Former Bloomin' Brands CEO to run Cracker Barrel

David Deno, the recently retired CEO of Tampa-based Bloomin’ Brands, has been hired by Cracker Barrel to replace the company chief behind a disastrous rebranding last year.

Deno will take over the Tennessee-based restaurant and retail chain as CEO and join its board on Aug. 10. The company says in a statement that he was chosen “following a comprehensive succession planning and search process.”

He is taking the place of Julie Masino, the president and CEO at the helm of Cracker Barrel during an ill-fated rebranding that brought protests and boycotts from diners — and pundits —accusing it of forgetting its roots and capitulating to a “woke” culture.

The backlash centered around a change to the company’s classic logo, which saw the removal of the old man in overalls and the words Old Country Store.

The response to the 2025 rebrand was so vehement that it united the country in ways some have found difficult to in recent years, winning bipartisan condemnation.

On Aug. 20, Donald Trump Jr. asked on X (formerly Twitter): “WTF is wrong with @CrackerBarrel??!”

The following day, the official X account for The Democratic Party posted an image of Norman Rockwell’s painting Freedom of Speech with the comment: “We think the Cracker Barrel rebrand sucks too.”

The company eventually gave in to the pressure and went back to the original logo.

Masino, who faced much of the backlash last year, will stay on at Cracker Barrel as an advisor until Oct. 9.

Deno retired from Bloomin’ Brands in 2024 after 12 years with the company, the last five as its CEO.

(Bloomin' owns the Outback Steakhouse, Carrabba's Italian Grill, Bonefish Grill and Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar chains.)

He came to the Tampa company after a stint working at Best Buy as CFO of the electronics retailer’s international division and its president of Asia.

But he spent the majority of his career in the restaurant industry.

Deno started in the business in 1982 after earning his MBA at the University of Michigan. His first job was as a financial analyst for The Pillsbury Company, which at the time owned Burger King and Steak and Ale.

He moved to Miami to work for Burger King a year later and wound up spending eight years with the fast food company.

He then went to work for Pizza Hut and YUM! Brands. During his 15-year tenure there, he was CFO for Pizza Hut, YUM! Restaurants International and YUM! Brands and chief operating officer of YUM! Brands.

Deno started at Bloomin’ Brands as executive vice president and CFO in 2012. He was named CEO and to the company’s board in 2019.

Cracker Barrel says in its statement announcing Deno’s hiring that he currently sits on the board of directors of Krispy Kreme and Panera Brands.

Lebanon, Tennessee-based Cracker Barrel currently operates about 660 company-owned locations in 43 states.

Earlier this month it announced that it had completed a sale-leaseback of 26 of its locations, generating net proceeds of approximately $77 million. The funds would be used to pay down debt.

According to the company’s second quarter earnings statement released in March, revenue fell 7.9% to $874.8 million this year when compared with the same period last year. Comparable restaurant sales were down 7.1% and same-store retail sales were down 9.2% in the quarter.