Cranberry Cracker Barrel location to gain liquor license
CRANBERRY — The Cracker Barrel in Cranberry will be one of the first in the state to serve alcohol.
At a Cranberry Township meeting on Thursday night, attorney Ken McDermott of the Saxton & Stump law firm explained details of the restaurant’s request for a liquor license transfer. The liquor license that the restaurant requested is currently held by a restaurant in Sarver.
The board unanimously approved the request for a transfer at the meeting.
McDermott and Cracker Barrel general manager Krissie Altman explained that the restaurant and store would not change much about its operations after gaining a liquor license.
“(A liquor license at Cracker Barrel) might sound surprising, but it is driven by customer feedback over the years,” McDermott said. “Cracker Barrel has licensed some locations in other states, Pennsylvania has kind of been a little slower on the list because of our unique alcohol laws. This is part of the process, and this is one of the first in the state that they are asking to get a liquor license for.”
Altman said that guests at Cracker Barrel have been requesting alcohol sales in recent months.
“When we first opened, there was definitely an interest by the guests. Guests would try to bring their own alcohol to us, which we obviously didn’t let them open or partake in,” she said. “Especially since Cracker Barrel on a national level has done more advertising, we have a lot of guests requesting or trying to order it already.”
The restaurant would provide a limited drink menu, with around six types of beer, four types of wine, two types of mimosas and some seasonal canned cocktails. Drinks will be served at table service, and customers will be required to show ID with every drink purchase.
Cracker Barrel will not change its current hours, which are 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, after receiving the license, and does not plan to build a bar portion of the restaurant or host live music.
“Overall, I think that Cracker Barrel is a good member of the community, will be a good member of the community and will be a very responsible alcohol service provider,” McDermott said.
