Cracker Barrel says it “could’ve done a better job” with release of new logo that angered some fans

Cracker Barrel says it “could’ve done a better job” with release of new logo that angered some fans

By DEE-ANN DURBIN AP Business Writer

Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo but apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.

“If the last few days have shown us anything, it’s how deeply people care about Cracker Barrel. We’re truly grateful for your heartfelt voices,” the company said Monday in a statement on its website. “You’ve also shown us that we could have done a better job sharing who we are and who we’ll always be.”

Cracker Barrel took heat last week when it announced a simplified logo featuring only the chain’s name. Gone was the picture of an older man in overalls leaning against a barrel. The words “Old Country Store” were also removed.

The change was part of a wider rebrand, which has seen Cracker Barrel update its cluttered, antique-filled restaurants with lighter paint and modern furniture.

Many on social media, including Donald Trump Jr., criticized the new logo, with some threatening to boycott unless it was changed back. Sensing an opening, the rival chain Steak n’ Shake called the new logo “a cheap effort to gain the approval of trend seekers.”

“Heritage is what got Cracker Barrel this far, and now the CEO wants to just scrape it all away,” Steak n’ Shake said in a statement on X.

Cracker Barrel shares have dropped more than 10% since the new logo was introduced on Aug. 18.

On Monday, the Lebanon, Tennessee-based company emphasized that many things about Cracker Barrel won’t change, including the rocking chairs on its front porches and vintage Americana and antiques scattered throughout its restaurants.

Cracker Barrel also said it will continue to honor Uncle Herschel — the older man in the former logo, who represents the uncle of Cracker Barrel’s founder — on its menu and on items sold in its stores.

But Cracker Barrel said it also wants to make sure that the business stays fresh and attracts a new generation of customers.

“That means showing up on new platforms and in new ways, but always with our heritage at the heart,” the company said in a statement.

The company said it will also keep testing, learning and listening to its employees and customers.

Cracker Barrel shares fell less than 1% to close at $54.26 per share Monday.

Peach Crisp

Peach Crisp

Soak up the end of peach season and embrace the fall coziness! This recipe makes for the perfect end-of-summer dessert.

Ingredients

  • 6–8 ripe peaches (~ 6 cups, peeled & sliced)
  • 2 tbsp. granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp. lemon juice
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 tbsp. cornstarch
  • 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • a pinch of salt
  • 1/2 cup ( 1 stick) unsalted butter (cold, cut into cubes)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven
Preheat oven to 350 degrees f.

2. Prep filling
In a large bowl, gently combine peaches with sugar, lemon juice, vanilla, cornstarch and cinnamon. Then, spread the mixture evenly in a greased 9×9 baking dish.

3. Prep topping
In another bowl, combine oats, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Incorporate the butter using your hands or a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

4. Bake
Sprinkle the topping mixture evenly over the filling mixture and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and the peach juice is bubbling.

5. Serve it hot
Enjoy right away for a cozy, end-of-summer dessert! Try it with vanilla ice cream or toppings of your choice.

August 26th 2025

August 26th 2025

Thought of the Day

August 26th 2024
Photo by Getty Images

For every problem, there is an opportunity. People will pay you to solve their problems.

Hurricane Erin leaves rough seas with 2 swimmers dead and a search underway for a missing boater

Hurricane Erin leaves rough seas with 2 swimmers dead and a search underway for a missing boater

SALISBURY, Mass. (AP) — Hurricane Erin never made landfall but left behind rough ocean conditions along the U.S. East Coast. At least two people died after they had been swimming in the heavy current, and a search continued Monday for a man who was missing after his boat capsized.

Beaches were beginning to reopen Friday after Erin, twice the size of an average hurricane, had weakened into a post-tropical cyclone far from land, but was still capable of causing life-threatening surf and rip currents, the National Hurricane Center in Miami had said. Erin’s outer bands had already brushed North Carolina. It caused no widespread damage.

In Massachusetts, a team of police and U.S. Coast Guard members were resuming their search Monday for a man in his 50s who was missing after a boat capsized off of Salisbury Beach on Saturday. The other person in the boat was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Despite challenging weather and sea conditions including 6- to 8-foot swells, the team performed sonar scans, dives, surface and aerial patrols on Sunday, the state police said in a news release. In Maine, a man was rescued Saturday after his sailboat capsized in high surf in York Harbor.

