Cracker Barrel has made its way into the internet zeitgeist as the hybrid restaurant and country store has been rolling out its redesigned interiors to mixed reviews, but its CEO told "Good Morning America" on Tuesday that the feedback so far has been "overwhelmingly positive."
"People like what we're doing," Julie Felss Masino told "GMA" in response to the shift to more modern country touches. "Cracker Barrel needs to feel like the Cracker Barrel for today and for tomorrow -- the things that you love are still there. We need people to choose us, and we want people to choose us."
Masino added that at a recent on-site meeting with managers in Florida, the "No. 1 question I got asked was, 'How can I get a remodel, when can I get a remodel and how do I get on the list?'"
"The buzz is so good, not only from our customers, but from our team," she said.
Masino also announced the company's new campaign on Tuesday, dubbed "All the More," which she said "highlights how people feel about Cracker Barrel."
Cracker Barrel servers receive thousands in tips from strangers"It is bigger than just a meal. We have a retail shop, you're gonna get great country hospitality with our scratch-made food in our restaurants, and that's really what the campaign celebrates," she explained.
Cracker Barrel has enlisted country music singer and songwriter Jordan Davis, whose new album "Learn the Hard Way" dropped last week, to promote the new campaign.
"He is in our ad and is the voice of it as well," Masino said. "It just highlights those things that make Cracker Barrel, Cracker Barrel."
The CEO hinted that "innovation is proven to be really great," adding that customer feedback has been positive towards the new menu items, and that the restaurant is "reinvigorating the dinner menu."
The restaurant is also bringing back a beloved breakfast dish -- Uncle Herschel's Favorite -- which comes with two fresh eggs, grits, customers' choice of fried apples or hashbrown casserole, customers' choice of meat, and "all the fixin's," aka biscuits and gravy, plus butter and jam.
As many U.S. business operators are adjusting ordering and operational strategies due to tariff-induced costs, Masino said Cracker Barrel will "think about the business in two ways."
"The restaurant side, all of those goods for the most part are sourced here domestically -- the food and everything being prepared in the restaurants," she said of the first segment. "And the retail side, we get a lot of those goods from all over the world, so we have been looking at the tariffs -- we're doing everything we can to mitigate the impact."
Masino highlighted that Cracker Barrel is still able to serve up serious value for customers.
"The average check at Cracker Barrel is about $15, whereas the industry is at $27," she said. "It's an amazing value, great scratch-cooked food, abundant portions -- our job is to maintain that great value, delicious food and the country hospitality we're known for."
