Cracker Barrel Old Country Store — Restaurant in Macon

I was very disappointed in our dining experience on a recent Sunday morning. Although the gift shop is very attractive and inviting there is a terrible smell that always seems to be there. This is my third experience in the store and honestly, I think it smells like urine but I don't know exactly what the smell actually is but it does smell worse the closer you get to the restrooms. The dining room is pleasant enough and does not have the strange smell. I appreciate the child menus with crayons. I didn't appreciate not being asked if I needed a booster seat or highchair for my two year old. I had to ask. Shouldn't this be asked by the Hostess to speed things up? Our waitress was not friendly at all and didn't crack a smile the entire time. I never understand why someone works in a customer service position like this if they don't like socializing with people and why does a restaurant keep a person around who doesn't exhibit any friendliness or professionalism. She also walked away at least once while I was still talking and without answering my question. I used to work in many a restaurant and the standards were always much higher than this. Anyways, staff aside, my biggest complaint was the food experience. We didn't receive our food until 45 minutes after ordering. This is just too long for this type of restaurant. We only ordered two full meals and an add-on and the restaurant wasn't swamped or anything. When we did finally get the meal, the entrees were lukewarm and it wasn't till halfway through that I realized they had forgotten my child's fruit cup. Coffee refills took longer than they should have and I wasn't brought creamer for my refills. Everything was too expensive for what it was. Restaurants with much higher quality ingredients and fresh local ingredients charge the exact same. The only reason we went here is most restaurants on a Sunday don't open till later in the morning downtown and in nearby area. I also think charging an extra $1.29 for cheese to be added to eggs seems extreme especially for a meal that already costs $12.50 before tax. Honestly, save your hard earned money and support a local business who...

I had a HORRIBLE experience and was trying not to completely lose my temper and try not to cry because I'm not a confrontational person at all. I give this location a 5 star SOLELY because the management and other staff were absolutely wonderful! But We (me, my mom and my 4 year old son) had ordered our food and were waiting for about an hour give or take and our server had not checked on us in that time. So I looked for the manager to let him know how long we had been waiting on our food. We didn't really need anything while we waited on our food so I wasn't really concerned with not seeing our waitress in that time frame. Well when I went to look for the manager our server came walking back in with a jacket on (not sure where she went). So I went to tell her VERY NICELY AND RESPECTFULLY that I would like to speak to the manager. I made it very clear I was not upset with her, and understand not everything is a waitresses fault, and didn't want her to feel attacked or anything. Well she proceeded to have the nastiest attitude I've ever experienced dining out. When we finally got our food she said it was because chicken takes that long to cook but the chicken was actually colder than my meatloaf, which my meatloaf was the only thing fresh out of all our meals. She got very snippy, and ended up snatching the receipt the manager brought to the table and crumpled it up, she side eyed me multiple times and was just super rude. So I proceeded to ask the manager to handle us for the rest of the night and that I did not want her to come back to our table again. BUT the manager was completely amazing and wonderful and did his absolute best to correct the situation and another server which her name was summer became our server for the last 5 minutes we were there. We ended up losing our appetite because of our original server so we didn't stay very long after getting our food. Summer was very kind and took up the slack and wrongness of the situation and was amazing as well! I commend her. Unfortunately I did not catch the name of my original server but she won't last very long with the...

If you are traveling and considering stopping here for a quick meal - do yourself and those with you a favor and don’t. I say this because first, I am a local Macon native so I know this place. Countless times I have been in there only to not even be acknowledged once seated; food orders that take inordinately long times (even when not apparently busy) and vanishing wait staff, etc etc. I keep going back and giving them a chance but their problems seem to originate from the top down. It is a culture of indifference and apathy. The lack of guidance or anything resembling customer attentiveness is not practiced nor promoted here. Todays experience was that after I was seated, the restaurant was mostly empty and I waited and waited and waited. No one came and asked what I’d like to drink. Nothing. Meanwhile waitstaff are straightening chairs, arranging salt and pepper shakers on other tables. No one will even make eye contact with me so as to even acknowledge my presence. After 15 min I walked. Again… I knew better going in. I knew better than to have gone there again. It’s not going to change until a clean sweep of the management happens and a top-down philosophy of service and customer-centric focus is instilled. I travel often and routinely stop by CB. Almost without exception they are all great experiences and I have no problems. I’m not writing this to CB as a corporation. Just this Macon Riverside location. As a further example look no further than next door where Cheddars was. They too had abysmal customer service and where are they now ? Closed and gone. Not from COVID but due to management indifference that shows through the jobs program employees. So, if you’re considering stopping and it has to be CB, take Eisenhower to 475 if you’re southbound. You can pick 75 back up just south of there. Or if northbound keep on rolling until you get to Henry County. There’s a CB there where to the management and staff you’ll actually exist as a customer. Word to the wise: look somewhere else. I for sure am. I’m done with...