Support NeoGAF

[AJUMP23]

The old country store and restaurant is going through a fundamental changes. Internal redesign and new logo.

One thing about cracker barrel it has a reliable country food. I personally like the Chicken and Dumplings, the Biscuits and the old time aesthetic.

What say you gaf about the changes to this American Icon.

Social Media is not happy.



New CEO is a type

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

lol, typical when you hire this kind of woman. The real people to blame are whoever let her in a position of any power whatsoever.

It's dead now, let it finish dying hastily and remember it as another cautionary tale about progressive female CEOs.

 

[Nydius]

Po'Folks back in the day was a thousand times better than Cracker Barrel ever was or will be. A real shame the management of Po'Folks failed so miserably.

And now Cracker Barrel are falling into the abyss with them.

 

[ssringo]

Best country food will always be the local mom and pops place (or granny's). Sucks for ya'll that only have the chains.

That rebranding is sad though. I hate seeing great logos simplified into basic bitch text.

 

[Mistake]

I saw photos of the new interior design. It's so sterile and devoid of anything representing early America

 

[NickFire]

Oh no. She's citing feedback from team members as proof the idea is good. Something something toxic positivity something something,

 

[Bojji]

Cunt.

 

[MrTroubleMaker]

wtf

 

[crumbs]

I never visited a Cracker Barrel until last summer, when ended up eating there twice on a long road trip. Both locations (one in Kentucky & the other in Alabama) were pretty busy, especially the gift shop area. Service was good at both locations, food was inoffensively mediocre and had large portions. Crowd was mostly seniors and families with small children.

Sorry to see such a lame re-branding.

 

[Boo Who?]

I saw this yesterday. You want to talk about a CEO who doesn't know its clientele. Its Bud Light all over again. Lets alienate a majority of our customer base to make a few thousand crazy people happy. I'm sure it will all end well for Cracker Barrel.

 

[SJRB]

Another galaxy brain IQ 4D chess move by a braindead liberal white woman.

 

[dem]

This is what every company on earth is doing...
Boring logo... boring interiors

Not sure why Cracker Barrel of all things pushes people over the edge.

I mean.. have you been in a Mcdonalds lately?
Its basically a kiosk in building form. The newest ones don't even let you order at the counter.


Look at Pizza Hut. In the 80s this was an actual restaurant. People born after 2000 don't fucking get it. They used to give you pitchers of Soda. When was the last time a restaurant gave you a pitcher of Soda?
Even the poors in America used to live like kings.

Now even upper middle class eats food out of a glorified vending machine for 5x the price.

 

[Connificent]

Damn crackas

 

[Kacho]

Thank you, college-educated liberal white women. Stay in that bubble.

"The term "Bud Lighting" has emerged as a cautionary tale for other brands, highlighting the risks of misjudging consumer sentiment. It underscores the importance of authenticity and alignment with core values in marketing efforts."

Damn crackas

Unironically, yes.

 

[jshackles]

All of the Cracker Barrels in my state shut down either during the pandemic or "as a result of the pandemic", but even before that they were just fancy homeless camps and fentanyl dens

 

[Kacho]

"This is a gentrified Cracker Barrel"

 

[Days like these...]

They can always install a yts only water fountain to appease those who don't like the redesign

 

[Windle Poons]

Bit like when Gillette dropped 'the best a man could get' and had to put it back.

 

[Dr_Ifto]

Meh, as long as the food is ok. I dont really care. Its always so dark in there before.

 

[Esca]

I'm not a cracker barrel nut but I didn't mind going there. I liked the options and it was not great food but it was easy to eat and enjoy dinner with whomever you were with. I liked the old style look it had and just felt comfortable. That Dolres Umbridge tweet is spot on

 

[Punished Miku]

I feel bad for this woman. The assignment; rebrand Cracker Barrell to get some attention from customers under 70 without upsetting conservatives.

 

[violence]

Isn't the point to look old-timey?

 

[Dacvak]

Maybe this is a 4D chess move: Create new shitty logo, remodel one store, outrage the entire internet, dominate a news cycle, and then reverse every change and claim that "we heard you loud and clear", emerging an unchanged phoenix and getting much-needed positive publicity.

This could be Cracker Barrel's "IHOB" moment.

Or maybe they really are just that stupid.

 

[dave_d]

So how long before she decides they need to serve avocado toast?

 

[Poppinfresh]

White liberals, especially white liberal women, ruin everything.

 

[Kacho]

Or maybe they really are just that stupid.

Definitely this. Or at least out of touch. CB has always been about cozy country vibes. This sterile aesthetic looks more fitting for a Chipotle refresh.

 

[poppabk]

lol, typical when you hire this kind of woman. The real people to blame are whoever let her in a position of any power whatsoever.

It's dead now, let it finish dying hastily and remember it as another cautionary tale about progressive female CEOs.

What is 'this kind of woman'? She successfully rebranded Taco Bell in a similar manner.

 

[Smiggs]

I mean, it looks dumb as hell, but how exactly is it woke?

