Cracker Barrel, a restaurant chain renowned for its homestyle meals since 1969, offers a wide array of dishes that evoke a sense of comfort and nostalgia. With over 600 locations nationwide, it has become a go-to destination for those seeking reliably tasty meals. While the restaurant may not be primarily known for its health-conscious offerings, a closer look at the menu reveals several nutritious and satisfying options.
Cracker Barrel's goal is simple: to create quality food served with care, a warm welcome, and friendly service. That means treating their guests like family and ensuring that they have options for everyone to enjoy. If you've been trying to make better eating choices, you want variety, right? After all, who says you can't have a great meal and still stick to your goals?
This article aims to guide you through the Cracker Barrel menu, highlighting the healthiest choices available for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. These selections prioritize lower levels of sodium, saturated fat, and sugar, while also offering a good amount of protein and essential nutrients.
Breakfast Options
Build Your Own Homestyle Breakfast
Start your day right with a nutritious and customizable breakfast. The Build Your Own Homestyle Breakfast allows you to create a plate tailored to your preferences. A combination of your choice of eggs, multigrain toast, fresh fruit, and sliced tomatoes is low in calories and high in nutrition.
Egg Sandwich
Another option to consider is the Egg Sandwich that comes with two farm-fresh eggs served on seared bread with a slice of tomato and mayonnaise, and your choice of a breakfast side. The Egg Sandwich's 470 calories gives you a healthy amount of energy while still remaining moderate. Its 20 grams of protein will also cover a significant portion of the average US adult's requirement of 50 grams a day, with the combination of protein and low energy density from the eggs making them very satisfying. While there are 5 grams of saturated fat due to the eggs and mayo in the sandwich, if you keep an eye on your intake throughout the rest of the day, this amount isn't the worst thing in the world. Arguably the best thing about this sandwich, though, is its sodium content.
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Biscuit Breakfast
Cracker Barrel does biscuits well, and it knows when to employ them. As such, its breakfast menu is pretty biscuit-heavy, with the Biscuit Breakfast being a real cornerstone. Luckily, this option is also pretty healthy. In its most basic form, a Biscuit Breakfast has just 300 calories, 13 grams of protein, and 620 milligrams of sodium. Understandably, though, not everyone will find the Biscuit Breakfast that satisfying. So if you want to add a little more substance, order it with a side of egg whites. These will add no fat to your dish, but they will give you 11 grams of quality protein and just 230 milligrams of sodium.
Country Morning Breakfast
For those who enjoy the all-day breakfast, it's best to skip all the fixin's and order the Country Morning Breakfast-two eggs and grits will only cost you 240 calories and 12 grams of fat.
Apple n' Cinnamon Oatmeal
If you have a sweet tooth, go for the Apple n' Cinnamon Oatmeal for 360 calories and 7 grams of fat over a stack of pancakes.
Course Ground Grits
Course ground grits may not sound incredibly exciting, but if paired with fresh fruit, apples, or egg whites and a little cheese, they’re the perfect low-calorie base for your breakfast.
Lunch and Dinner Options
Salads and Soups
Begin your dining experience with a salad or a bowl of soup. Cracker Barrel offers appetizing starters such as the House Salad (160 calories) with dressing options such as Balsamic Herb Vinaigrette (210 calories), Blue Cheese (280 calories), Buttermilk Ranch (200 calories), and Honey Mustard (250 calories). Craving something warm and comforting?
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House Salad
When all else fails, go for the salad. Okay, so that may not be a phrase we live by, but at Cracker Barrel it's kinda true - its House Salad is fresh, healthy, and surprisingly filling, thanks to its bacon pieces and cheese. Each portion is 260 calories and gives you 12 grams of protein. As it's a salad, it's also likely no surprise that it contains tons of fresh vegetables, with lettuce, cucumber, and grape tomatoes all making an appearance. If you want to keep things on the lighter side, ordering this salad with a balsamic herb vinaigrette is a healthy option, as it has just 2 grams of saturated fat.
Homestyle Grilled Chicken Salad
Cracker Barrel's Homestyle Grilled Chicken Salad features its flavorful smoky grilled chicken breast and cheese, croutons, a boiled egg, and of course a generous portion of fresh vegetables. All of this adds up to a salad that's hearty enough to be a main meal, delivering 470 calories and 46 grams of protein. It also packs in loads of nutrients, thanks to the vegetables. The grape tomatoes, for instance, don't just provide a burst of acidity and sweetness, they also provide a load of vitamin C and valuable antioxidants, which can help to control inflammation. Although the Homestyle Grilled Chicken Salad does have a few downsides, with its saturated fat of 9 grams and sodium content of 920 milligrams being a little high, you can always make alterations.
