Cracker Barrel

[crc0622]

This was helpful - NOT. I guess I didn't really expect a whole lot from them, even though I do love the restaurant. One food that I will dearly miss is their chicken and dumplings!

Dear Ms. ,

Thank you for taking the time to contact us here at Cracker Barrel Old Country Store. We appreciate receiving your inquiry and we do understand your concern.

We are aware that some folks do suffer from gluten intolerance. It it our understanding that, depending upon the person, there are many levels, types, and degrees of gluten intolerance. It has been brought to our attention that different folks can be allergic to different combinations of gluten-containing products. Because of this degree of variation, we are unfortunately unable to address the issue completely at this time.

Again, we do appreciate receiving your message. We certainly hope to have the opportunity to serve you again soon.

Sincerely,

Nancy Rogers

Guests Services Representative

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.

[Guest ~wAvE WeT sAnD~]

My brother is a cook at Cracker Barrel and I'm definitely going to say something to him about that!!!! I'm very sorry

[janjal]

Hey, went to Cracker Barrel for breakfast. Had eggs and grits. It was ok. I miss the chicken and dumplings also.

[SunnyDyRain]

As far as I know, there is not different levels of gluten-free, you either eat gluten, or you can't. Where are they getting thier info from?

[blueeyedmanda]

I had no luck aat cracker barrel.

[VegasCeliacBuckeye]

When I ate there, I got my eggs cooked separately in a clean pan as well as my sausage.

[rtucker2000]

Here is the response I got From Cracker Barrel:

Thank you for taking the time to contact us here at Cracker Barrel Old Country Store. We appreciate receiving your inquiry and we do understand your concern.

The following is a list of menu items that do not contain wheat, barley, or rye products as an ingredient(the modified food starch in the fried apples is from corn). However, we have an open kitchen where biscuits and dumplings are made from scratch several times daily. Many of our grill items do not contain glutents but are prepared on the same equipment as products that do. There is always a chance that cross-transference may occur.

Please inform a manager of your sensitivity when you visit one of our stores to ensure that every effort is made to prevent the accidental transfer of glutens via the handling and preparation of your meal.

Grill Items: hamburger steak, ribeye and sirloin steak, grilled catfish, grilled trout, grilled pork chops, country ham, city ham, bacon, eggs, pork sausage, turkey sausage

Side Items: carrots, cole slaw, corn, fried apples, green beans, mashed potatoes, baked potato, pinto beans, turnip greens

Excluding the fried chicken tender salad and chunky chicken (homemade chicken salad) salad, salads ordered without croutons would not contain glutens. See the ingredient statements below for our salad dressings choice.

The vinegars used in the salad refined distilled grain vinegars. According to the American Celiac Disease Alliance, "Distilled alcoholic beverages and vinegars are gluten-free. Distilled products do not contain any harmful gluten peptides. Research indicates that the gluten peptide is too large to carry over in the distillation process. This leaves the resultant liquid gluten-free."

Buttermilk Dressing: cultured buttermilk, soybean oil, water, egg yolk, distilled vinegar, salt, corn syrup, sugar, spices, lactic acid, xanthan gum, guar gum, onion*, potassium sorbate and sodium benzoate added as preservatives, garlic*, disodium inosinate, disodium guanylate, calcium disodium EDTA added to protect flavor. *DEHYDRATED

Peppercorn Dressing: soybean oil, water, sour cream solids, egg yolk, distilled vinegar, salt, spices, dehydrated garlic, xanthan gum, potassium sorbate and sodium benzoate added as preservatives, natural flavor, calcium disodium EDTA added to protect flavor.

Honey French Dressing: high fructrose corn syrup, soybean oil, corn-cider vinegar, distilled vinegar, tomato paste, salt, paprika, spices, xanthan gum, onion*, honey, invert sugar, beet juice concentrate, garlic*, natural flavor. *DEHYDRATED

Honey Mustard Dressing: soybean oil, water, high fructrose corn syrup, distilled vinegar, honey, egg yolk, mustard seed, sugar, salt, spice, white wine, natural flavor, xanthan gum, citric acid, tartartic acid, artificial color (including yellow #5), calcium disodium EDTA added to protect flavor.

1000 Island Dressing: soybean oil, water, pickles, sugar, tomato paste, distilled vinegar, high fructrose corn syrup, egg yolk, salt, spice, sodium benzoate, and potassium sorbate added as preservatives, natural and artificial flavors, onion*, bell peppers, garlic*, calcium disodium EDTA to protect flavor, xanthan gum, guar gum, polysorbate 80. *DEHYDRATED

We look forward to having the opportunity to serve you again soon.

