Few things are so perfectly evocative as an Old Time Cracker Barrel restaurant. Since my husband and I began our first married life together in the South, I was shocked that he’d never been to one, and then, delighted to find a Cracker Barrel just about a mile from our Alburqurque hotel.
Off we went. At the time, we knew nothing about the history of homophobic management. A friend has since informed me. I did some internet research–very quickly–and found just a few mentions. But before I give them my patronage again, I’ll look further into it. For now, though, let’s talk culture.
We lived in Tallahassee, Fla. in the 1970s, a small city that had more in common with south Georgia than with any city in Florida. And that included its habits and its cuisine.
If you lived in the South, too, you remember Moon Pies, and the preferred beverage to accompany a Moon Pie was this:
Unfortunately, no RC cola to be had, and we resisted the purchase of a box of Moon Pies. It was enough to look and remember our youth. Besides, if we ate that stuff now, it would probably kill us.
However, there were many other old-timey sodas on offer. I don’t remember them all, but it certainly looks like an authentic collection, all for sale at the Cracker Barrel in Albuquerque.
Remember these? If your parents ever drove you down the eastern seaboard, the brand you saw on every billboard was Stuckey’s. Boy, were they disgusting! I’m sure these, made for Cracker Barrel, are just as super-sweet. Sickly-sweet.
Product names of old were definitely more interesting back in the day. Goo-Goo Clusters. That says it all.
Remember jawbreakers? How can you forget?
Or those glass jars full of stick candy, especially “horehound?” These go back more than a century.
We decided not to resist Necco wafers. We bought a few rolls to bring home. Yes, I know they’re pretty tasteless, but such good memories come with them that we hardly notice. Well, I just realized what they taste like. They taste like childhood.
We did sit down for lunch. I had a delicious lemon-pepper trout and M. had chicken fried steak, along with the most delicious mashed potatoes ever We really wanted this chocolate Coca Cola cake, but were way too full.
Did these photos invoke any memories of your own you’d like to share?