If you typed “cracker and barrel restaurant” into Google, you probably heard the name from a friend or passed one of the big rocking-chair porches off the interstate. Fair enough: it is one of those chains everyone recognizes and few people can describe in detail. This guide covers what the restaurant actually is, what is on the menu, how the hours and prices work, what the attached country store is about, and how to get the most out of a visit. This is an independent guide; it is not affiliated with or endorsed by Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.
What Is the Cracker and Barrel Restaurant?
The real name is Cracker Barrel Old Country Store. It started in 1969 in Lebanon, Tennessee, when founder Dan Evins decided highway travelers needed a better place to stop: real food, a real store, and a front porch with rocking chairs. More than fifty years later, the formula is nearly unchanged.
Every location has two halves under one roof. The restaurant side is a dining room decorated like a turn-of-the-century country store, with vintage signs, farm tools, and old advertisements on every wall. The store side sells candy, toys, home decor, apparel, and the brand’s famous rocking chairs. You walk through the store to get to the dining room, and you walk back through it on your way out, which is exactly the point.
The food is Southern comfort cooking. Think chicken and dumplings, country fried steak, meatloaf, biscuits with sawmill gravy, fried apples, and hashbrown casserole. Breakfast is served all day, which is one of the chain’s biggest draws. Portions are generous, the pace is unhurried, and the prices sit in the casual-dining middle: not fast food, not fine dining.
What Is on the Cracker and Barrel Restaurant Menu?
The menu is big, so here is how it breaks down in practice.
Breakfast (served all day)
Breakfast is the headline act. Pancakes, French toast, omelets, eggs cooked your way, bacon, sausage, country ham, and grits or hashbrowns. The Old Timer’s Breakfast (two eggs, grits, your choice of meat, biscuits or corn muffins) is the classic order, and Momma’s Pancake Breakfast is the family favorite. If you want the full rundown of the morning lineup, our Cracker Barrel breakfast menu guide breaks it down dish by dish.
Lunch and dinner
Daytime and evening bring the homestyle plates: chicken and dumplings, chicken fried chicken, country fried steak with gravy, meatloaf, roast beef, and a rotating cast of vegetables like turnip greens, fried okra, mac and cheese, and mashed potatoes. There are also sandwiches, burgers, and salads for lighter appetites. Our dinner menu guide with prices walks through the full evening lineup.
Daily specials
Each weekday has its own special: Sunday homestyle chicken, Monday chicken and rice, Tuesday beef stew, Wednesday chicken pot pie, Thursday turkey and dressing, Friday fish fry, Saturday steak. These rotate reliably and tend to be the best value on the menu. See the daily specials by day for the current schedule.
Desserts and the country store food
Dessert is no afterthought: double-fudge Coca-Cola cake, apple pie baked in the store’s ovens, fruit cobblers, and banana pudding. You can also buy take-home versions of many items in the store section, from pancake mix to fried apples in jars.
Cracker and Barrel Restaurant Hours
Most locations open around 7:00 AM and close around 9:00 PM, seven days a week. That is the standard pattern, but it is not a promise: hours vary by location, and holiday hours differ (Thanksgiving is famously one of the busiest days of the year, and locations do open for it). Before driving over, check your specific store’s hours on the restaurant’s official site or call ahead. Sunday mornings are peak time; arrive before 9:30 AM or expect a wait, though the wait itself is pleasant, you sit on rocking chairs on the porch and browse the store.
Cracker and Barrel Restaurant Prices: What to Expect
Here is the honest answer on cost: Cracker Barrel sits squarely in mid-range casual dining. As of October 2026, most entrees land in a range that is easy on the wallet compared with other sit-down chains, but prices vary by location and change over time, so treat any number you see online as approximate.
A practical way to budget: breakfast plates generally cost the least, lunch specials come next, and dinner entrees cost a bit more. Family meals, the bundled take-home packs that feed four to six, are the best per-person value if you are feeding a group; our family meals guide covers those bundles in detail. The weekday daily specials are the other smart-money move, since they bundle an entree with sides at a set price.
One tip that saves real money: the menu is large enough that two people can easily share a big dinner plate plus a side or two, especially at lunch. Servers are used to it; just ask for an extra plate.
The Country Store: Half the Reason People Go
You cannot talk about the cracker and barrel restaurant without the store. Every location’s entrance funnels you through a general store stocked with old-fashioned candy (the kind sold by the piece), wooden toys, puzzles, cast-iron cookware, candles, clothing, and seasonal decor. The rocking chairs on the front porch are the same ones sold inside, and they are legitimately good chairs.
Is the store a tourist trap? Sort of, but an honest one. Prices are fair for gift-shop fare, and there is real nostalgia value: candy cigarettes, striped rock candy, checkers sets, and the famous peg game (the little triangular golf-tee puzzle on every table; the store sells take-home versions). Build in ten extra minutes for browsing. Your kids will want the candy counter, and honestly, so will you.
Ordering Tips for a First Visit
Order the biscuits. They arrive warm, and the sawmill gravy or apple butter that comes with them is worth the trip on its own. If you cannot decide, the sampler-style meals (meat plus three vegetables) give you the best tour of the kitchen. Breakfast people: the hashbrown casserole is the side to get, and yes, you can order breakfast at 7 PM.
Dietary notes worth knowing: the kitchen is comfort-food territory, so vegetarian options exist but are limited (the vegetable plate is the move), and gluten-free diners should ask about current options since the menu leans heavily on breaded and battered dishes. Nutrition information is published by the company for those tracking calories or macros.
Finally, the experience is the product. Cracker Barrel is not fast, and that is the point. The fireplace in the dining room, the peg game on the table, the rocking chairs outside, this is a restaurant built for slowing down. If you are in a hurry, order takeout online and pick it up at the store counter.
Finding a Cracker and Barrel Restaurant Near You
Locations cluster along interstates and in suburbs, which is no accident: the chain was built for road trips. The official store locator on the company’s website is the reliable way to find the nearest one, with addresses, phone numbers, and current hours. If you are planning a holiday meal, call the store directly a day or two ahead; Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve bring crowds that rival any theme park.
One more thing regulars know: not every menu item appears at every store. Regional touches show up here and there, and limited-time seasonal items rotate through the year. If a favorite disappears, ask your server; it may be seasonal rather than gone.
FAQs About the Cracker and Barrel Restaurant
Is “cracker and barrel restaurant” the same as Cracker Barrel Old Country Store?
Yes. “Cracker and barrel” is just how many people say and search the name; the official name is Cracker Barrel Old Country Store. This guide is independent and not affiliated with the company.
What are the typical Cracker Barrel hours?
Most locations open around 7:00 AM and close around 9:00 PM daily, but hours vary by location and on holidays, so check your specific store before visiting.
Does Cracker Barrel serve breakfast all day?
Yes. The full breakfast menu is available all day at nearly every location, from open to close.
Is Cracker Barrel expensive?
No, it is mid-range casual dining. Breakfast is the cheapest meal, daily specials are the best dinner value, and family meal bundles feed four to six at a good per-person price. Exact prices vary by location.
What is the country store inside Cracker Barrel?
It is a general store attached to every restaurant, selling old-fashioned candy, toys, home decor, apparel, and the brand’s rocking chairs. You walk through it to reach the dining room.
Do I need a reservation at Cracker Barrel?
No, the restaurant does not take reservations for regular dining. Weekend mornings and holiday meals have waits; the porch rocking chairs and the store make the wait comfortable.
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