Cracker Barrel Old Country Store — Restaurant in Lavonia

First, let me say that Cracker Barrel DID have the best game in town. However, as most people know, Cracker Barrel has gone through visual changes as well as additions and deletions of menu items for some months now. I am sure that the powers that be, initially thought that the newbie upper management team thought they were solving a problem in the menu area where little to no problem existed. We all know everyone has to justify their employment position. However, there are often some changes that just need to be left alone. To me, the menu changes are a curse and a semi positive experience. In my opinion, the items removed from the former breakfast menu NEED to be returned to the menu, no exceptions, I am sure the gurus who initiated this change probably thought in their infinite wisdom, that this was a great idea. The former breakfast menu was PERFECT the way it was. The selection was as versatile as one would want. As a frequent patron of Cracker Barrel in my hometown area as well when traveling. I am very familiar with the former selections. Regarding the new additions, I feel that in extreme cases, menu changes can be a plus, especially when adding new items or "for a special time only", or a failing store. I Love shrimp 🍤 and grits and can cook this dish with the best of coastal Carolinans and Cajuns. However, the meal I had upon my last visit to Cracker Barrel ( Lavonia, Ga.), my hometown, was the WORST I ever had. There was little seasoning, no salt (everyone knows grits need salt). There was absolutely no taste whatsoever. Even the shrimp had no taste. Note here: I have always had the cashier ask me, "How was your meal, I hope everything was satisfactory"? This did not happen! This visit occurred in mid afternoon between lunch and dinner, the business times. I used to love your breakfast menu, especially your biscuits. Your biscuits usually are soft, fluffy, and had a hint of a salty taste, really homemade taste. (Are they really frozen?) The last several times I've had them, their taste was off. The biscuits were hard and smaller. It appears that your portion sizes are smaller with a price increase. I have noted this since 2020 and the Covid-19 outbreak. In regards to the addition of beer and wine, why? I love a beer or a mix drink just as well as the next person, however I personally see no real reason for the sales unless Cracker Barrel is experiencing financial losses and thinks this ploy will improve the bottom line. Due to the last several (3/4) experiences, I find that my future dining experience with Cracker Barrel will be much less. As with all customers, patients, patron, client, who have bussiness interactions, people always have certain expectations. Sad to say, Cracker Barrel lately has not met my expectations. Obviously, this message will fall on deaf ears, and I personally believe this feedback will find it's way to the nearest trash can,...

Tonight my daughter, girlfriend and I decided to go to this Cracker Barrel for dinner. We got there and was seated within just a few minutes of arriving. The waitress came up and did not introduce herself, yet asked in a very unprofessional manner what we wanted to drink. Shortly after we received our drinks and placed our order. The waitress eventually came back by about 15 minutes later to refill our now empty drinks which she walked up and said “what are you drinking” in a snarky tone and then walked off. Another 5 minutes pass and she comes back with the drinks and says “I was going to bring out biscuits but they’re in the oven” and walks back off. Another 15 minutes goes by before she comes back. This time with biscuits which she basically tosses the plate onto the table to the point you could hear the plate make a noise when it landed. Then she walks off again. At this point it has been roughly 40 minutes without any of our food orders or an explanation as to why we are still waiting and people that have came in after us are almost finished with their meals. At 45 minutes I decide we have waited long enough and we get up and go to the cash register so I can pay for our drinks. They ask if I want to speak with a manager and I decline, I’m over waiting and talking to anyone at this point. Then the cashier ask me who my waitress is and I describe her as I don’t know her name. My cashier and the one beside her immediately both say “Alexis”. Not sure if that’s the waitresses name or not, but sounds like she must get a lot of complaints about her attitude which I had mentioned to them as well. This is no way to treat any customer. I have been in customer service my entire working career and if I acted or anyone that has ever worked for me the way this waitress did, they would have been fired. So if you go to Cracker Barrel in Lavonia and get a short blond hair waitress that is not friendly from drink order on, you may have the same experience as we did. I will not be coming back to this establishment for some time and that’s a shame because I really liked this location. But I refuse to be treated like this. Management needs to terminate...

Ordered a carryout for the family this afternoon. They ran out of a side item but offered to give me another choice free. That was fine. Bless the little girls running the cash register, they were struggling mightily. I eventually told them just to leave the item on the ticket, and I would get out of the way because a line was starting to form. To be honest, $1.99 isn't going to break me, I hope ! Anyway the manager named Candice came out and restored order. She was on her way back to the kitchen when another customer at the next register, and obviously a professional businessman, started pointing out his complaints about the place in a confrontational way. He began by letting everyone nearby know he traveled a lot and had been in many Cracker Barrel restaurants, and this was the absolute worst he'd been in. I agree they need more training from top to bottom, but I can say I have never been treated anything but polite, no matter if I was short an item and called back, ect, at this restaurant. Candice went into the kitchen and returned with the store manager to deal with the gentleman when I finally got out of there. I was short a salad and an unsweetened tea when I got home. I called back, understanding that while not uncalled for, the gentlemen waiting until there was a huge crowd to bring up his complaints wasn't a first class move. The girls at the cash register seemed shaken by it all as well.

Long story short, I called back asking for a manager, and the young ladies who answered were saying, "Oh goodness, another person calling for a manager" in dread. As luck would have it, Candice answered and remembered my name and what I ordered. I told her what was missing and that I understood the situation going on when I was leaving with my order and, if possible, to get those items replaced with my next order as I live 20 miles away. She was super polite and more than rectified the situation. Hopefully, while the guys' approach needed work, he could have given them constructive feedback instead of making a show and helped them get better in the long...