In New Hampshire, authorities are investigating the death of a 17-year-old boy who had been swimming with family members off of Hampton Beach on Sunday night.

Witnesses said he was pulled away by a strong ocean current and his father unsuccessfully tried to rescue him. Lifeguards brought both to shore and began livesaving efforts on the teen, who was later pronounced dead at a hospital. The father was treated there.

A man drowned Saturday after being caught in a strong rip current off the New York coast, at Sailors Haven in the Fire Island Natoinal Seashore in Suffolk County, authorities said. Ishmoile Mohammed, 59, was visiting from South Carolina.

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Juliette formed Monday in the Pacific Ocean hundreds of miles from Mexico’s Baja California peninsula as Tropical Storm Fernand churned in the Atlantic Ocean.

No coastal watches or warnings were in effect for either storm, the hurricane center said.

Juliette posed no immediate threat to land, forecasters said. The storm was about 450 miles (724 kilometers) south-southwest of the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula. It had maximum sustained winds near 45 mph (72 kph).

It was moving west-northwest at 13 mph (21 kph). Some strengthening was forecast through Tuesday, with weakening starting Wednesday.

In the Atlantic basin, Fernand formed Saturday but was also far from land and forecast to remain over open ocean waters. It was about 425 miles (684 kilometers) east-northeast of Bermuda with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph (97 kph) and heading north-northeast at 13 mph (21 kph).

The storm was expected to turn more to the northeast as it moves away from Bermuda and weaken starting Monday night.

Some FEMA staff call out Trump cuts in public letter of dissent

Some FEMA staff call out Trump cuts in public letter of dissent

By GABRIELA AOUN ANGUEIRA Associated Press

More than 180 current and former employees of the Federal Emergency Management Agency published a letter Monday warning that debilitating cuts to the agency charged with handling federal disaster response risks a catastrophe like the one seen after Hurricane Katrina.

“Our shared commitment to our country, our oaths of office, and our mission of helping people before, during, and after disasters compel us to warn Congress and the American people of the cascading effects of decisions made by the current administration,” the letter states.

The statement in it is noteworthy not only for its content but for its overall existence; a fierce approach toward critics by the Trump administration has caused many in the federal government to hesitate before locking heads with the White House.

The letter coincides with the 20th anniversary week of Hurricane Katrina, when more than 1,800 people died and profound failures in the federal response prompted Congress to pass the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006.

The letter warns that poor management and eroded capacity at FEMA could undue progress made to improve the agency through that law.

“Two decades later, FEMA is enacting processes and leadership structures that echo the conditions PKEMRA was designed to prevent,” it states.

It comes amid uncertainty for FEMA

The letter is addressed to the FEMA Review Council, a 12-person group of elected officials, emergency managers and other officials from mostly Republican states that President Donald Trump appointed to suggest reforms to an agency he has repeatedly threatened to eliminate.

It comes after months of upheaval at FEMA. One-third of the agency’s full-time workforce has left or been fired, including many high-level staff. The agency’s acting chief, Cameron Hamilton, was fired in May and replaced by another acting head, David Richardson. Neither has prior emergency management experience.

FEMA’s response to the July Texas floods that killed at least 136 people came under criticism after reports that survivor calls to FEMA went unanswered and Urban Search and Rescue teams deployed late because of a policy by which Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem must personally approve expenditures above $100,000.

The letter contains six “statements of opposition” to current policies at FEMA, including the expenditure approval policy, which the signatories say reduces FEMA’s ability to perform its missions.

It also critiques the DHS decision to reassign some FEMA employees to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the failure to appoint a qualified FEMA administrator as stipulated by law, and cuts to mitigation programs, preparedness training and FEMA workforce.

Letter seeks to establish FEMA as a cabinet-level agency

The letter was also sent to multiple Congressional committees and calls on lawmakers to establish FEMA as a cabinet-level independent agency in the executive branch. The bipartisan Fixing Emergency Management for Americans, or FEMA Act, introduced in the House last month, proposes the same.

