Cracker Barrel has been serving comfort food for decades, but not every dish lives up to the hype. While many customers love the cozy atmosphere and hearty portions, some menu items fall flat when it comes to taste and value. Knowing which meals to skip can save you money and disappointment during your next visit. Here are the dishes that consistently leave diners wishing they had ordered something else.
1. Sunday Homestyle Chicken
Priced at nearly twenty dollars, this chicken dinner promises comfort food satisfaction but delivers greasy disappointment instead. The coating often arrives soggy rather than crispy, lacking the golden crunch that makes fried chicken special.
Most pieces contain more breading than actual meat, making each bite feel like eating seasoned cardboard. The chicken itself tends to be dry and flavorless, despite being covered in oil.
For the same price, you could get a much better chicken dinner at countless other restaurants. Save your money and choose literally any other entree on the menu.
2. Fish Fry Platter
Every Friday, Cracker Barrel promotes their fish fry special, but customers quickly learn why fish shouldn’t be the star of a country cooking menu. The fish arrives overcooked and rubbery, with a thick coating that tastes like bland flour paste.
Even worse, the portions are surprisingly small for such a hefty price tag. The accompanying sides do little to salvage the meal, often arriving lukewarm and uninspired.
Stick to what Cracker Barrel does best – comfort food classics. Their fish simply doesn’t measure up to dedicated seafood restaurants or even grocery store frozen options.
3. Vegetable Plate
Vegetarians hoping for a satisfying meal will find themselves deeply disappointed with this lackluster offering. Despite choosing from supposedly fresh vegetables, everything tastes like it came straight from a can or freezer bag.
The green beans are mushy, the corn lacks sweetness, and the carrots have zero flavor. Even the mac and cheese side, usually a safe bet, arrives watery and bland.
For nearly fifteen dollars, you’re essentially paying restaurant prices for cafeteria-quality vegetables. Most grocery stores offer better frozen vegetable medleys that you can prepare at home for a fraction of the cost.
4. Meatloaf Dinner
Meatloaf should remind you of home cooking, but Cracker Barrel’s version will make you appreciate your grandmother’s recipe even more. Their meatloaf consistently arrives dry and crumbly, falling apart before you can get a proper bite.
The seasoning is practically nonexistent, leaving you with what tastes like compressed ground beef with breadcrumbs. Even drowning it in their brown gravy can’t save this culinary disaster.
The accompanying mashed potatoes are equally disappointing, often lumpy and clearly made from powder. Skip this nostalgic failure and order their country fried steak instead – at least that dish has some personality.
5. Grilled Chicken Tenders
When you’re trying to eat healthier at Cracker Barrel, these grilled chicken tenders seem like a smart choice. Unfortunately, healthy doesn’t have to mean flavorless, though this dish proves otherwise.
The chicken arrives bone-dry and completely unseasoned, requiring massive amounts of sauce just to make it edible. Even then, the texture resembles rubber more than tender poultry.
The portion size is laughably small for the price, leaving you hungry and unsatisfied. You’d get more flavor and better value from a gas station chicken sandwich. Choose the fried version instead – if you’re eating at Cracker Barrel, you might as well embrace the indulgence.
6. Country Fried Shrimp
Seafood at a country restaurant should raise red flags, and this dish confirms those suspicions immediately. The shrimp are tiny, overcooked, and taste like they’ve been frozen for months before preparation.
The breading overwhelms whatever seafood flavor might exist, creating bites that taste more like seasoned cardboard than ocean bounty. Most pieces are so small you’ll struggle to find actual shrimp inside the coating.
At nearly eighteen dollars, you’re paying premium prices for what amounts to expensive fish sticks. Coastal restaurants serve better shrimp for less money, and even Red Lobster beats this disappointing attempt at surf-and-turf.
7. Pot Roast Dinner
Pot roast represents the pinnacle of comfort food, slow-cooked until tender and falling apart. Cracker Barrel’s version somehow manages to be both dry and tough simultaneously, defying basic cooking science.
The vegetables accompanying the roast are equally disappointing, mushy and flavorless after being overcooked beyond recognition. Even the gravy tastes like it came from a packet rather than natural beef drippings.
For a dish that should showcase their comfort food expertise, this pot roast feels like a missed opportunity. The high price makes the disappointment even more painful, especially when other menu items demonstrate they can actually cook decent food.
8. Catfish Dinner
Southern restaurants should excel at catfish, but Cracker Barrel’s version suggests they’ve never actually tasted proper fried catfish. The fish arrives greasy and soggy, with breading that slides off in unappetizing chunks.
Underneath the failed coating, the catfish itself is often overcooked and fishy-tasting rather than mild and flaky. The traditional sides don’t help matters, arriving equally uninspired and poorly prepared.
Any self-respecting Southern diner serves better catfish for half the price. This dish feels like an insult to Southern cooking traditions, especially considering Cracker Barrel’s country theme and premium pricing structure.
9. Salmon Dinner
Ordering salmon at Cracker Barrel feels like asking for sushi at a barbecue joint – technically possible but definitely not recommended. The salmon consistently arrives overcooked and dry, with zero seasoning or flavor enhancement.
The preparation method seems to involve cooking until all moisture has completely evaporated, leaving behind what resembles pink cardboard. Even the lemon wedge can’t salvage this culinary catastrophe.
At over twenty dollars, this represents some of the worst value on the entire menu. Grocery store salmon costs less and tastes infinitely better when prepared at home. Stick to their breakfast items or classic comfort foods instead.
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