It’s refreshing to read about good customer experiences, and in this case, we’re just as happily baffled as our reader Nicole. She’s looking for some consensus regarding Cracker Barrel — you see, she and her sister got a free meal, without asking for it or even complaining to wait staff after waiting a short time to get their food.
Nicole wants to see if she and her sister were just in the right place at the right time, or whether this is a common thing for Cracker Barrel to do.
She writes:
I recently had a strange customer experience on which I am hoping to get some perspective. I went out to lunch with my sister, who wanted to go to Cracker Barrel. I’ve rarely been.
We placed our order and after what I would consider a reasonable wait, she commented on how she had never waited this long for food at the Cracker Barrel before and pointed out that the table next to us had their lunch already when they sat down after us. It was a fairly busy lunch hour, and I mentioned that the couple next to us had both ordered the special so it would be quick out of the kitchen, and that I doubt they make many of the grilled chicken sandwiches like I had ordered.
Shortly after that the waitress came by and said our food would be right out. She brought our plates about a minute later, apologized profusely for our wait, and told us the manager had offered to buy our meals. I was surprised, said it hadn’t been much of a wait at all, and that I would be happy to pay. She filled up our drinks, and when it came time to get the check, simply told us to have a nice day. I put a twenty on the table and we walked out.
I’m curious to know what others would have done in this situation. I don’t think the waitress was around to hear us talk about the slow service, which I pointed out wasn’t really that slow at all. It seems strange that a restaurant would offer to pay for a meal without first even seeing if we were really upset. Are they just used to dealing with grumpy old people? Do they have some kind of corporate policy that if your food isn’t out of the kitchen within a certain amount of time it’s free?
Again, awesome but baffling. Let us know if Cracker Barrel is always this nice, or whether Nicole is just one lucky diner and we’re all jaded for being amazed at great customer service.
More From Consumerist
-
Kraft Suing Cracker Barrel Old Country Stores, Claiming Rights To Cheese Since 1954
-
We Never Knew The World Needed Caffeinated Cracker Jacks, But Here They Come
-
Wrigley’s Wants You To Get Your Caffeine Boost From Gum Instead Of Boring Old Coffee
-
Even Tyler Durden Knows You Shouldn't Run A Toddler Fight Club Out Of A Daycare Center
-
May Recall Roundup: Don’t Eat The Bunny Forks
Whats Cracker Barrel?
The local cracker barrels used to be good, now it seems they suck. Welp.
Cracker Barrel went through a rough patch for me in the mid to late 90′s where I stopped going becuase the food wasn’t ever any good. But then I was “forced” to go to one because it was the only option where I was and it was amazing. Great food and great service, I have been to about 4 different ones since then and they have been the same way. So, while I stay away becuase its so unhealthy I do recommend it to people becuase its been really really good for the last 6 years.
Cracker Barrel is pretty good. It’s low priced. But like all restaurants, it depends on what you order. Everything there is pretty much pre-made, and arrives quickly. I usually get the chicken fried chicken, and the hash brown caserole if very good. Two can eat with tip for about $21, which is good. I refuse to go to Golden Corral buffet anymore, yes more food selection, but I don’t like the hustle/bustle just to eat, it’s a no-manners free-for-all. Disgusting. At least at CB I can sit down and eat in peace, and then shop for candy! Oh yea, Golden Corral now has a chocolate fountain, yea, I call it Disease-o-fountain. At the buffett, people just throw the serving utensils, handle and all, into the food, it’s just gross.
We had something similar happen this weekend. We were at a local non-chain restaurant for a family dinner, so there were 7 of us. It was a fairly big order and my mother-in-laws steak sandwhich came at most 5 minutes after the rest of the meals. The chef came out to apologize and she said it was no big deal. When it came time for dessert, the chef came out and told her that dessert for the table was on him because of the wait. The dessert easily cost more than her meal. They got a VERY good tip and a great review online because of the service.
Time is relative. Your meal could have been in reality way outside their set expectations for delivery but your perception of the wait could be skewed because you were enjoying talking to your sister and seeing the commotion going on around you. They were being nice. Good job on the tip though.
Something like this happened to a friend and I at Ella’s Deli in Madison, WI. After ordering, we were busy chatting and catching up (and looking at all the toys/decor), so we didn’t notice the “long” wait for our food. When she brought our order, the waitress apologized profusely for the wait and told us we could each order any dessert we wanted and it would be on the house to make amends. It was surprising but awesome.
I worked at my local Cracker Barrel for a total of about two years, and i can say that as a former employee, they really care about their customers. In the kitchen, they have a computer system that tracks the cook time on all of the orders. Anything above 15 minutes is unacceptable, and usually results in someone getting yelled at. What probably happened is the order took longer than the 15 minute mark, and the manager payed for the meal in order to avoid reporting it to home office (which would make him look like he was unable to maintain order in the kitchen)
Once, a restaurant made us wait an hour and a half to be seated (after giving us a 15 minute wait time estimate) because they didn’t want to push two tables together. The manager promised a free dessert as compensation, then reneged on the deal when presenting the bills, claiming he would only give us our softdrink free (nice, since I didn’t HAVE any). I returned the no-longer-free desert and paid without a tip (because of the horrible experience), and then got bitched at by a waitress for not tipping… *facepalm*
Suffice it to say that we will never return to that restaurant. Of which our large group of friends had been regulars for years. Because they wouldn’t comp a $3 dessert. Brilliant business sense, these buffoons.
I been going to Cracker Barrel for 17 years. My recent experience in Little Rock, Arkansas, store# 634, was a disappointment. I had to wait 30 minutes for my food. When my food arrived the steak was burnt and my hash browns were cooked so long that they were hard. The general manager, Kevin, introduced himself to me and apologized for the over cooked food. He asked me how I wanted it cooked. I said I wanted the steak cooked medium. He took my crappy food with the burnt steak and potatoes and runny grits, that it took Cracker Barrel 4 times, to finally get them cooked right! Then brought me back a steak that was burnt on the outside and raw on the inside. I did not even finish my crappy meal and I still got a full bill for it. When I complained to the manager he said, let me take care of this for you and I got a $2 discount off a $12 bill for a PIECE OF TURD MEAL! I will not likely go back to Cracker Barrel ever again because it is over-priced crappy food. I should have gone someplace else.