Thirty five signatories included their names. The 141 anonymous signatories “choose not to identify themselves due to the culture of fear and suppression cultivated by this administration,” according to the letter.

Employees at other agencies including the National Institutes of Health and Environmental Protection Agency have issued similar statements. About 140 EPA staff members at the were placed on administrative leave for signing an opposition letter.

The FEMA Review Council will meet for the third time this week on Thursday.

UNC’s Belichick tells players that Hulu will feature Tar Heels program in a show this fall

UNC’s Belichick tells players that Hulu will feature Tar Heels program in a show this fall

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina will get an in-season close-up for its first season under coach Bill Belichick.

In a social media video posted by the program Sunday, Belichick told the players that streaming provider Hulu will feature the Tar Heels in what he described as a season-long show “that will showcase our football program.”

“It’ll show our commitment to winning,” Belichick told players. “It’ll show our commitment to the team. and that’s our priority.”

Belichick, who coached the NFL’s New England Patriots to six Super Bowl titles, is a first-time college coach. UNC opens the season on Labor Day against TCU in a college version of Monday Night Football.

Dr Pepper buys Peet’s for $18 billion and will split into separate coffee and cold drink sellers

Dr Pepper buys Peet’s for $18 billion and will split into separate coffee and cold drink sellers

NEW YORK (AP) — Keurig Dr Pepper will buy the owner of Peet’s Coffee in an $18 billion (15.7 billion euro) deal, then break itself in two, with one company selling coffee and the other selling cold beverages like Snapple, Dr Pepper, 7UP and energy drinks.

The agreement anounced Monday will essentially unwind the 2018 merger of Keurig and Dr. Pepper and it arrives at a time when consumers are pulling back and the trade wars under President Donald Trump threaten to send coffee prices soaring.

Trump imposed a 50% tariff this summer on most imports from Brazil — the world’s leading coffee producer — for its investigation of its former president, Jair Bolsonaro, a Trump ally.

Yet Keurig Dr Pepper sees both coffee and cold beverages as areas of growth that would be better navigated by independently operating companies. CEO Tim Cofer called it a “transformational moment” for the sector.

“By creating two sharply focused beverage companies with attractive and tailored growth propositions and capital allocation strategies, we are poised to generate significant shareholder value in both the near and long term,” Cofer write in prepared remarks.

But large chains like Starbucks are suffering. Same-store sales, a key barometer of a retailer’s health, has fallen for six straight quarters at the Seattle coffee giant and its shares have tumbled 23% since early March.

Dr Pepper Keurig is offsetting some declines with higher prices. In its last quarter, the company reported a 0.2% decline in coffee sales.

For Keurig Dr Pepper, the soon-to-be separated coffee business will have about $16 billion in combined sales and the beverage business about $11 billion, the companies said.

The companies expect to save about $400 million over three years because of the merger.

The company that Keurig Dr Peppper is buying, Peet’s parent JDE Peet’s based in Amsterdam, also owns the brands L’OR, Jacobs, Douwe Egberts, Kenco, Pilao, OldTown, Super and Moccona.

Once the two companies are separated, Cofer will become CEO of the cold beverage business, which will be based in Frisco, Texas. Keurig Dr Pepper’s chief financial officer, Sudhanshu Priyadarshi, will lead the coffee business, which will be located in Burlington, Mass. Its international headquarters is in Amsterdam.

Shares of Keurig Dr Pepper slumped 9% before the opening bell Monday.

Zucchini Bread

Zucchini Bread

Try this zucchini bread recipe for a healthy yet tasty snack or start to your day! It’s great to have on hand for those mornings you don’t feel like cooking but you want something warm and homemade.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
  • 2 cups zucchini, shredded
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts OR chocolate chips (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven and prep baking dishes
Preheat oven to 350 degrees f and grease 2 8×4 inch loaf pans, then lightly line with flour.

2. Mix dry ingredients
In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon together.

3. Mix wet ingredients
In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, oil, sugar and vanilla together until combined. Then, add the dry ingredients and combine thoroughly. Then, add the shredded zucchini and walnuts or chocolate chips if you’d like.

4. Bake
Pour the mixture evenly into the loaf pans and bake for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the bread is golden brown on top.

