The Discontinued Cracker Barrel Dish Fans Are Desperate To Taste Again
Cracker Barrel has been around for a long time, having first opened its doors back in 1969 in Tennessee. Over the years, it's no surprise that the menu would inevitably change, adding and dropping new menu items time after time until we eventually got the menu we know and love today. But, even that menu is changing!
Dishes that have come and gone over time range from items you'd expect to see at a Cracker Barrel to the downright surprising. Some were even fan favorites, making it all the more surprising that Cracker Barrel would discontinue them. In 2015, Cracker Barrel announced an end to its Strawberries n' Cream French Toast via a Twitter post, while other Twitter users lamented the loss of the red-eye gravy in 2017. Another such dish was the fried chicken livers. If you haven't guessed, these are the livers of chickens that are breaded and deep-fried, similar to chicken wings or breasts. Wide Open Eats describes chicken livers as being relatively healthy, being low in calories compared to other chicken products and high in both Vitamins A and C — although being deep-fried does take away from their healthiness.
Cracker Barrel apparently served fried chicken livers up until very recently, as many people seemed to be under the distinct impression that these were still available at their local restaurants. Many took to social media to ask Cracker Barrel what happened to these fried poultry morsels, seemingly shocked by the loss of such a beloved product.
People seem to really love fried chicken livers
Although the idea of serving up fried chicken that was anything but wings, tenders, drumsticks, or breasts may have had some people a bit cautious, there seem to be some who absolutely love Cracker Barrel's fried chicken livers. Across social media, people seemed to be outraged or despondent over the discontinuation of this meal. On Tripadvisor, a customer from the New England area lamented the fact that a South Portland, Maine, Cracker Barrel no longer had her favorite dish.
"We loved to have fried chicken livers at Cracker Barrel. Bad news, they no longer have them," wrote the user. "Tried a couple other menu items, not worth the trip...."
Others on Facebook seemed to share this sentiment. One user wrote that she and many others came just for the chicken livers, while another user bluntly demanded the management return the dish as soon as possible. Cracker Barrel did answer these concerns, noting that while the livers had been discontinued at the moment, they would pass the message along to its "culinary team." Whether this is simply standard public-relations speak or a promise to discuss returning the popular dish to menus is yet to be seen.
If you were a fan of Cracker Barrel's chicken livers and are also upset by its removal, you could always try out this copycat recipe for fried chicken livers to help hold you over until the fried chicken livers make their return to the menu.
Cracker Barrel also discontinued its chicken and rice
While fried chicken livers may sound off-putting to some, Cracker Barrel still serves many chicken-based dishes that may sound a bit more familiar (and perhaps more appetizing) to you. One such chicken dish was the Chicken n' Rice, which consisted of a combination of chicken and rice (hence the name) in a creamy broth. However, the dish seems to have been pulled from menus around early 2019, as one group of annoyed Facebook commenters noted.
"Why have you discontinued chicken and rice!!!!!" announced one user. "Bring it back please!!!!"
"This dish was the main reason I went to Cracker Barrel," wrote another. "I haven't been back since."
"Well it's Saturday and I was going to order my chicken and rice. But I guess I'll just go to McDonald's since it's discontinued," was one particularly dramatic response. "First covid19 now no Saturday special ? Jesus take the wheel."
Recipe websites such as Food14 have stepped up to fill the chicken and rice-shaped hole in the hearts of Cracker Barrel fans, but the question still remains: If Chicken n' Rice was so popular, why get rid of it? Perhaps with a wide selection of chicken-based entrees, like the addition of fried chicken also in 2019 (via The Daily Meal), management decided to remove some chicken dishes to make some extra breathing room.