It was Christmas time in Bowling Green when all through the town, wary shoppers were looking to lunch without the frown; of waiting too long, cutting into their shopping, when Cracker Barrel came to mind as a place worth stopping.

Enough of that – you just want to know where you can eat during this holiday season and what to expect. What you can expect from Cracker Barrel is just what it says it offers: “something for travelers and neighbors alike.” The familiarity of eating where everyone knows you – even if you’re miles from home.

It felt so familiar that by the end of the meal, I barely knew I’d been there. Our waitress took our order without a lot of the usual banter we enjoy, but she was efficient.

The food is the same, no frills or new-age twists to any meal. The meals my dining companions and I ordered varied, but one thing we could count on is that everything was made from scratch.

From scratch yes, but something your grandmother probably didn’t offer that Cracker Barrel does is a low-carb menu. From that part of the lunch menu, I had the grilled chicken tenderloins that were marinated, covered in thick sliced bacon and melting Colby cheese. The menu described it as smothered, and boy, was it. I could hardly see the chicken, but could taste it in every bite. I’m all about flavor combinations and this one was one of a kind – in a fine way.

Also off the low carb menu was the 10-ounce ribeye steak. Even without the carbs, it was a hearty holiday meal. It came lightly seasoned (and aged for 28 days, the menu noted), but it was not the “burned” to a crisp variety that my dining companion always orders. It was still pink inside. As she had been throughout the meal, our waitress was there in a flash, and with few words whisked his meal away to make it just right. Just as your grandmother would out of love.

The final meal we ordered was the most traditional of home-cooked meals – meatloaf. Cracker Barrel’s meatloaf was the lunch special of the day and was also one of a kind, with large chunks of green pepper, carrots, onions and other veggies.

Each of us had a salad as one of our sides and enjoyed the variety of dressings, including honey mustard, ranch and bleu cheese. The bleu cheese was the thickest and most traditional bleu cheese I’ve had in a long time, which was a breath of fresh air.

Our other sides varied from large baby carrots to potatoes mashed, roasted and baked, and finally country-style green beans cooked well.

As if a place to come in from the cold and eat wasn’t enough, we even did a little holiday shopping. Did I forget to mention Cracker Barrel also has a country store attached to it? Well, it does, and I found an adorable little teddy bear to give to the first grandchild of a close friend of mine.

There was one part of the meal that was difficult and that’s the fact that the smoking section is very close to the non-smoking section, and during our visit, it was a predominant factor. I say this so that when you dine there, you can take this into consideration and ask the hostess to seat you as far away as possible, if smoke affects you.

On a final note, while we thought stopping in at the height of lunch might mean a long wait, it wasn’t. But if we’d had to wait, Cracker Barrel has a variety of rocking chairs and benches outdoors, so that you feel as if you’re just sitting on your grandmother’s front porch, waiting for those green beans to cook until they’ve almost vaporized.

— New restaurants are given a six-week grace period. Comments can be sent to Managing Editor Mike Alexieff by telephone at 783-3235 or by e-mail at malexieff@bgdailynews.com.

Cracker Barrel

1960 Mel Browning St.

Bowling Green

843-8087

Hours: 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday; 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday

Specialties: Country cooking

Cuisine: American

Price range for dinner: $6.49 to $12.99

Libation situation: None

Smoking: Yes