Cracker Barrel CEO Julie Masino is stepping down nearly a year after the restaurant chain’s attempt to update its familiar image triggered widespread customer backlash.
The leadership change may also catch the attention of RV travelers. Cracker Barrel has long been a familiar road-trip stop, with many locations near major highways and some restaurants offering parking areas marked as accessible for buses and RVs.
Masino will leave her position as CEO and step down from the company’s board on August 10, 2026. She will remain with Cracker Barrel in an advisory role through October 9 to assist with the transition.
David Deno, the former CEO of Bloomin’ Brands, will take over as Cracker Barrel’s next chief executive and join its board. Bloomin’ Brands is the parent company of Outback Steakhouse, Carrabba’s Italian Grill, Bonefish Grill and Fleming’s.
Cracker Barrel did not give a specific reason for Masino’s departure. In its official announcement of the leadership change, the company described the move as the result of a comprehensive succession-planning and executive-search process.
An Attempt to Modernize an American Road-Trip Staple
Masino became Cracker Barrel’s CEO in 2023 and began pursuing a major effort to update the restaurant chain for younger customers.
The plans included menu changes, remodeled dining rooms, updated advertising and a new logo. Some redesigned restaurants featured brighter interiors and fewer of the antiques and old-fashioned decorations that had traditionally covered Cracker Barrel’s walls.
Then came the logo change.
In August 2025, Cracker Barrel introduced a simplified design that removed the longtime image of a man leaning against a barrel. Only the company’s name remained.
The familiar “Old Timer” logo was created in 1977 by Nashville designer Bill Holley, who reportedly drew it on a napkin to evoke nostalgia with an older man wearing overalls. Cracker Barrel abandoned its replacement logo less than a week after introducing it following widespread customer backlash, CBS News reported at the time.
Longtime customers reacted strongly to the new design. Critics accused the company of stripping away the history and personality that made Cracker Barrel different from other restaurant chains.
The dispute quickly spread across social media. President Donald Trump also joined the discussion and urged the company to return to its former logo.
Cracker Barrel initially defended its new direction but reversed the logo change less than a week after unveiling it.
“Our new logo is going away and our ‘Old Timer’ will remain,” the company told customers.
Sales Fell, but the Company Had Recently Reported Some Progress
The controversy became a serious business problem for Cracker Barrel. The company’s stock fell sharply during the backlash, and customers continued debating the restaurant’s changes long after the old logo returned.
Recent financial results, however, showed a mixed picture rather than a company in complete free fall.
Cracker Barrel reported $797.4 million in revenue for its fiscal third quarter, which ended May 1. That was a 2.9% decrease from the same period one year earlier.
Comparable restaurant sales fell 2.6%, while comparable retail-store sales declined 1.8%. Cost reductions helped the company’s earnings, and Cracker Barrel raised its full-year revenue and adjusted earnings outlook when it reported its third-quarter financial results in June.
A more recent update covering the first 11 weeks of the company’s fourth quarter showed comparable restaurant sales down approximately 2.5%. Retail sales were up about 0.5%.
Cracker Barrel said on July 20 that it expected to meet or exceed the high end of its full-year revenue forecast and surpass its adjusted earnings outlook. That made the sudden CEO transition surprising to some Wall Street analysts who believed the chain was beginning to regain momentum.
Shares still fell following Monday’s announcement that Masino was leaving.
Cracker Barrel Is Also Selling Property and Narrowing Its Focus
The CEO change follows several other major moves at the Lebanon, Tennessee-based company.
Cracker Barrel recently completed the sale of 26 company-owned restaurant properties for approximately $77 million. The restaurants will remain open, but Cracker Barrel will lease the properties from their new owner. Proceeds from the deal are expected to be used to reduce debt.
The company also sold the Maple Street Biscuit Company name and assets from 35 locations to Biscuit Belly. Cracker Barrel plans to close the remaining 16 Maple Street restaurants.
Maple Street accounted for less than 2% of Cracker Barrel’s annual revenue. Company leaders said leaving the business would allow them to place more attention on the main Cracker Barrel brand.
Details about the property sales, Maple Street transaction and updated financial forecast were included in Cracker Barrel’s July 20 strategic update.
Cracker Barrel’s Next CEO Has Decades of Restaurant Experience
Deno previously served as CEO of Bloomin’ Brands from 2019 through 2024. Before becoming CEO, he spent seven years as that company’s chief financial officer.
His previous positions also include executive roles at Best Buy, Yum Brands, Pizza Hut and Burger King. He currently serves on the boards of Krispy Kreme and Panera Brands.
Deno described Cracker Barrel as an iconic American company with a strong connection to guests across several generations. He said his priorities would include improving the customer experience and producing profitable growth.
Cracker Barrel operates approximately 660 company-owned restaurants across 43 states. The first location opened in Lebanon, Tennessee, in 1969 with the goal of serving travelers along the highway.
That road-trip history remains one reason the chain is so familiar to RV owners. Many travelers recognize the rocking chairs, country store and large parking lots before they ever see the restaurant sign.
Masino’s departure now leaves Deno with a difficult assignment. He must improve sales and attract new customers without pushing away the longtime diners who view Cracker Barrel’s traditional appearance as part of the experience.
For customers, the leadership change raises a larger question: Should Cracker Barrel continue trying to reinvent itself, or should the company return its attention to the food, service and old-fashioned atmosphere that made it popular in the first place?
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