It may be a new calendar year, but Cracker Barrel’s issues continue to mount.
After a backlash-filled 2025 over a logo change, restaurant redesign and menu overhaul, the chain also reportedly ditched one of the famous Southern comfort foods traditionally eaten on New Year’s: black-eyed peas.
In the South, black-eyed peas were typically served on the first day of the year to bring good luck in the coming months. They can usually be found on a plate next to greens, corn bread and pork.
But now, Cracker Barrel quietly axed the offer, according to a Fox News report. It’s unclear exactly when the offer was discontinued, but the outlet reported that the restaurant chain stopped advertising an earlier New Year’s Day promotion of free black-eyed peas to customers.
The Independent has contacted Cracker Barrel for comment.
Cracker Barrel CEO Julie Felss Masino explained why the Southern-themed restaurant chain tried and failed to redesign its signature logo (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Customers did not take kindly to the news, with many chalking the change up to Cracker Barrel’s recent attack of missteps.
“One of the many reasons Cracker Barrel is failing,” someone wrote on X, while another said, “Never go to CB again. You are literally at war with your own customer base. Stop your woke BS.”
“Oh, come on Cracker Barrel – stop killing your company. Everyone wants good luck and can’t you serve peas for tradition?” a third chimed in.
“Now I find out Cracker Barrel no longer serves Black Eyed Peas on New Years. The woman at the head of this thing needs to be fired. She has done nothing but cause problems since she took over from the woman way if you are reading this your knowledge does not work,” wrote someone else.
Anger at the brand continues after Cracker Barrel’s disastrous rebrand attempt in August.
The company’s new logo appeared on the menus (Getty Images)
MAGA influencers and Republicans branded the brand’s decision to remove Uncle Herschel from Cracker Barrel’s logo a “wake,” with thousands of online memes pouring into the company’s new look after news of the change broke.
The changes also included a simpler font in the logo, as well as stripped back minimalist decor in Cracker Barrel restaurants. Typically, the company’s locations are decorated in a rustic southern style that alludes to its Tennessean heritage.
The reaction to the change was so extreme that the CEO of the company Julie Felss Masino admitted that she felt as if she was “kicked out of America.”
Cracker Barrel’s redesign caused it to lose $94 million in one day, with the company’s stock price plunging to $54.50. This meant the company’s stock price fell 7.15 percent, although it rebounded from a 15 percent drop earlier in the day.