At Cracker Barrel, we believe food should carry the same comfort it always has. But behind every tradition, there’s a story, and behind every story, there are people, places, and partnerships that make it possible.
Today, we’re sharing the full heritage of how one legendary flour brand, one traveling salesman, and one Tennessee mill came together to help shape the pancakes guests have loved for generations.
This journey begins long before Cracker Barrel first opened its doors in 1969.
Martha White: The Flour That Built Southern Kitchens
Long before you could find Cracker Barrel signs along interstates across America, families were filling their pantries with sacks of Martha White flour. Founded in Nashville and known for its iconic “Goodness gracious, it’s good!” slogan, Martha White wasn’t just a baking product, it was part of the identity of Southern and country cooking.
For decades, Martha White flour and cornmeal were at the center of every family breakfast, church baked goods, cornbread side dish, and nearly every family recipe handwritten in generations-old cookbooks.
The brand became a household name not through flashy marketing, but through a reputation built by millers, bakers, and traveling salesmen who carried its story into thousands of stores across the Southeast.
Which brings us to one of Cracker Barrel’s most beloved historical figures.
Uncle Herschel McCartney: The Man Who Traveled the Backroads
Long before he became a brand ambassador and symbol of Cracker Barrel’s values, Uncle Herschel McCartney spent 32 years traveling Southern backroads as a salesman for Martha White Flour.
He didn’t just sell flour; he lived the lifestyle that flour represented:
- The backdoor conversations with general-store owners
- The early-morning chats with bakers pulling pans out of warm ovens
- The understanding of how families cooked, ate, and gathered
- The heartbeat of small towns and country kitchens
His work took him from Tennessee to Alabama to Mississippi to tiny hidden towns most people never mark on a map. And everywhere he went, he learned something about people: what mattered to them, what comforted them, and what made a meal feel like home.
When Cracker Barrel was founded in 1969, Uncle Herschel’s presence was more than symbolic. His years of experience with Martha White helped shape the original country store concept, a place filled with familiar staples, the scent of fresh food, and the warmth of genuine Southern hospitality.
To this day, his imprint remains part of Cracker Barrel’s heritage. You can see it in the design, the menu, the memories, and in the breakfast named after him.
From Legacy to Loyalty: What Martha White Gave Us
Though Cracker Barrel is not supplied by Martha White today, the brand’s influence lives on in the deeper layers of our identity.
Martha White represented:
- Small town trust: flour you could always count on
- Honest ingredients: nothing fancy, just right
- Generational cooking: recipes passed down by hands rather than instructions
It set the stage for what would later become the Cracker Barrel experience: food that doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel, but perfects the classics.
But as Cracker Barrel grew, we needed partners who could help us maintain that same level of care, consistency, and comfort on a national scale.
Enter a mill just down the road.
Shenandoah Mills: The Tennessee Partner Behind Our Signature Pancakes
Nestled in Lebanon, Tennessee, just a short drive from Cracker Barrel’s headquarters, is Shenandoah Mills, a dry-mix manufacturer with a reputation for Southern craftsmanship and honest ingredients.
While Martha White shaped our heritage, Shenandoah Mills helps carry it forward.
Founded in 1990 when its current owner purchased a long-standing milling facility once owned by Martha White, Shenandoah Mills quickly grew into one of the Southeast’s most respected producers of:
- Pancake mixes
- Biscuit and cornbread blends
- Breading and batters
- Gravy bases
- Custom dry-mix formulations for major restaurant brands
It’s the kind of company built not on mass-production mindset, but on doing one thing, and doing it very, very well.
That philosophy made them a natural partner for Cracker Barrel.
The Perfect Pairing: Cracker Barrel x Shenandoah Mills
In the kitchen, ingredients only shine when the hands behind them know what they’re doing. Shenandoah Mills doesn’t just supply flour, they create carefully blended mixes that balance texture, sweetness, rise, and flavor.
Their pancake mix, the one used in Cracker Barrel kitchens, is the result of:
- High-quality grains milled to consistent texture
- Blended dry ingredients that deliver a dependable rise
- A buttermilk-forward balance that creates that classic, farmhouse taste
- A formula refined over years of partnership and guest expectation
It’s one of the key reasons Cracker Barrel pancakes taste just like guests remember, whether it’s your first time or your fiftieth.
Shenandoah Mills handles the scale, the consistency, and the craft. Cracker Barrel brings the warmth, the griddles, and the hospitality. Together, we’ve made a pancake that feels like part of the American morning.
From Past to Present: A Story That Comes Full Circle
When you step back, the picture becomes clear:
- Martha White shaped Southern kitchens
- Uncle Herschel carried that tradition across the region
- Cracker Barrel built a home for those flavor
- Shenandoah Mills helps bring them to life today
This is the full arc of a tradition, from flour sacks in old general stores to golden pancakes served fresh in more than 600 restaurants across the country.
It’s a story about more than ingredients. It’s about the people who carried them, believed in them, and kept them part of our lives.
Why Tradition Still Matters
At Cracker Barrel, we don’t serve pancakes just because they’re delicious. We serve them because they represent something more: a warm welcome, a moment to slow down, and a reminder of where we came from.
Our partnership with Shenandoah Mills allows us to stay true to the kind of food that once traveled country roads in flour sacks and recipe boxes, food that’s made with care, served with pride, and always seasoned with tradition.
So the next time you sit down to a plate of hot pancakes, steaming, soft, and just a little golden on the edges, you’ll know the story behind them: A story of flour, family, and the familiar taste of home.
