You know, it actually could, but it never will because pandering is safer, and that’s essentially what it does.
Switch the menu up for more updated country cooking. Keep the vibe by leaning hard into americana music playing, and converting most of the bullshit store space into something you could fit a small bluegrass ensemble in. Have live music on weekends, and use the rest of the store space to promote local music as well as products that support local crafts rather than the mass produced shit they usually cram in.
Maybe do a weekly country cooking lesson, or maybe stories and history, again leaning hard into local lore over general, but not skipping general american bits entirely.
And, ffs, don’t be douchey about employees. Fucking treat them with respect. There’s worse chains to work for, but it ain’t great as it is.
You’d still pull some of the older crowd that comes for the kitschy bullshit, but if the food is good and the atmosphere welcoming, you’ll also bring in more than just the Sunday school crowd. Because, damn. Good southern/country food is hard to come by sometimes. And they’ve stopped doing that kind of food right. They actually used to have good food. But somewhere about fifteen years ago, it changed. Don’t know what happened behind the scenes, but the food went to shit.
I think it’s a lot of frozen food now and I don’t think it was as a child. I haven’t eaten there nearly as much when on road trips now, but I remember the food was a lot better as a kid. Maybe my memory is bad or my tastes have improved, but I think something has changed.
You make a lot of solid points. It would make the stores more interesting to have more unique local connections. That’d give you more of a reason to stop knowing the Cracker Barrel in Brunswick will be different than the one in Roanoke Rapids. I’m also surprised they haven’t put in more electric vehicle chargers. Their whole existence seems built around giving travelers a place to stop on road trips and trying to keep them there longer than a quick potty break (and spending money in the store or restaurant). Who better fits that bill than drivers who need to wait 20-30 minutes anyways?
Yeah, I used to know cooks there. Back as recently as the early 2ks, they were doing real cooking for the majority of the menu. But that stopped; the last cook I talked to from the place said that except for breakfast, most things were pre cooked and frozen without anyone using more than a microwave. Kinda like most chains tbh, but you can’t do that with some dishes and expect quality.
But holy crap, the ev station idea is brilliant for most restaurants right now. The ones that jump on it early are going to have an edge until others start doing it. Waffle house, Denny’s, all of the ones that like to be right near an exit ramp. Whoever gets there first and gets known for it is going to etch into public memory as the first option.
I can’t speak for all of them but we had one open in my neck of the woods and it was mediocre as fuck. The greasy spoon up the street from it gave bigger, better tasting, and cheaper portions on breakfast, and it was blown out of the water on the dinner side by everything else in the neighborhood too. It closed down and is getting replaced by an asian buffet soon.
Yup, that’s the main problem. The chain gave up on quality so long ago that the only reason they still have any customers is habit and a rapidly fading reputation as the only chain doing that style of food.
You know, it actually could, but it never will because pandering is safer, and that’s essentially what it does.
Switch the menu up for more updated country cooking. Keep the vibe by leaning hard into americana music playing, and converting most of the bullshit store space into something you could fit a small bluegrass ensemble in. Have live music on weekends, and use the rest of the store space to promote local music as well as products that support local crafts rather than the mass produced shit they usually cram in.
Maybe do a weekly country cooking lesson, or maybe stories and history, again leaning hard into local lore over general, but not skipping general american bits entirely.
And, ffs, don’t be douchey about employees. Fucking treat them with respect. There’s worse chains to work for, but it ain’t great as it is.
You’d still pull some of the older crowd that comes for the kitschy bullshit, but if the food is good and the atmosphere welcoming, you’ll also bring in more than just the Sunday school crowd. Because, damn. Good southern/country food is hard to come by sometimes. And they’ve stopped doing that kind of food right. They actually used to have good food. But somewhere about fifteen years ago, it changed. Don’t know what happened behind the scenes, but the food went to shit.
I think it’s a lot of frozen food now and I don’t think it was as a child. I haven’t eaten there nearly as much when on road trips now, but I remember the food was a lot better as a kid. Maybe my memory is bad or my tastes have improved, but I think something has changed.
You make a lot of solid points. It would make the stores more interesting to have more unique local connections. That’d give you more of a reason to stop knowing the Cracker Barrel in Brunswick will be different than the one in Roanoke Rapids. I’m also surprised they haven’t put in more electric vehicle chargers. Their whole existence seems built around giving travelers a place to stop on road trips and trying to keep them there longer than a quick potty break (and spending money in the store or restaurant). Who better fits that bill than drivers who need to wait 20-30 minutes anyways?
Yeah, I used to know cooks there. Back as recently as the early 2ks, they were doing real cooking for the majority of the menu. But that stopped; the last cook I talked to from the place said that except for breakfast, most things were pre cooked and frozen without anyone using more than a microwave. Kinda like most chains tbh, but you can’t do that with some dishes and expect quality.
But holy crap, the ev station idea is brilliant for most restaurants right now. The ones that jump on it early are going to have an edge until others start doing it. Waffle house, Denny’s, all of the ones that like to be right near an exit ramp. Whoever gets there first and gets known for it is going to etch into public memory as the first option.
I can’t speak for all of them but we had one open in my neck of the woods and it was mediocre as fuck. The greasy spoon up the street from it gave bigger, better tasting, and cheaper portions on breakfast, and it was blown out of the water on the dinner side by everything else in the neighborhood too. It closed down and is getting replaced by an asian buffet soon.
Yup, that’s the main problem. The chain gave up on quality so long ago that the only reason they still have any customers is habit and a rapidly fading reputation as the only chain doing that style of food.