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Cracker Barrel has reverted back to a traditional styles of cooking in hopes of pulling back customers who fled in droves amid the fallout from its woke rebrand. The Southern comfort food chain announced a raft of changes over the summer, including retiring its iconic logo, renovating its restaurants and updating the way it prepares menu staples. The move instantly backfired, even garnering the attention of President Donald Trump as patrons demanded a return to the original logo. CEO Julie Felss Masino hastily walked back the rebrand, but not before the food chain's market value dropped 40 percent from $807million to $545million, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported. Traffic inside the restaurant has also fallen eight percent, causing the ailing business to revert back to its traditional business model in order to bring back its customers. This includes jettisoning plans to update its cooking methods for popular favorites like green beans and biscuits by making them in large batches which would be reheated in the oven. The decision to optimize back of house production was taken after customers complained about cold food hitting their tables. But since then an internal memo viewed by the WSJ shows the restaurant is reverting back to its methods of nine of its side dishes. 'We are doubling down on delicious, scratch-made food the way our guests expect it and that great country hospitality that we’re known for,' Masino, 54, said at an investor conference. It also suspended all remodels on stores and terminated a consultant group that helped with the rebrand. 'We have taken to heart the learnings around the logo and remodels, and from what was working in our plan, and we are moving forward with a renewed focus on food and the guest experience,' a Cracker Barrel statement said. Within days of the rebrand announcement, customers accused the brand of abandoning its roots, employees revolted, the 93-year-old founder publicly slammed the CEO. The company's stock plunged $100million in a week. Sales fell by $30million over a three-month period— the equivalent of 2.3 million plates of country-fried steak. Cracker Barrel scrapped the new logo and dropped plans to modernize its rustic dining halls. Masino said the real reason for the change wasn't political - it was practical. Speaking at an investor summit in New York, she explained that the simplified design was meant to make the brand's 660 restaurants more visible to drivers speeding down the interstate. The explanation makes some sense: the former sign had muted white and brown colors, reaffirming the company's old-world charm. For years, Cracker Barrel was running into an age problem: 26 percent of their customers were over the age of 65, while only 12 percent of visitors were between 25 and 34 years old. Restaurant chains need to attract younger families to show they will maintain relevance for future generations. And, while Cracker Barrel attracted older customers, it wasn't crushing sales goals. In 2024, the chain closed underperforming restaurants while executives found that their stores were in increasingly low-income areas. Masino, a former Taco Bell and Starbucks boss, launched a makeover campaign with an estimated $600million to $700million price tag that included brighter colors, a new logo, and updated menus to attract younger diners. But critics said the changes stripped away the brand's character and charm.
