When a restaurant changes owners, names, and menus, it may still be serving the public, but that doesn’t mean something hasn’t been lost.
When I was a kid, the former Dunkin’ Donuts (now Dunkin’) often took over locations that used to be locally owned doughnut stores. Yes, the new owner still served doughnuts, muffins, and coffee (the menu did not include much more back then), but it wasn’t the same.
It’s like buying a burger at Five Guys versus getting one from a vending machine at a gas station. Sure, they’re both hamburgers, but they’re not really the same thing.
In some ways, a Rolex and a Timex are both watches. They tell time, you wear them on your wrist, and you can legally call both of them a watch, but most people understand the difference.
When Cracker Barrel sold Maple Street Biscuit Company to Biscuit Belly in July, it essentially ended the brand. Sixteen Maple Street Biscuit locations were shut down right away, while the fate of the remaining 35 was already decided, even if customers remain unaware.
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Biscuit Belly buys Maple Street Biscuit
I’ve never eaten at a Biscuit Belly, and it’s possible I will like it even more than Maple Street Biscuit Company. But as a huge fan of the chain Cracker Barrel has sold, I’m sad to see the brand going away.
Biscuit Belly actually bought the Maple Street Biscuit Brand company name, but it’s opting not to use it.
Chad Coulter, founder and CEO of Biscuit Belly, which currently operates 15 locations, said in a LinkedIn post that the Maple Street locations would be converted over the next two years.
“Over the next 18-24 months, we will convert Maple Street locations to Biscuit Belly locations, giving them all a refresh inside and out and introducing our scratch-made menu to the current teams and communities around the Southeast, East Coast, Midwest and Texas,” he wrote. “If all goes as planned, Biscuit Belly will have 60-plus locations by the end of 2028.”
That may not be a negative swap like losing a local doughnut chain in favor of a Dunkin’, but for fans of the brand, it’s a loss nonetheless. Maple Street Biscuit Company will be replaced by another chain with a similar menu, but it is closing down all its locations, and the brand will disappear.
Maple Street Biscuit fans still have time
Cracker Barrel never released a list of which Maple Street Biscuit locations closed and which ones would be converted by its new owner. USA Today, however, created one using the chain’s website (see below).
Fans of the chain do still have time to visit many of those locations, but Biscuit Belly has not shared which stores will be converted when.
In his statement, Coulter said two of the biggest headwinds that growing brands encounter are the time required to find and build locations, and the difficulty of finding great teams.
“When we looked at Maple Street’s geography, footprints, and established teams, a light bulb went off,” he said.
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Cracker Barrel has not commented on Maple Street Biscuit Company since the sale. Its last public comments, however, did suggest some problems with the brand.
“Our top capital allocation priority is investing in the core Cracker Barrel business and in the initiatives we discussed on May 16. Therefore, we have decided to slow down Maple Street’s unit growth in the short term while they work on improving that business model and as part of our focus on investing in the Cracker Barrel business. As a result of our decision to slow down Maple Street’s growth, we recorded a goodwill impairment of $4.7 million,” CFO Craig Pommells said during Cracker Barrel’s third-quarter 2024 earnings call.
Nashville-based Maple Street, which specializes in scratch-made buttermilk biscuits, fried chicken, specialty coffee, and more, opened its first location in 2012. It was acquired by Cracker Barrel for $36 million in 2019.
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These Maple Street Biscuit stores are being converted into Biscuit Belly
Florida
- 2004 San Marco Blvd., Jacksonville
- 8358 Point Meadows Dr., Suite 1, Jacksonville
- 1960 Eastwest Pkwy., Suite 103, Fleming Island
- 6268 W. Irlo Bronson Memorial Hwy., Celebration
- 11810 Glass House Ln., Suite 140, Orlando
- 978 City Walk Ln., Oviedo
- 9375 Emerald Coast Pkwy. W., Miramar Beach
- 10777 Big Bend Rd., Riverview
- 662 Central Ave., St. Petersburg
- 1600 W. Call St., Tallahassee
- 13028 N. Dale Mabry Hwy., Tampa
- 16027 New Independence Pkwy., Suite 100, Winter Garden
Alabama
- 6869 Hwy. 90, Daphne
- 5054 Old Shell Rd., Mobile
Georgia
- 50 Canton St., Alpharetta
- 3550 W. Lawrenceville St., Suite 210, Duluth
- 1131 Ernest W. Barrett Pkwy. NW, Kennesaw
- 220 W. Broughton St., Savannah
- 2295 Towne Lake Pkwy., Suite 160, Woodstock
Kentucky
- 6785 Houston Rd., Suite 400, Florence
North Carolina
- 8921 Christenbury Pkwy., Concord
- 2775 Freedom Parkway Dr., Fayetteville
Ohio
- 9333 Mason Montgomery Rd., Mason
South Carolina
- 18 E. North St., Greenville
- 2815 Woodruff Rd., Suite 107, Simpsonville
Tennessee
- 407 Broad St., Chattanooga
- 2114 Gunbarrel Rd., Chattanooga
- 9314 Kingston Pike, Suite 112, Knoxville
- 1033 Hamilton Place Dr., Johnson City
- 1911 Medical Center Pkwy., Suite A, Murfreesboro
Texas
- 3944 S. FM 620 Rd., Building 1, Suite 130, Bee Cave
- 1660 E. Broad St., Suite 100, Mansfield
- 10650 Culebra Rd., Suite 102, San Antonio
Virginia
- 14412 Hull Street Rd. Chesterfield
- 11657 W. Broad St., Richmond
These Maple Street Biscuit locations have closed
According to the list provided to USA Today by Biscuit Belly, the following Maple Street restaurants were not included in the sale and are expected to close.
Alabama
- 8276 Highway 72 West, Madison
Florida
- 127 W. Bloomingdale Ave., Brandon
- 1627 Racetrack Road, Saint Johns
- 10280 Pines Blvd., Pembroke Pines
- 11925 Southern Blvd., Royal Palm Beach
- 39 Cordova St., St. Augustine
Georgia
- 1085 Howell Mill Road, Atlanta
Ohio
- 4996 Fulton Drive, Shoppes at The Greens, Canton
- 1310 Polaris Parkway, Columbus
- 7105 N. High St., Worthington
Tennessee
- 203 Franklin Road, Brentwood
- 2407 8th Ave. S., Nashville
Texas
- 4906 FM 1463, Katy
- 17202 Bulverde Road, San Antonio
- 290 East Basse Road, San Antonio
Virginia
- 2061 Huguenot Road, North Chesterfield
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