Vegetable Soup Bowl
While Cracker Barrel might offer a range of hearty meals, sometimes all you want is a simple vegetable soup. Well luckily for you, it has that available. The Vegetable Soup Bowl is a refreshing meal that helps you hit your five a day while remaining light. Considering that it's made from veggies, the Vegetable Soup Bowl also has a surprising amount of protein, with 6 grams per serving. Although its sodium content could be better (each bowl will give you 720 milligrams), we're also delighted by the amount of fiber it packs into every portion - 5 grams, to be exact. This fiber is of course provided by the vegetables in each bowl, which also give you a load of vitamins and minerals. The combo of fiber and protein makes this Vegetable Soup more filling than you might think, and the balance of fiber to calories is pretty awesome.
Chili Cup
If you're looking for a simple snack or a light bite, Cracker Barrel's chili is where its at - and ordering a cup of chili is a healthy way to sate your hunger. Cracker Barrel's chili cup provides 190 calories per serving, and 3 grams of saturated fat. What we love most about this chili, though, is the boost of protein and fiber it gives you. Each cup delivers 13 grams of protein and a generous 6 grams of fiber, thanks to the beans in its recipe. The addition of beans doesn't just provide plant-based protein and fiber, it also boosts your vitamin and mineral intake, delivering folic acid, iron, and magnesium.
Lean Protein Entrees
For your main course, lean proteins like grilled chicken or fish are a great choice. Cracker Barrel’s menu features delectable options like Grilled Chicken Tenders (320 calories) and Lemon Pepper Grilled Rainbow Trout (410 calories).
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Grilled Chicken Tenders
Cracker Barrel doesn't sleep on chicken tenders - but unlike other restaurants, it offers you a few different options in the name of health. Sure, it has crispy fried chicken tenders, but it also has its Grilled Chicken Tenders, which are far more reasonable nutritionally. The grilled version has just 270 calories, with the fried chicken tenders having more than double that amount. The other nutritional aspects of this dish look even better to us, too. There are just 1.5 grams of saturated fat in the Grilled Chicken Tenders, compared to 6 grams in the fried version. When ordered grilled, this chicken has only 5 grams of carbs, instead of the 27 grams you get when you go for the breaded option. The most extreme difference, however, is in sodium. Cracker Barrel's Grilled Chicken Tenders hit you with just 620 milligrams, a pretty reasonable amount for a main meal.
Smoky Southern Grilled Chicken
If you want a lean source of protein, you can't go wrong with grilled chicken breast, unless you're slathering it with fatty sauces to try and combat any dryness. Luckily, Cracker Barrel knows how to take this meat and fill it with flavor without making it unhealthy. Each portion of its Smoky Southern Grilled Chicken clocks in at 290 calories and has just 1.5 grams of saturated fat, which covers only 8% of your daily value. While the sodium content of this chicken dish could be better, at 720 milligrams it's not the worst in the world, and covers just under a third of the recommended daily limit of 2,300 milligrams. If you go for a pair of lower-sodium sides with your chicken, like plain steamed broccoli and some corn, it'll still clock in at a fairly reasonable amount for a full meal. One 5-ounce Smoky Southern Grilled Chicken breast is under 200 calories and has 29 grams of protein to support lean muscle growth and help you feel satiated. Without breading, this entree is low in carbs, with just 3 grams total, and has only 27% of the daily value (DV) of sodium, making it a healthy option all around!
Lemon Pepper Grilled Rainbow Trout
You can't necessarily rely on fish dishes in restaurants to be healthy: While the protein itself is a nutritious choice, they can often come lathered in butter or salty sauces that counteract its wholesomeness. That's not the case at Cracker Barrel, though. The restaurant's Lemon Pepper Grilled Rainbow Trout isn't fat-free, but with 3.5 grams of saturated fat and 14 grams of total fat, it still manages to remain relatively lean. That's all before you consider the benefits of the trout itself. Much of the fat in the dish comes from the trout's omega-3 fatty acids, which have a huge range of positive functions, including reducing inflammation and the risk of various diseases like cancer and arthritis. As well as this, trout is a great source of a few essential vitamins like niacin and vitamin B12. Its mild taste (which makes it a great fish for tacos) allows it to absorb all the peppery flavors, too. The two best options here will be the Grilled Chicken Tenderloins for 150 calories and 4 grams of fat and the Lemon Pepper Grilled Rainbow Trout for 160 calories and 7 grams of fat.
