Cracker Barrel Old Country Store — Restaurant in Council Bluffs

So I understand there is a sense of nostalgia with this restaurant. And perhaps that's why people continue to return or perhaps they are not used to Quality Food, if that seems a bit harsh, I'm known for my brutal honesty and that's probably the reason why I have millions of people that read my reviews.

Before I begin I want to mention that we ordered a large amount of food and everything that was delivered to the table have one thing in common, it was not hot. Lukewarm would be a good descriptive and that is a horrible way to begin any meal.

So let's start off with the chicken and dumplings. Bland perfectly describes what I ate. It lacks any depth of flavor, I will say that the portion size was good, but the flavor was definitely missing.

The mac and cheese did taste good but the crumble on top of it was atrocious and totally took away from anything favorable.

The loaded hash browns which I had them put an over easy egg on top of, this was probably the best dish. The flavor was good the egg was cooked perfectly the only fault was that again it was not hot.

Let's move on to the pancakes. You should be able to easily cut pancakes with your fork. A proper pancake should be fluffy. However what I received was incredibly chewy, and to add more tragedy to this situation, they were burnt. I enjoy a lot of syrup and butter on my pancakes, and that taste of burnt batter permeated my mouth. You would think that perhaps it would be hot since obviously it was overheated but again this was also lukewarm when it reached my table.

I also sampled a piece of French toast, the only taste that you get is that of egg. These were definitely left entirely too long in the egg wash.

After that I moved onto my cornbread muffin. I love southern food and I love cornbread. The moment I try to stick my butter knife into the cornbread a piece of my soul died. As I push harder eventually it broke in half, cornbread should have a light crisp shell with a very fluffy moist interior. You could have used this thing to escape prison, throw it right through the wall. Also I do not know how this is possible, okay yes I do but there was no flavor to this thing.

Next I moved on to the biscuit which I enjoy with butter and jelly or butter and honey.

To my amazement, it was a proper biscuit. The texture was exactly what it should have been.

There was a silver lining, my waitress was excellent. Checked on the table regularly and refilled our drinks as needed.. Also the price was not terrible, three people ate for $45.

If the food would have been hot, it might have bumped it up to about two and a half Stars. Sadly I would love to sample more of their food however I have a long-standing rule that if a restaurant does not get above 2 Stars, they are pretty much forever...

I am a critical reviewer and very rarely give 5 stars because I can usually find SOMETHING I don't like.... Not that I'm a negative person but I personally base decisions on them and feel they have great value. So when I write a review, I am being completely honest and very critical.

This is my first time there...ever. I didn't know who expect but heard they had great meatloaf. Outside by the entryway under the awning was filled with long rows of rocking chairs see pictures.

When I went in, I was in a retail store with very unique items but I thought I might have went in the wrong way because I was looking for the restaurant.

After just a little wandering around I found the entryway into the restaurant and a nice lady waiting to seat me and my family. We had to wait about 10 minutes before we were seated with a group of six but it gave us time to look around the store.

The inside of the restaurant was decorated with vintage and antique items, very well done. It had a classy but yet casual feel to it.

There was a great selection of food from breakfast to supper items and the prices were very reasonable.We all got something different and try to each other's food and everything was delicious.

I did order the meatloaf and am usually disappointed because it's usually too wet or too dry but this one was perfect. Wonderful flavor and didn't fall apart. I also got mashed potatoes and gravy with it and they were real mashed potatoes not instant.

the service was excellent our waitress was sweet and refilled our glasses when they were just a little less than half full. She would come by and ask on a number of occasions if everything was okay or if we needed anything.

I can't say that the food is always this good or the service is always that great every time because I've only been there once. I can say I was very very satisfied and can't wait to go back again! It definitely earned its five stars!

UPDATE: Ate there again and got pancakes eggs and biscuits and gravy. The pancakes were thin, a little dark and crispy on the outside...not very good.

I got scrambled eggs also, portion size was small and eggs were a blob not scrambled. Biscuits were good but got one little bowl of gravy which wasn't enough for the biscuits. Gravy tasted like it was out of a can.

I am a little disappointed on my second time there but will go back again. I am dropping it from a 5 star to a 4...

Just so there is no misunderstanding of any kind, I am going to say it straight out. I love Cracker Barrel. No two ways about it, Cracker Barrel is by far my favorite chain restaurant. I was born in South Carolina, and raised in SC, NC, GA, FL, TN, MS, and TX. I think that gives me some serious “street cred” regarding Southern Cooking. When anybody starts talking about what “Southern Cooking” is SUPPOSED to taste like, I always ask if they eat at Cracker Barrel. Many, many times I have told someone who answers “no,” to go and give’em a try. I tell them it they leave disappointed, bring their receipt to me and I’ll for their meal. Have never had to pay for one yet.

Cracker Barrel does a simply fantastic job of meeting the flavor, texture, and quality expectations every time. Does every single thing taste exactly like the equivalent thing made by my mother, my Grandma, or my Grandmommie? Of course not! But they are close enough for Jazz, as we used to say. Heck, my Grandma and my Grandmommie could have followed the exact same recipe and made the exact same dish and they would not be 100% “identical” and they only lived on opposite sides of town! I have eaten at Cracker Barrels in at least a dozen states and the food is always consistent.

I have NEVER been disappointed at any Cracker Barrel in any State. The food is always great, with real human sized portions, the places are always clean, the service is always up to my expectations, and I will admit that I am pretty picky.

The only “negative” thing I can even try to say about Cracker Barrel is really just another strong positive, but here it is. Lots of times you must wait for a table to open up before you can be seated. Of course the other way to say that is, Cracker Barrel is so popular with so many people, that you often must wait for a table because the place is so PACKED!

When you are there, look around and tell me what you see. The answer is, lots of families. If you have a family yourself, then you understand what I am talking about here. If the food variety, the selections, the quality is so good that everyone in the group is HAPPY, then Cracker Barrel must be hitting on all cylinders!

Hey! any of you kids down there at that end not gonna finish yer collards? How about that okra? Great! Pass’em this way then. Am I right? You know I...