Why Cracker Barrel Was Blasted On Reddit
Cracker Barrel is a sit-down restaurant chain featuring 667 locations (per ScrapeHero) concentrated mostly on the East Coast and the Midwest that is associated with country cooking and a quaint Southern vibe. Rocking chairs line the front porch of the restaurant and a gift shop hawking kitschy souvenirs, toys, and barrels of vintage candy greets you as you enter and exit the establishment.
The restaurants have become one of those fixtures of road trips, as there is always seemingly one advertised on a billboard or highway sign that is located off the next interstate exit. It attracts a devoted and loyal fan base who love the down-home atmosphere. There are even customers who have been eating at Cracker Barrels for more than 40 years, including one couple who embarked on a quest to visit every location in America, according to Today.
But not everyone is enamored with Cracker Barrel these days. One of its employees aired their grievances about the company on the subreddit r/KitchenConfidential, warning other potential applicants about what it's like to work there.
A Cracker Barrel employee's cautionary tale
The employee, Redditor u/CHIF406, divulges that they have worked at Cracker Barrel for five years as back-of-house (BOH) staff. They assert, "We are not tipped out, perpetual skeleton crew, half are (sic) equipment is constantly broken, and management does nothing to fix these problems or any others that come up." They add that it is further demoralizing that "the food is so cheaply cooked it provides zero pride in what you're doing."
Fellow users rallied in support, echoing sentiments about the food and work conditions. Redditor legendary_mushroom stated, "I could not have put this better myself." Commenter pandacat3 described Cracker Barrel's chicken and dumplings as "flat blobs of uncooked paste." User Jaspers47 said they used to go to Cracker Barrel with their parents as a kid but asked to stop going there and haven't been back in more than 20 years. "Glad to know I made the right choice."
Fellow Cracker Barrel employees also empathized with u/CHIF406. Succioboy commiserated, "As someone else in the same boat, in the same place, I feel your pain. My store isn't any better." They offered further words of encouragement, noting, "We got this though. Gotta be a better situation out there for us." To which u/CHIF406 replied, "For sure, we got this."
As Restaurant Business notes, thanks to decreasing sales, the chain recently adopted new strategies — including "investing in technology" and adding "premium items" to menus — in the hopes of luring higher spending customers.