Cracker Barrel introduces strict new eating rule | EUROtoday

Cracker Barrel is serving up a brand new rule for workers hitting the highway: When it involves meals, the corporate desires them to stay to its personal eating places.

In an inner message obtained by the Wall Street Journalthe corporate mentioned that “employees are expected to dine at a Cracker Barrel store for all or the majority of meals while traveling, whenever practical, based on location and schedule.”

The steerage additionally bars the corporate from reimbursing alcohol purchases on enterprise journeys except staff pay out of pocket or get pre‑approval for particular events from senior management.

The Independent has contacted Cracker Barrel for remark.

The journey meal coverage comes as Cracker Barrel continues efforts to trim bills amid sagging visitors and income progress that has slowed in recent times. Cracker Barrel can also be nonetheless feeling the consequences of its disastrous 2025 rebrand efforts, and now clients are turning their ire towards adjustments in its menu.

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In December, common diners complained about current menu adjustments, together with batch‑made cookies as an alternative of freshly rolled dough and inexperienced beans and sides ready in ovens quite than on the stovetop. Some clients have gone so far as bringing their very own maple syrup to the restaurant as a result of they disapprove of the brand new choices.

The backlash in opposition to the chain started with a botched rebrand that brought about Cracker Barrel to lose an estimated $94 million in market worth in a single day after the chain unveiled a brand new brand and branding technique in August. The firm’s eliminated its longtime mascot, the person leaning on a barrel, generally known as Uncle Herschel, from its brand as a part of a broader minimalist rebrand.

MAGA influencers and conservative commentators branded the redesign as “woke,” and even former President Donald Trump publicly urged the corporate to revert to its basic look.

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Around the identical time, Cracker Barrel additionally introduced plans to modernize the interiors of its greater than 650 areas, which critics claimed stripped away the chain’s nostalgic id.

The firm shortly acknowledged the backlash in a press release asserting it could scrap the revamps.

“If the last few days have shown us anything, it’s how deeply people care about Cracker Barrel. We’re truly grateful for your heartfelt voices,” the statement read. “You’ve also shown us that we could’ve done a better job sharing who we are and who we’ll always be.”

It went on assuring Cracker Barrel diners that “the issues individuals love most about our shops aren’t going wherever: rocking chairs on the porch, a heat hearth within the fireplace, peg video games on the desk, distinctive treasures in our reward store, and classic Americana with antiques pulled straight from our warehouse in Lebanon, Tennessee.”

Later, Cracker Barrel CEO Julie Felss Masino mentioned the backlash made her really feel “fired by America.”