5. Serve and enjoy
Let the bread cool for at least 15 minutes on a wire rack, then serve and enjoy.

August 25th 2025

August 25th 2025

Thought of the Day

August 25th 2024
Photo by Getty Images

There are people who make things happen, people who watch things happen, and too many people who don’t know anything happened.

‘Sopranos’ star Jerry Adler, Broadway backstage vet turned late-in-life actor, dies at 96

‘Sopranos’ star Jerry Adler, Broadway backstage vet turned late-in-life actor, dies at 96

By MALLIKA SEN Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Jerry Adler, who spent decades behind-the-scenes of storied Broadway productions before pivoting to acting in his 60s, has died at 96.

Adler died Saturday, according to a brief family announcement confirmed by the Riverside Memorial Chapel in New York.

Among Adler’s acting credits are “The Sopranos,” on which he played Tony Soprano adviser Hesh Rabkin across all six seasons, and “The Good Wife,” where he played law partner Howard Lyman. But before Adler had ever stepped in front of a film or television camera, he had 53 Broadway productions to his name — all behind the scenes, serving as a stage manager, producer or director.

He hailed from an entertainment family with deep roots in Jewish and Yiddish theater, as he told the Jewish Ledger in 2014. His father, Philip Adler, was a general manager for the famed Group Theatre and Broadway productions, and his cousin Stella Adler was a legendary acting teacher.

“I’m a creature of nepotism,” Adler told TheaterMania in 2015. “I got my first job when I was at Syracuse University and my father, the general manager of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, called me (because) there was an opening for an assistant stage manager. I skipped school.”

After a long theater career, which included the original production of “My Fair Lady” and working with the likes of Marlene Dietrich, Julie Andrews and Richard Burton, among many others, Adler left Broadway during its 1980s slump. He moved to California, where he worked on television productions like the soap opera “Santa Barbara.”

“I was really getting into the twilight of a mediocre career,” he told The New York Times in 1992.

But the retirement he was contemplating was staved off when Donna Isaacson, the casting director for “The Public Eye” and a longtime friend of one of Adler’s daughters, had a hunch about how to cast a hard-to-fill role, as The New York Times reported then. Adler had been on the other side of auditions, and, curious to experience how actors felt, agreed to try out. Director Howard Franklin, who auditioned dozens of actors for the role of a newspaper columnist in the Joe Pesci-starring film, had “chills” when Adler read for the part, the newspaper reported.

So began an acting career that had him working consistently in front of the camera for more than 30 years. An early role on the David Chase-written “Northern Exposure” paved the way for his time on a future Chase project, “The Sopranos.”

“When David was going to do the pilot for ‘The Sopranos’ he called and asked me if I would do a cameo of Hesh. It was just supposed to be a one-shot,” he told Forward in 2015. “But when they picked up the show they liked the character, and I would come on every fourth week.”

Films included Woody Allen’s “Manhattan Murder Mystery,” but Adler was perhaps best known for his television work. Those credits included stints on “Rescue Me,” “Mad About You,” “Transparent” and guest spots on shows ranging from “The West Wing” to “Broad City.”

He even returned to Broadway, this time onstage, in Elaine May’s “Taller Than a Dwarf” in 2000. In 2015, he appeared in Larry David’s writing and acting stage debut, “Fish in the Dark.”

“I do it because I really enjoy it. I think retirement is a road to nowhere,” Adler told Forward, on the subject of the play. “I wouldn’t know what to do if I were retired. I guess if nobody calls anymore, that’s when I’ll be retired. Meanwhile this is great.”

Adler published a memoir, “Too Funny for Words: Backstage Tales from Broadway, Television and the Movies,” last year. “I’m ready to go at a moment’s notice,” he told CT Insider then, when asked if he’d take more acting roles. In recent years, he and his wife, Joan Laxman, relocated from Connecticut back to his hometown of New York.

For Adler, who once thought he was “too goofy-looking” to act, seeing himself on screen was odd, at least initially. And in multiple interviews with various outlets, he expressed how strange it was to be recognized by the public after spending so many years working behind the scenes. There was at least one advantage to being preserved on film, though, as he told The New York Times back in 1992.

“I’m immortal,” he said.

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