LEBANON Tenn. CBRL Group Inc., operator of 556 Cracker Barrel Old Country Store restaurant and gift shops, reported a 1-percent dip in same-store restaurant sales and a 0.3-percent drop in same-store retail sales for the four weeks ended March 23. The company said winter weather that was more severe than last year negatively affected results by as much as 1 percent for restaurant sales and as much as 1.5 percent for retail sales.
As CBRL is one of the first restaurant companies to report March results, the negative trends do not bode well for the whole industry, according to securities analyst Matthew DiFrisco at Thomas Weisel Partners in New York. "The persistent headwinds from steadfast gas prices and higher interest rates appear to be dampening consumer demand," he said.