6 Unwritten Rules To Know Before Eating At Cracker Barrel

Cracker Barrel's customers are dedicated to the restaurant and its old-fashioned, homey atmosphere. So much so that any change can result in huge backlash; remember when the company tried to simplify its logo and remodel its dining rooms but had to backtrack fast due to an online outcry? It turns out that much of the backlash was due to a number of bots, but the complaints from human customers were still plentiful. Aesthetics aside, though, people still adore the restaurants. The food is comforting, the locations are inviting, and the customers have an understanding of some unwritten rules.

That means that if you're new and haven't eaten at one of the company's restaurants before, you might not realize that there are things you can do to make your visit more convenient and calm — and that there are things you might do that could make the manager not want to see you again. These unwritten rules are simple, though, so putting them into action doesn't take much effort. If a location with the nostalgic Cracker Barrel name is opening up in your town, and you want to go, here are six unwritten rules to know before you eat there.

Prices might be on the rise, but Cracker Barrel offers a few ways for you to get more affordable food while eating out. Check the website for new promotions, of course, but also take a look at the company's Early Dinner Deals. These are meals that are cheaper than the normal price; the trade-off is that the food you get is in smaller portions. Still, considering how big restaurant meals usually are, a reduced portion still sounds fine. The meals are also dine-in only and are limited to Monday through Friday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.

The meals available for the Early Dinner Deals may be smaller, but they're not limited to just a protein and some potatoes. They come with multiple sides, and some also come with muffins or biscuits. You're getting a full meal, just in smaller amounts. If you can't make it to Cracker Barrel when the Early Dinner Deals are available, the company has other inexpensive meals available, like its classic chicken and dumplings.

Cracker Barrel has an amazing meal deal that can give you some cheap food if you're planning to eat at the restaurant anyway. This is the $5 Take Home Meal Offer, which allows you to order an additional smaller meal when you order a regular entrée that isn't on sale. (Sorry, you can't redeem Rewards for a free meal and then order the $5 deal along with it.) The $5 deal is limited to one of three combinations: fried chicken and mac and cheese, grilled chicken and mashed potatoes, or meatloaf and mac and cheese. Cracker Barrel lets you order the $5 deal whether you eat in a restaurant or order the meal for pickup.

Some locations price the meal at $6, but even that's a steal considering that even formerly cheap fast food has gotten so expensive. You also have to keep the meals refrigerated, and some people who claim to be employees have posted online that many customers don't understand that the $5 meals are cold and need to be reheated.

People camping in cars and RVs appreciate finding places that let them park overnight for free. It's even nicer when that place offers food and a restroom. Cracker Barrel has some RV-friendly locations, and if a Cracker Barrel manager allows you to stay in the lot overnight, eat at the restaurant. The money is a thank you to the manager for letting you park. Other unspoken rules include not littering, not parking in RV spaces if you're camping in a car/SUV, limiting your stay to one night, and not disturbing others.

Be aware that parking overnight at Cracker Barrel depends on the manager. Some managers don't allow people to park there overnight even if the lot has large spaces reserved for RVs. Managers can change their minds, too, so a location that previously allowed overnight parking can stop allowing it. Rumors flew around the RV community in 2025 about Cracker Barrel possibly no longer allowing overnight parking at all. However, a few RVers looked for the real story, which ended up being that overnight parking was up to each manager. One other issue is that state laws take precedence over Cracker Barrel's generosity. A new state law in Florida prohibits sleeping in vehicles unless they're parked on private property with the owner's permission or are in a location like an RV park. Cracker Barrel's parking lots apparently count as public for enforcement purposes.

If you go to Cracker Barrel a lot, join its Rewards program. You can do this through the company's website or its app. The points you earn are called Pegs, and you get one Peg for each dollar you spend at Cracker Barrel (you don't get Pegs for anything you purchase with third-party delivery services). You get Pegs whether you buy food or something from the retail store, and if you pay at the table, you should be able to scan a portion of the receipt to add that cost to your Rewards account.

You can redeem the Rewards for food or retail items, and the program offers freebies for signing up, as well as for your birthday and anniversary. You may even get some surprise freebies, too. Military members can get a discount through the program, and you'll occasionally be able to participate in limited-time games that offer prizes.

The old-fashioned experience that Cracker Barrel is supposed to provide can occasionally get on people's nerves due to long wait times and other minor inconveniences. If you want the option of skipping those issues, download the company's app. It offers several services that make your visit more convenient and a little quicker. Among these are the ability to check restaurant wait times before you head over there, the ability to place yourself on the wait list before you go, and the option to use Google Pay and Apple Pay at the table. The app also allows you to order a meal that you can pick up, and it helps you keep track of those rewards you're steadily accumulating.

The app isn't without some criticism. A person claiming to be a former employee posted online that the app kept malfunctioning and logging people out after they created an order; when they logged in again, the order would be gone. This person also noted the lack of saved payment information or saved passwords. Another customer complained that the app's wait time and the in-person wait time were completely off and that the restaurant eventually lost that customer's spot on the waitlist after the person had waited much longer than intended. Another person replied that the app isn't able to see how busy the kitchen actually is or how long customers will actually stay at a table.

The peg game consists of a triangle-shaped board with 15 numbered holes and 14 pegs. You place the pegs in the board and remove them one by one by "jumping" one peg over another into an empty hole. Sounds simple enough, but according to the company, two wrong moves are enough to tie up the game so that you don't win. It's a classic tabletop game that's been around in one form or another for hundreds of years, but Cracker Barrel's version has sort of become iconic. In fact, a recent change to the jokingly insulting wording on the board came as a shock to regular players.

The game can be frustrating because it's so easy to lose. But Cracker Barrel decided to be kind and placed two solutions on its website for you. They work. However, be aware that the wording in the second solution for Peg 13's three-jump sequence is awkward (at least, it is as of this writing; let's hope the company takes another look). Practice at home so you can see exactly where each peg should move. If you don't have the game at home, you can buy it through the Cracker Barrel online store or make a DIY version. Use coins, nuts, or other items as "pegs" on a tabletop, or make the paper-and-cotton-swab version that Cracker Barrel provides on the website, complete with a printable board pattern.