Posted on 01/02/2026 9:59:05 AM PST by Red Badger
Cracker Barrel is barreling toward yet another PR disaster, this time angering customers throughout the South for ditching a tradition on New Year’s Day.
In early September 2025, Cracker Barrel fully retreated from its proposed plans to modernize and remodel its restaurants to a more minimalist, corporate look and replace its old trademark logo, featuring “old timer” Uncle Herschel, with a boring, stripped-down version. They didn’t have much choice, as customers were enraged and their stock price had plummeted
You’ve shared your voices in recent weeks not just on our logo, but also on our restaurants. We’re continuing to listen. Today, we’re suspending our remodels. If your restaurant hasn’t been remodeled, you don’t need to worry, it won’t be. With our recent announcement that our…
— Cracker Barrel (@CrackerBarrel) September 9, 2025
The company is now facing yet another brewing PR crisis. Over the years, Cracker Barrel has quietly stopped serving black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day, a Southern dish that, according to legend, brings good fortune in the new year.
Arrogant Yankees Don’t Get That This is ‘Bad Luck’ https://t.co/f1gqQjHpqp pic.twitter.com/eIhbwqaodx
— Grace Chong, MBI (@gc22gc) January 1, 2026
Cracker Barrel apparently hasn’t received the message yet. No black eyed peas on New Year’s Day in the South? As my grandmother once told me, never forget where you came from. pic.twitter.com/OMVzlqHpDY
— Jim Crooks (@JimCrooks7) January 2, 2026
One more example, albeit a small one, of white liberal women destroying America as we know it. In this case, Sarah Moore threw the long-standing tradition of serving black-eyed peas on New Year’s out the window. Cracker Barrel hasn’t changed their spots. https://t.co/vuDWnPV2m1
— Matt Bryant (@MattBryant7295) January 1, 2026
Seems to me like you idiots haven’t learned a damned thing. Glad I decided to keep my family out of your new look and new menu. Cracker Barrel used to be a good place to go. Not so much anymore.@CrackerBarrel https://t.co/oz4uNpfZ4b
— Andy Alford (@AndyAlford19) January 1, 2026
Now I find out Cracker Barrel no longer serves Black Eyed Peas on New Year’s Day. The woman at the head of this thing needs to be fired. She’s done nothing but causes problems since she took over by the way lady if you’re reading this your insights don’t work.
— John Stoll (@babybosn) January 1, 2026
As a proud Yankee, I was never familiar with the Southern tradition of eating collards and black-eyed peas on New Year’s until I married into a Southern family. Yesterday, however, was my second New Year’s of having a nibble of collards for wealth and prosperity, and black-eyed peas for good health. It’s a great tradition.
But, of course, the empty corporate suits who now run Cracker Barrel had to ruin it for the Southern customers. How many times can you shoot the same foot? We are learning that in Cracker Barrel’s case, there are no limits.
I cook my own food too, in fact, if I ever go out to eat which I do occasionally... I usually order something that I don’t make at home because everything else I can just make at home.
Now about Cracker Barrel... I ate there twice.
Now about Chic Filet... I ate there twice.
‘Nuff said.
The government looked the other way when “usury” became commonplace.
The Third Great Awakening, along with removal of all reecalcitrant Muslims, which will likely be most of them. Whether a Republic can accomplish this is anyone's guess; Rome survived four centuries after it quit being a republic. Being selfish, I am glad I won't be here to see the end of the republic, but I fear my children will have to live through it.
Nope.................
Granddad’s family in my Mom’s side; the women and children finished the war in Atlanta, GA.
They know of starvation. Black eyed peas saved them since Sherman burned everything.
Well, private equity is undergoing a shift, and that's a good thing and something many in the industry deserve. Hell, I first wrote about where private equity's focus should be when I did my dissertation back in 2009.
None of the PE firms wanted to listen back then, or even since. Now they are being forced to as the number of Zombie firms, and portfolio companies are starting to line up. There are something like 31,000 firms that have exceeded what would be a normal "hold" period, and that is costing the primary investors (Limited Partners) money.
It's likely to be a shake-up for many firms, with some no longer able to raise a new fund; which is a good thing.
Various free market countries have systems that make leveraged buyouts for short term gain difficult.
For instance Japan has the keiretsu system that can involve interlocking ownership. You would have to have all owners agree to a leveraged buyout which is difficult to do.
Similar systems are used in Nordic countries as well (for instance a union would have to sign off on the deal).
For good reason other countries don’t want to adopt our predatory capitalism system...they don’t want their companies to fall victim like what happened to Red Lobster, Toys-R-Us, etc.
Pizza Hut used to make ok pizzas.. not the best but ok, until it was destroyed by private equity.
They promised to undo the changes, but they have not done so. Their once-great pancakes now suck.
“That’s Economic Freedom.”
A discussion was on SKB show 1 Jan-
Dave Brat said something to the effect-there’s capitalism and then without God, without Jesus I think he said, there is corporatism
This is like Hollywood bad output or the NFL. The guys show disrespect to the flag during the Anthem. They are saying that the constitution for which it stands is racist. That racist nasty cops are acting within the constitution. No they’re not
Capitalism- all the audience who ever pledged allegiance to the Flag get up. They leave. If a season ticket is hundreds, they eat it. That’s allegiance to the flag. Never purchase again
The owners give a lesson publicly to the players, forbid disrespecting the anthem
The NFL thrives
Corporatism- most -not all, of the people sitting in the bleachers have a price on their allegiance to the flag, they don’t care about it after a couple hundred
The owners tell their customers they don’t care about the constitution. They take money from the remaining fans and they get subsidies. Do they come from state dept-declared enemies of the state? No one following the NFL cares
Corporatism-
Cracker Barrel ignores its customers in search of new customers
They think they’re getting young people. Some numbers cruncher who’s never gone out to do research is telling them this
They’ll do it until they’re in the ground with stupidity
No God
People who won’t go to a Cracker Barrel because the food is not their idea of what they want, they want a beer or glass of wine, they don’t want the shop. These people are never going back to Cracker Barrel and they’re not trying it
If Buc-ee’s gets taken over I’ll be surprised. But I don’t go there either. People like it b/c it’s clean, safe and they like the food and the merch. Capitalism
Cracker Barrel is a public company that is traded on NASDAQ, not owned by private equity.
The shareholders should be demanding accountability from the idiot CEO.
Our New Year’s Day custom is different—Pork and Sauerkraut!
Here it is, pork sausage meatballs and sauerkraut for good luck at midnight. This is a tradition from my wife's family of Slovak immigrants in SE Ohio.
I hear you. I’m ETX. And I do not have sugar in my tea. Or coffee.
Yes!
You can make hummus out of black eyed peas.
Aw Geez, now its the doggone peas. Order something else and shut up or eat elsewhere.
Don’t gripe, that only hurts you, the griper. Just don’t go there, that hurts the Leftists.
This is a terribly offensive thing to do and she has done it with malice.
A pox on cracker barrel. Never again. No more.
Black-eye peas with hog jowl and corn bread are an essential tradition in our house for at least the last five generations. I am not about to break it.
On American operated drilling vessels black-eye peas on New Year’s Day are a given. In camps I have taken in dried peas and made them myself.
CB can do what they want to do but I’m not about to indulge them any longer.
My 2026 first meal: Hoppin John (Black eyed peas), collard greens and corn bread!
But how do they make money then? Liquidating spent assets won’t bring in a lot. And the initial investment is a lot.
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