FOOD NEWS
Ranking Cracker Barrel Side Dishes From Worst To Best
by CRAWFORD SMITH
21. Carrots
With a grainy, soggy texture, the carrots at Cracker Barrel were quite awful to choke down. Despite needing more salt, they seemed to be doused in white sugar or honey.
20. Dumplins
As a side, the dumplins come with no chicken, but they tasted well-seasoned with salt and were fluffy. However, the gravy they came in was over-thickened with flour.
The gluey sauce was likely supposed to be chicken-flavored, but the poultry didn’t come through. It also had an odd, fishy aftertaste that the salt and black pepper couldn’t mask.
19. Fresh fruit
The variety of fresh fruits served at Cracker Barrel may vary seasonally. We were served a blend of pineapple chunks, cut-up strawberries, and whole blueberries.
The strawberries were too tart with no sweetness, the blueberries were a little sweet but too sour, and the pineapple was bland. However, they seemed to be cut relatively recently.
18. Corn
Although it wasn't corn season when we tested the dish, there wasn't much sweetness or flavor to be found, and we didn't taste much in the way of seasoning either.
We're not sure whether the restaurant used out-of-season fresh corn or it was low-grade frozen provided by the supplier. Regardless, the lack quality was noticeable.
17. Broccoli
The broccoli we got was properly cooked but completely unseasoned. It seemed to be either blanched or steamed and was bright green, so it had clearly been cooked fresh.
It had a perfect tender-crisp texture, but the lack of seasoning caused its earthy, mildly bitter taste to shine through. Still, it was more flavorful than the carrots or the corn.