 

[Connificent]

Meh, as long as the food is ok. I dont really care. Its always so dark in there before.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

At least add a border around the new logo.

 

[LordCBH]

Used to eat there a lot until the one by my house got remodeled a couple months ago and removed everything that made it comfortable. Hope they go bankrupt.

 

[violence]

Their stock has been down since the pandemic. I guess looking more like Village Inn instead of being Cracker Barrel is the answer.

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

Always wanted to eat at this place

 

[Kacho]

 

[DonkeyPunchJr]

They're going for the same demographic as the new electric Jaguar cars.

 

[lughnasadh123]

The new one would look a lot better with a better outline and font. The icons on the original was the most interesting thing about it.

 

[DonkeyPunchJr]

This seems so misguided. I have to imagine that Cracker Barrel customers eat there because they like the kitschy, rustic old-timey aesthetic + nostalgia for simpler times.

Seems like they're eliminating the one thing that makes it distinctive. Is there really that much appeal in a sleek, modernized Cracker Barrel?

 

[Mistake]

I mean, it looks dumb as hell, but how exactly is it woke?

Modern designs and woke culture go oddly hand in hand. It's all about making things boring, lifeless, and removing identity instead of celebrating it. Every design which was seen as "problematic" has followed the same pattern

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

lol, typical when you hire this kind of woman. The real people to blame are whoever let her in a position of any power whatsoever.

It's dead now, let it finish dying hastily and remember it as another cautionary tale about progressive female CEOs.

Cracker Barrel was dying before this woman had input. They're making the change in order to correct the sinking ship...which was always a difficult task.

 

[0neAnd0nly]

Ate at a redesigned one recently (had no idea they went through the redesign, has been about a year since I had eaten at one) and it was horrible. The decorations, while not atrocious, definitely changed the feeling of it - but the food prices skyrocketed and the portions were minescule.

CB use to be relatively cheap.

Someone in my party wanted to order the fried chicken, and the location we were at said they haven't had there chicken fryer working in 3 months. Lol.

On top of that, they would only bring 1 biscuit per person and no more.

It was such a strange change. I don't go a lot anymore (growing up, this was a place my family frequented), but I have no desire to return again for the foreseeable future. Really awful wholesale changes across the board. The logo and restaurant decor being the least of them (yet I also agree, inferior to the past designs).

 

[Mistake]

Cracker Barrel was dying before this woman had input. They're making the change in order to correct the sinking ship...which was always a difficult task.

I agree that they don't know what the hell they're doing. I barely heard of the place outside of controversy, so they have no idea how to handle PR. I do know that the owner seemed to have their heart in the right place, because they tried helping homeless out a lot, but as an above poster said that only ended up hurting their image

 

[DonkeyPunchJr]

Modern designs and woke culture go oddly hand in hand. It's all about making things boring, lifeless, and removing identity instead of celebrating it. Every design which was seen as "problematic" has followed the same pattern

Reminds me how you used to see all these tumblr character redesigns where they'd "fix" some overly-sexualized/"problematic" character by making them look bland, same-y, and unappealing.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

We've seen this story before a thousand times but woke liberals can't help themselves, they MUST destroy shareholder value to push agendas people hate!

Go woke, go broke example #7,284

 

[Mistake]

Reminds me how you used to see all these tumblr character redesigns where they'd "fix" some overly-sexualized/"problematic" character by making them look bland, same-y, and unappealing.

This type of censorship has been happening for decades. Look at yugioh, it's almost a completely different game in the west

 

[LiquidMetal14]

I can't believe how stupid people are these days and you know what there's people that want to support that but you're taking the identity away of what a restaurant looks like. That's one of the main reasons I even like cracker barrel and I don't even visit there all the time. I like the aesthetic and the way it looks it's very unique. And the store is a pretty nice touch as well.

Some of that redesign interior looks just like any other sterile modern restaurant and doesn't distinguish it from anything.

The logo is as plain as day and lacks any character it's even more generic

 

[IntentionalPun]

They've been "broke" before this…. I guess woke redesign?

Woke = new logo and interior design I guess now lol

 

[Jinzo Prime]

I personally don't like Cracker Barrel, but the place is always packed when I drive past it. My grandma and grandpa like it, but younger people probably do not.

I think they should have done something else to appeal to a younger crowd rather than the 'throw the baby out with the bath water' approach. Maybe a less dramatic redesign.

 

[Beretta]

They got rid of the cracker and the barrel, that's dumb.

 

[Kacho]

Some of that redesign interior looks just like any other sterile modern restaurant and doesn't distinguish it from anything.

Reminds of like 10-15 years ago when the hot thing at every restaurant was serving food on square white plates. Even Ruby Tuesday started doing it and the place no longer felt like middle America casual dining.

 

[Grildon Tundy]

Social media is not happy.

Grildon Tundy is not happy.

Cracker Barrel is a staple of my family's Midwestern road trips. I don't want to walk into a sterilized Panera Bread to eat my Country Fried Steak. I want it to feel like a home-away-from-home. The atmosphere was as much of a draw as the food.