Diners have slammed Cracker Barrel’s new menu, just months after the brand launched a botched rebrand effort, which saw it lose $94 million in a single day.
Regulars revealed that they are unhappy with changes made behind the scenes, too, including the brand making its cookies in batches instead of rolling out the dough to meet the demand.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the brand has also opted to use ovens to prepare its green beans and sides instead of stovetop kettles and even reheats food when needed.
“I want pure syrup on pancakes, not that watered down junk,” Craig Watkins, 73, told WSJ.
The dissatisfied diner told the newspaper that he has started bringing his own maple syrup to the restaurant and urged the franchise to bring back some of its classic dishes.
According to the WSJ, Cracker Barrel says it is ramping up its efforts to deliver high-quality food and that iconic meals, including Uncle Herschel’s Favorite Breakfast, have been added back to its menus.
Other changes include the return of the brand’s Campfire Meals, and some of the restaurant’s classic cooking methods have made a comeback.
The anger at the brand’s menus comes after Cracker Barrel’s disastrous rebrand in August.
Influencers and MAGA Republicans branded the firm’s decision to ditch Uncle Herschel on the Cracker Barrel logo as “woke,” with thousands of online memes tearing into the company’s new look being posted after the news of the change broke.
The changes would also have included a simpler font in the logo, as well as stripped-back, minimalist decor in Cracker Barrel restaurants. Typically, the company’s locations are decorated in a rustic Southern style that alludes to its Tennessean heritage.
The backlash to the change was so extreme that the company’s CEO admitted that she felt as though she had been “fired by America.”
Cracker Barrel’s redesign caused it to lose $94 million in a single day, with the company’s stock price plunging to $54.50. That meant the company’s stock price had plummeted by 7.15 percent, although it had rebounded from a 15 percent drop earlier in the day.
The backlash to the change was so extreme that the company’s CEO admitted that she felt as though she had been “fired by America.”
Even Donald Trump weighed in on Cracker Barrel’s proposed new look, telling the company that it “should go back to the old logo” and “admit a mistake based on customer response (the ultimate poll).”
He also alleged that the company could even use the scandal to get a “Billions Dollars worth of free publicity.”
Cracker Barrel has since reversed rebrand plans and confirmed that its stores will retain their iconic country theme.
The Independent has contacted Cracker Barrel for further comment.
