I'm about as southern as they come (born and raised in Chattanooga and have never left, as a matter of fact), but I also call a spade and spade.
The thing about Krystal is that they've been in financial trouble for a very long time, dating back to the late 90s. I believe their first bankruptcy filing was in 1997. This is par for the course with them. The food is pretty good, but I've never found the restaurants to be overly hospitable or clean (those are the other 2 components of their claim to fame).