Farm-raised Grilled Catfish
For a protein-packed, low-calorie entree, try the Grilled Catfish fillets. Two fillets are only 260 calories as they’re grilled (not breaded or fried). Each order of the grilled catfish comes in at 260 calories (bearing in mind that any sides you get will raise this), and has just 3 grams of saturated fat. Protein-wise, you get 38 grams per portion. Bear in mind, of course, that these values will get higher if you're opting for certain sides, so if you want to keep things healthy it's best to go for vegetable-based options.
Roast Beef
Don't have the energy to make a full roast beef dinner? Head to Cracker Barrel and have the chefs there make it for you. The bonus of doing this is that its Roast Beef is surprisingly healthy. Each portion clocks in at 480 calories and gives you a whopping 45 grams of protein. One thing we should point out with this dish is that its saturated fat content is a little higher than we'd like. At 12 grams, it covers 60% of your daily value for the nutrient. Having said this, it has less saturated fat than Cracker Barrel's Meatloaf, and almost half the sodium of its Chicken Fried Steak, making it, in our opinion, the best beef choice on the menu.
Other Entree Options
Other entree options under 500 calories include our Chicken n’ Dumplins (360 calories), New York Strip Steak (470 calories), and Meatloaf (450 calories).
Meatloaf
For a hearty dinner that’s still lower in calories, try an order of the meatloaf at Cracker Barrel. This classic comfort food is a mixture of ground beef, tomatoes, onion, and green peppers and only 450 calories.
Country Vegetable Plate
If you like mixing and matching, our Country Vegetable Plate is the perfect entree for you! Pick four country sides according to your taste.
Bowl of Turnip Greens
In this life, sometimes you just need a big bowl of greens. Enter Cracker Barrel's Bowl of Turnip Greens, designed to satisfy that very craving. Each bowl of turnip greens provides 250 calories, and in that relatively small amount the restaurant manages to pack in 24 grams of protein, thanks to the traditional way Cracker Barrel cooks the greens, by adding shredded ham. Additionally, Cracker Barrel's Bowl of Turnip Greens also has 4 grams of saturated fat and 780 milligrams of protein. While this may seem a lot, it's worth bearing in mind that this dish is loaded with ham, which can be both incredibly fatty and ultra-salty, things could be much worse. Don't forget about the power of the turnip greens themselves, either. This veggie is absolutely loaded with vitamins A and C, which can help to keep your skin and hair healthy.
Sides
When it comes to adding on sides, your calories can add up real quick. To save yourself, go for the fresh steamed broccoli for 40 calories.
Hashbrown Casserole
We tend not to think of hashbrowns as particularly healthy, and given that they're piles of potato fried in oil, that's very understandable. Somehow, though, Cracker Barrel has managed to produce a hashbrown dish that's surprisingly healthy. While its Loaded Hashbrown Casserole is certainly delicious, if you want something a little healthier, opt for the Hashbrown Casserole, which is one of its Country Sides and combines cheese, potatoes, and onions in a dish that has just 190 calories. You'll also be pleasantly surprised by its sodium content, with the side providing 350 milligrams, and it also has 5 grams of protein. There are also no sugars to be seen in this casserole, and while its fiber content is small at just 2 grams, it's better than nothing. Don't write the potatoes in this dish off, either. Potatoes have a fairly bad rep nutritionally, but these tubers are loaded with vitamin C, which can have a powerful antioxidant effect.
Wholesome Fixin's Menu
Cracker Barrel's got our backs with their Wholesome Fixin's menu.
Bites n’ Sides
These Bites n’ Sides dishes are all under 200 calories and 10 grams of fat.
Dessert
Want something sweet after your dessert? Sure you do; everyone does. However, it's probably not gonna shock you to hear that if you want that to happen, you'll have to put up with a little sugar.
Peach Cobbler
We'll just get it out of the way and tell you that the Peach Cobbler does have 37 grams of sugar, but by every other metric its nutritional content doesn't look too unhealthy. Its 4.5 grams of saturated fat is half of that of the Biscuit Beignets on the menu, and less than half of that in the Double Fudge Coca-Cola Cake, which has 10 grams. It also only has 220 milligrams of sodium, again lower than both of the other options on the dessert menu. Plus, it has the advantage of having fresh fruit in it, with its peaches providing a host of vitamins and minerals. As for baked goods, the blackberry cobbler is the best option at 470 calories and 15 grams of fat.
Root Beer Float
If you gotta end the meal with something sweet, a Root Beer float for 450 calories and 13 grams of fat is the way to go.
Beverages
Iced Latte
While black coffee has essentially zero calories, you can dress up your morning drink with an iced latte for only 110 calories. It features a shot of espresso and 2% reduced-fat milk.