Cracker Barrel Junk

I like the food at The Cracker Barrel. It\’s usually pretty good, whether we go there for breakfast or dinner. They have done a great job of positioning themselves as the \”Old Country Store\”, a combination restaurant/retail shop, where every store is positioned on a major U.S. interstate. And every store looks virtually the same.

The Cracker Barrel store carries some interesting items. They are big on nostalgia, so you\’ll find Coca-Cola items, old games from the 40\’s, 50\’s and 60\’s, audio cds featuring old radio shows, etc. My kids always enjoy hitting the toy section to look at beanie babies and other fun stuff.

But Cracker Barrel is also infamous for carrying some of the most awful and tacky merchandise ever to grace God\’s green earth.

Last time I visited, I whipped out my Treo 650 and took some photos of some incredibly abyssmal items.

I give you exhibit #1, the electronic bunny, found in the hideously pastel Easter display…

It lights up various colors and its head turns back and forth. Scary stuff.

Exhibit #2 is the Forest Face, which comes in several delightful configurations…

If a friend invited me to their home and I saw a forest face on their tree, I would turn around and head home. Then I would call the police and have them arrested for arbor abuse.

Finally, the cream of the crop… the \”If you buy this you must be over eighty and have blue hair\” item… I give you Exhibit #3, the Whimsical Pig Bird Feeder…

AAArgh! My eyes! It BURNS!

Ok, good fun.

The moral of the story?

Eat at Cracker Barrel for the food. Tread lightly in the store. The next item you purchase may make you the laughing stock of your neighborhood.