Sincerely,

Pam Seay

Guest Relations Representative

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.

[lovegrov]

rtucker2000,

How long ago was the response that listed the gluten-free items? I know that they once had this list, but later withdrew it and started givng the first repsonse in this thread.

richard

[sixtytwo]

When I go to a place like Cracker Barrell that are on the fence like this, I order a steak, baked potato and veggie that are pretty safe, and then I wing it on something like their apples, which I have seen on their list as being gluten-free. Lots of places offer a steak and a baked or boiled potato and veggie or salad (I carry packets of gluten-free dressing incase a place has none) so I can eat out most anywhere. I like Cracker Barrell, my family wants to eat there occasionally so I want to be able to adjust. Barbara

[rtucker2000]

rtucker2000,

How long ago was the response that listed the gluten-free items? I know that they once had this list, but later withdrew it and started givng the first repsonse in this thread.

richard

I received the e-mail on 5-21-07

[MaryJones2]

This is funny. I just contacted Cracker Barrel a few days ago too and received the very detailed email about gluten in their food that rtucker2000 received. I also have a soy and dairy intolerance and asked about that. Here is the info they added on to the email about dairy and soy. I assume they have info on other allergens like corn but I didn't specifically request it. As with most of these lists you have to sort through all the allergens and find items that are common to all the lists.

Milk Allergen:

The following foods can be recommended for guests who are allergic to milk.

· Breads: Sourdough Bread (regular and wheat), Westminster Crackers

· Apple Bran Muffins

· Eggs (fresh shell eggs only); Egg Beaters and Eggstrod’naire contain Milk

· Grilled Meats: Bacon, Ham, Sausage, Catfish, Grilled Chicken Tenders, Hamburger Steak - be careful to prevent cross contamination from pancakes and breads other than sourdough, from cheese or from butter used to grill the steaks (margarine does not contain milk)

· Dip Items: Meatloaf, Roast Beef and Gravy

· Side Items: Apple Sauce, Carrots, Corn, Green Beans, Pinto Beans, Turnip Greens

· Tossed Salad, Grilled Chicken Tender Salad or Country Chef Salad (without Cheese)

· The following Salad Dressings do not contain Milk:

· Honey French (regular & fat free)

· Honey Mustard (regular & fat free)

· Thousand Island (regular & fat free)

· Reduced Calorie Italian

All fried items should be avoided due to cross-contamination from the cooking oil.

SOY ALLERGEN:

Soybean oil and soy lecithin are not indicated as allergens. According to the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network, the studies show that most soy-allergic individuals may safely eat soy lecithin and most types of soybean oil. Guests should check with their doctors for advice on whether they need to avoid soybean oil or soy lecithin.

· Cracker Barrel uses 100% vegetable oil containing soybean oil for frying.

· Margarine containing soybean oil and soy lecithin is also added to many recipes and/or used for cooking many grill items.

Menu items that do not contain soy and are not cooked in margarine or soy oil are:

· Meatloaf

· Sides: Green Beans, Pinto Beans, Turnip Greens

All fried items should be avoided due to cross-contamination from the cooking oil.

[Auntie Lynn]

What a great site! This is my first visit and love all the info. I have been gluten-free since the beginning of Oct. 2007, so I am still learning a lot of information via websites, forums, and books.

I was wondering about their Hashbrown Casserole. I loved this, but I noticed that it wasn't on the gluten-free list. I "googled" Cracker Barrel Hashbrown Casserole and the "copy cat" recipes had cream soups in them...which is NOT a good thing. When my husband and I went there recently, I asked the server and she said that it is only potatoes, cheese, and onions. It is kind of sad/scary that servers and some managers are not aware of gluten. They look at you very strange sometimes.

[Guest j_mommy]

I also emailed them about a month ago and got a complete list of things I could eat. I have ate there off that list with no problems. They were very helpful to me!

[hathor]

What FAAN says is: "Studies show that most soy-allergic individuals may safely eat soybean oil (not cold pressed, expeller pressed, or extruded oil)." I don't know how that translates into "most types of soybean oil." Not that Cracker Barrel shares what type of soybean oil it uses

I know I have reacted to soybean oil at restaurants before. I've learned not to chance it. I've yet to find a restaurant that can tell me if the oil is cold pressed, expeller pressed, or extruded, or conversely, a safe type(s) of soybean oil (whatever the heck names might be applied to it).