SUDDEN SHUTTERS
Cracker Barrel gives up Texas biscuit brand with one Austin-area shop

Maple Street Biscuit Co. is done.
Cracker Barrel is flaking out on its Maple Street Biscuit Co. brand. On Tuesday, July 21, Louisville, Kentucky-based brunch chain Biscuit Belly announced it had acquired 35 locations of the breakfast sandwich favorite. An additional 16 units will close altogether.
Biscuit Belly published a list detailing which locations were acquired and when the brand expects to convert them. Among those awaiting conversion is the sole Austin-area location, at 3944 S. Farm to Market 620 Rd. in Bee Cave. It should be converted by the fourth quarter of 2027.
In a release, Biscuit Belly says it plans to convert all remaining stores over the next 18-24 months, starting with Cincinnati, Ohio, and Richmond, Virginia. It’s unclear whether or not that will require major renovations. A request for clarification was not immediately returned.
Maple Street first debuted in San Antonio in 2022. It was most known for its oversized biscuit sandwiches like the Squawking Goat with a fried chicken breast, crispy goat cheese, and jalapeno jelly. The chain also served chicken and waffles and Southern-inspired bowls filled with grits or a potato hash.
Biscuit Belly offers a little more variety with toasted BLTs, pancakes, and yogurt parfaits, but some of the biscuit sandwiches might look suspiciously familiar. The G.O.A.T. has a fried chicken breast, goat cheese, and sweet pepper jelly.
The other key difference can be found in a cup. In addition to a lineup of juices and coffee drinks, Biscuit Belly pours “breakfast cocktails” like mimosas and espresso martinis. It places an old fashioned inside this category, which might require a few extra eggs.
As Cracker Barrel pours one out for Maple Street, it hopes to recover from a plunging stock price and falling revenues. Biscuit Belly, meanwhile, says the acquisition helps it along its 10-year plan to become the “largest gourmet biscuit brand in the U.S.”
“Acquiring an iconic brand like Maple Street, one of the original gourmet biscuit sandwich concepts, was not on my 2026 bingo card," said Chad Coulter, co-founder and CEO of Biscuit Belly, in a release. "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."

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