. Juliet location was one of maybe a half dozen pilot locations for the update and got really strong customer response and they ran with it.

Make good food fresh, and they will come. Decor is secondary at best.
Mr Juliet is a suburb of Nashville; taken over by Californian immigrants. I am not surprised that it does well there. I don’t think they will get the same reception in Kingsport
 
Advertisement



Back
Top