Cracker Barrel fans are begging the Southern dining chain to bring back some of their comfort-food favorites – the latest wave of customer backlash since the chain reversed a disastrous logo rebrand.
Devoted Cracker Barrel diners have flooded the comments of social media forums on Reddit and X over the years with pleas for the Lebanon, Tenn.-based restaurant chain to revive its menu with some of their favorite nostalgic items.
Fried haddock, eggs in a basket, sweet potato pancakes, chocolate cobblers, reuben sandwiches, french dip, ice cream sundaes, milkshakes and the Apple Dumplin’ repeatedly topped the lists.
Fans also called for the return of black-eyed peas, red-eye gravy and fried chicken livers.
A Cracker Barrel sign featuring the old logo hangs on the outside of a restaurant on Thursday, August 21, 2025, in Homestead, Florida. The restaurant unveiled a new logo earlier this week as part of a larger brand refresh. (Getty Images North America) Getty Images
One of the items repeatedly mentioned by heartbroken customers was the Sunrise Sampler, a platter that included eggs, grits, fried apples, hash brown casserole, sausage, bacon, country ham and biscuits with gravy – all the go-to Southern fixins.
Josh Cooper, owner of Cooper’s Next Level BBQ in Tallahassee, Fla., said it was a mistake to axe the Sunrise Sampler – calling it the “GOAT,” or “greatest of all time,” breakfast.
“You used to get a little bit of everything without breaking the bank,” he told Fox News Digital. “Now, in order to get that same teaser touch from the Sunrise Sampler, you have to order it all à la carte, which costs around $25 for the same great meal. Blasphemy!”
The new Cracker Barrel logo is seen on a menu inside the restaurant on Thursday, August 21, 2025, in Pembroke Pines, Florida. The restaurant unveiled the new logo as part of a larger brand refresh, removing the image of a man sitting next to a barrel and the phrase “old country store.” (Getty Images North America) Getty Images
He argued that connecting with customers is crucial – even if owners are trying to combat rising food costs or long kitchen times.
“The reality is that nostalgia matters,” he said. “And when you remove popular items without controlling the narrative or managing customers’ expectations, you are bound to have upset patrons.”
Rachel Love, a self-described Cracker Barrel enthusiast from Tennessee, said she’s hoping black-eyed peas and the baked apple dumpling, which she called “the perfect comfort dessert,” will make a return to menus.
“People aren’t just asking for old menu items – they’re asking for the comfort and nostalgia that came with them,” she told the outlet.
A general view of a Cracker Barrel Old Country Store in Mount Arlington, NJ, on Sunday, August 13, 2023. (Christopher Sadowski) Christopher Sadowski for NY Post
“Sometimes bringing back one classic dish means more to loyal customers than introducing several new ones.”
Cracker Barrel did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
The calls from loyal Cracker Barrel fans serve as further confirmation of the brand’s need to lean into nostalgia – especially after its failed attempts to modernize the company last year.
The disastrous rebrand was led by CEO Julie Felss Masino, who last week announced that she is stepping down in August after less than three years at the helm.
A waitress serves plates of food in a restaurant inside a Cracker Barrel Country Store on Saturday, November 22, 2014. (Universal Images Group Editorial) Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Cracker Barrel is reportedly set to pay her millions of dollars in exit fees and cover her security costs after she steps down.
In early 2025, Cracker Barrel’s stock fell into freefall after Masino said the chain was “just not as relevant” as it used to be.
By August, the company had unveiled plans for a $700 million transformation across more than 660 restaurants – which had already started at some locations in the spring – in an attempt to draw in new customers.
It included white paint, bright lighting and decluttering the walls of knickknacks in restaurants, as well as erasing from the logo its folksy farmer mascot Uncle Herschel, who had been part of the design since 1977.
Cracker Barrel serves complimentary black-eyed peas for New Year’s Day. (Cracker Barrel Old Country Store) Cracker Barrel Old Country Store
Over the next week, Cracker Barrel watched its sales crater – losing its market share of Republican diners, its most loyal base, according to Consumer Edge data.
Its stock also plunged, wiping out hundreds of millions of dollars in value, though it has since started to bounce back.
Following heated backlash from longtime customers and even President Trump, Cracker Barrel reversed the changes five days later.
During an earnings call in September, Masino admitted the rebrand was a misstep and pledged to “lean into Uncle Herschel and the nostalgia around the brand.”
