Cheddar cheese

What's in the Cheddar cheese?

At 90 calories per serving, the Cheddar cheese represents about 5% of a 2,000-calorie daily intake. On the macronutrient side, roughly 36% of those calories come from protein, 60% from fat, and 0% from carbohydrates — a profile typical of Cracker Barrel's Imported section. Sodium is often the line to watch with sit-down chain entrees, and this dish delivers 210mg, or about 9% of the FDA's daily reference value. If you're watching salt, pairing the Cheddar cheese with a side salad (dressing on the side) and water rather than a sweetened beverage is the standard mitigation. Like most items at Cracker Barrel, the dish is built for shareable portions and is plated at restaurant scale rather than a strict single serving. Boxing half of it before you start is one of the simplest ways to bring the per-meal calorie load down meaningfully without giving up the experience.

How this fits a 2,000-calorie day

One serving of the Cheddar cheese supplies 90 calories, which represents roughly 5% of a 2,000-calorie reference day. That is on the lighter side for a sit-down restaurant entrée and gives a comfortable margin to add a starter, a side, or even dessert without crowding the day's caloric budget.

The macronutrient split lands at roughly 37% protein, 0% carbohydrate and 63% fat by calorie share — a useful frame because raw gram counts often understate how much of a dish's energy actually comes from fat. Protein delivery is meaningful here at 8g per serving, which can keep satiety high relative to carb-heavy or fat-heavy alternatives.

Sodium clocks in at 210mg, or about 9% of the FDA's 2,300mg daily reference value. That is well within a reasonable share for a single meal and gives plenty of room for the rest of the day.

Allergen profile

Allergen information unavailable

The stored record does not establish an allergen profile. Unknown information does not mean allergy-safe. Confirm current information directly with the restaurant.

How it stacks up against the casual-dining category

Category averages are unavailable while inconsistent records are excluded. Nutrition values follow each item’s recorded serving size. Serving sizes differ; these figures are not converted to a common weight.

For direct cross-shopping, here are the closest Imported matches we track at competing chains:

Ordering strategy

If the Cheddar cheese is the entrée you want, the highest-leverage adjustments are usually the ones that change the surrounding meal rather than the dish itself. Because the entrée itself is moderate, you have headroom for an appetizer or a starter side without dropping into restrictive territory — useful for a longer dinner where the goal is to stretch the meal rather than minimize it. Sauces, dressings and finishing oils are routinely the largest hidden source of calories on a casual-dining plate; getting them on the side gives you direct portion control without changing the dish you actually want to eat.

Ingredients summary

Ingredients not published by source.

The bottom line

The Cheddar cheese from Cracker Barrel is a light entry on the chain's menu at 90 calories and 210mg of sodium per serving. Protein content is on the lower side for an entrée — pairing with a protein-forward side or starter is the obvious adjustment. Anyone tracking sodium specifically — including most people on blood-pressure medication — should weigh this dish against the chain's lower-sodium options on the same menu before committing.