2 Chain Restaurants With the Best Pot Roast, According to Chefs
Few dishes feel as fulfilling as a good pot roast. When it’s done well, the meat is fork-tender, the flavors are rich, and every bite feels like a home-cooked meal. It’s the ultimate comfort dish—slow-cooked, deeply flavorful, and deceptively simple. But getting it right takes patience and technique. To find out which chain restaurants truly deliver, Eat This, Not That! asked Rena Awada, Owner, Head Chef of Healthy Fitness Meals to share her favorite go-tos for the dish. Here are her top two spots.
Cracker Barrel
Cracker Barrel is a beloved chain in part for its focus on familiar, hearty dishes—like biscuits, gravy, fried chicken, and pot roast—that feel home-cooked and satisfying. “Cracker Barrel serves slow-braised pot roast featuring fork-tender beef with carrots, potatoes, and rich gravy, with classic sides like green beans,” says Chef Rena. “It is reminiscent of dining at one’s grandmother’s house, which is why it’s hardly surprising that it is a popular menu item at several Cracker Barrel locations,” she adds.
Bob Evans
Bob Evans’ pot roast is so epic, you’ll find plenty of copycat recipes online, but nothing beats the real deal. “Acclaimed for its American comfort food, Bob Evans serves a classic fork-tender pot roast dinner with slow-roasted beef with homestyle beef gravy served with a medley of carrots, caramelized onions, and mashed potatoes,” says Chef Rena. “Theirs is highly rated among those seeking a homestyle meal close to American comfort food.”
What Makes a Crave-Worthy Pot Roast
A good pot roast requires more than technique. It’s also about balance and mastering the savory flavor. “Pot roast’s reputation is built around its rich, slow-cooked, flavorful, melt-in-the-mouth beef, paired with perfectly cooked vegetables and well-seasoned gravy,” says Chef Rena. She explains, “The secret is in the quality of the meat, the depth of the spice, and cooking low and slow until the beef is tender and the flavor is harmonious.”