Hi there!
If you are going to be doing a lot of driving in November on Thanksgiving Day, and you’re looking for a little piece of Thanksgiving dinner even when you’re on the road…
Cracker Barrel is a restaurant that is open on Thanksgiving that you can get your food.
And more specifically…
Cracker Barrel also serves Thanksgiving dinner, and it has a turkey dinner to-go!
This makes Cracker Barrel the perfect Thanksgiving day All-American restaurant!
You can dine in too.
And maybe there’s even outdoor seating at the Cracker Barrel near you.
I ate outside! I was far enough south that it wasn’t too cold.
Cracker Barrel is a restaurant (and gift shop) with a southern country theme.
It’s a perfect road trip restaurant.
The first Cracker Barrel Old Country Store was opened in Tennessee in order to help travelers on the road who were driving through! Read the story.
A few years later, there were more Cracker Barrel stores that opened across the south, including Kentucky and Georgia.
Today, there’s a Cracker Barrel restaurant in 45 states in the United States.
The 5 states without a Cracker Barrel are Alaska, Hawaii, Vermont, Washington, and Wyoming!
And so, if you’re on the road for Thanksgiving, Cracker Barrel seems like a perfect restaurant to have Thanksgiving dinner from.
It started as a way to provide a rest stop with food for people on a road trip!
It’s an all-American road trip restaurant for an all-American holiday dinner!
Side note!
If you will be driving through South Dakota, then Wall Drug is another all-American road trip stop to make. It also got started on the idea of providing a rest stop to drivers… with free water and 5 cent coffee… which still exists today!
Is Cracker Barrel the ONLY restaurant open on Thanksgiving?!
Well, this probably largely depends on where you are on Thanksgiving.
But if you’re driving through rural America as I was on Thanksgiving Day, there’s a good chance there’s not a whole lot of restaurants that are open.
And by not a whole lot, I mean like pretty much no restaurants are open on Thanksgiving.
Well, maybe this shouldn’t come as a surprise.
And again, it depends on your location.
Maybe there are more restaurants open near you.
But when you actually do some driving away from home on Thanksgiving for the first time and discover this, it just seemed kind of incredible.
I mean, wouldn’t you think that the big fast food chain restaurants would be open at least?!
No.
It seemed like basically every fast food restaurant was closed on Thanksgiving.
Even places like McDonald’s, Taco Bell, and Subway.
I was driving through rural West Virginia and rural Virginia.
👆 Driving on Thanksgiving Day on the backroads of West Virginia on the way to Florida. I guess it really shouldn’t be surprising that no restaurants are open in rural West Virginia and Virginia.
So my destination for the evening of Thanksgiving was a hotel outside of Roanoke Virginia.
As I checked in maybe around 5pm, the front desk staff at the hotel asked if I was looking for an open restaurant.
Well actually… yes!
And she said probably the only restaurant that was open on Thanksgiving evening is Cracker Barrel. It’s located right near the hotel.
You can confirm the restaurant hours of the Cracker Barrel restaurant near you.
And so…
It was off to Cracker Barrel for Thanksgiving dinner!
This was the Cracker Barrel in Troutville VA in November 2021. Your experience may vary!
And wow, the parking lot at Cracker Barrel was pretty full!
Apparently Cracker Barrel is very busy on Thanksgiving all across the country!
Cracker Barrel even says that Thanksgiving is the busiest day of the year for them!
Who knew that ordering Thanksgiving dinner at Cracker Barrel was a thing?! Not me… 😜
I wasn’t expecting to eat a turkey dinner on the road, so it was a happy surprise!
So…
What does Cracker Barrel serve on Thanksgiving day as part of their Thanksgiving lunch or Thanksgiving dinner?
There was a full menu to choose from that included non-Thanksgiving specific food items.
But, it’s Thanksgiving, so of course the Thanksgiving meal is the most fitting!
The Cracker Barrel Thanksgiving meal is called the Homestyle Turkey and Dressing Meal. You can order this for lunch and dinner.
I think you can order this even in the days before Thanksgiving, but you can call the restaurant near you to confirm that.
What is served for a Cracker Barrel Thanksgiving turkey dinner as part of the Homestyle Turkey and Dressing Meal:
- Roasted turkey breast
- Cornbread dressing and gravy
- Country green beans
- Sweet potato casserole with pecans
- Cranberry relish
- Buttermilk biscuits or corn muffins
That is what is listed on the Cracker Barrel Thanksgiving menu.
Also noted is that the children’s meal does not include the sweet potato casserole.
👆 A Cracker Barrel Thanksgiving dinner includes turkey, dressing, gravy, green beans, sweet potato casserole, and cranberry sauce.
👆 Cracker Barrel serves pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving dinner.
I read later the Thanksgiving dinner description and see that it said either buttermilk biscuits or corn muffins are included with the Thanksgiving dinner.
I wasn’t asked about which I wanted.
And, I got neither. (I would have loved the biscuits or cornbread muffins!)
I am not sure if the biscuits and cornbread are just an option if you’re dining in, or they were out of both the buttermilk biscuits and corn muffins.
I just got regular dinner rolls (with butter).
👆 For Thanksgiving dinner, Cracker Barrel serves buttermilk biscuit or corn muffins… or dinner rolls.
According to Cracker Barrel:
At Cracker Barrel, we take great care that the food we serve is freshly made in our kitchens every day.
Which might mean we don’t have one of your favorites at time.
Made from scratch has been part of Cracker Barrel for over fifty years and we like to think that’s what folks have come to depend on.
How much does the Cracker Barrel Thanksgiving dinner cost?
Prices may vary based on the restaurant near you, but at this Cracker Barrel location in small town Virginia in 2021:
- It was $13 for the Cracker Barrel Thanksgiving dinner for an individual adult
- It was $8 for the Cracker Barrel Thanksgiving dinner for a child
👆 For Thanksgiving dinner, Cracker Barrel serves a homestyle turkey and dressing meal. You can also order country fried turkey. Menu from November 2021. Food offerings and prices subject to change!
And that’s a bit about one great all-American restaurant that’s open on Thanksgiving… AND where you can get a classic Thanksgiving turkey dinner!
Is Cracker Barrel open on Christmas?!
And in case you’re wondering… Cracker Barrel is not open on Christmas Day.
It is open on Christmas Eve though! But they do close early on Christmas Eve.
And Cracker Barrel has a holiday dinner for Christmas.
You can confirm the restaurant hours of the Cracker Barrel near you.
HAPPY EATING THANKSGIVING TURKEY DINNER FROM A RESTAURANT!
It’s never too early to start planning your next road trip!
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