The Death of Rax?

I was kicking around the idea of visiting family in Stuebenville, OH, and also visiting the Rax restaurant in nearby Weirton, WV. Small, struggling, dying, and generally obscure chains are a passion of mine. (I often visit the last surviving Druthers in Campbellsville, KY.) When I went to the Rax website, www.rax-online.com I found it mysteriously missing. I knew the chain was having trouble, and I've heard their food sucks. I want to try it anyway. I wonder if its too late.

Rax - the BBC was good, but there was no way they were going to hold their own in the pressed meat business against Arby's.

I don't know about Weirton, WV, but there seems to still be one in Marietta, OH. (only about 100 miles away from Stuebenville OR about 50 miles south of I 70 at Cambridge) Its website is at http://mariettaohio.info/rax/index.html#Location

We had one in Columbus on 161 until a few months ago. I noticed the other day that it is now something else. Growing up, I always chose Rax over Arbys as I loved the BBC. I got one a year or so ago and either it was not as good or my tastes have changed (or both).

Numerous years ago I went to the RAX in North Kansas City, MO. Had flies in the bottom of my Taco Salad. TOTALLY lost my appetite. Took it to manager for my mony back. He offered another menu item and free coupons. Could never use them.

Wow, Rax.. Havent seen that shingle in about 20 years..

They opened a Rax in the Ashland Town Center about a year ago...It replaced the Arby's that had been there. Talk is there are more coming to the Ashland area.

The RAX in Weirton WV is alive and kicking. I ate there last week, but i'm not crazy about it.

quote:

Originally posted by tkitna

The RAX in Weirton WV is alive and kicking. I ate there last week, but i'm not crazy about it.

It's now shut though, and has been for at least a year (preceded by the Hardees both in Weirton and Steubenville). None have been replaced.

Good business for Eat n' Park, I would imagine, as there's really no place else left to go for the youth when they get that mysterious weekend 2am hunger....

I think there is one in Stanton, Virginia, but maybe I'm confusing it with the one Marietta, Ohio.

I remember my dad would me home turkey clubs from the Rax. I'm not sure where it was in the Baltimore area, but I know it wasn't around my House in Bel Air. Anyway, at the time, a turkey club seemed really exotic.

quote:

Originally posted by JuanKerr

quote:

Originally posted by tkitna

The RAX in Weirton WV is alive and kicking. I ate there last week, but i'm not crazy about it.

It's now shut though, and has been for at least a year (preceded by the Hardees both in Weirton and Steubenville). None have been replaced.

Good business for Eat n' Park, I would imagine, as there's really no place else left to go for the youth when they get that mysterious weekend 2am hunger....

This is true. At least downtown still has Long Johns and KFC.

It is no wonder when you read the history:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rax_(restaurant)

Ours had the best salad bar around. I went to one in Lancaster Ohio a few months ago. It was not good and not clean. Wish I had not gone.

I almost forgot that the Rax tried to be a fancy fast food restaurant with 1980's fern bar decour. As a kid I remember how the Rax seemed so much more sophisticated than a McDonalds or a Burger King with there garish colors and plastic feel.

I clicked on rax-online.com and got the following message:

"Error. Page cannot be displayed. Please contact service provider for more details."

If you look at the original post, it was Sept 2006. Its now 2008. So..............

quote:

Originally posted by JuanKerr

quote:

Originally posted by tkitna

The RAX in Weirton WV is alive and kicking. I ate there last week, but i'm not crazy about it.

It's now shut though, and has been for at least a year (preceded by the Hardees both in Weirton and Steubenville). None have been replaced.

Good business for Eat n' Park, I would imagine, as there's really no place else left to go for the youth when they get that mysterious weekend 2am hunger....

There is still a RAX in Lancaster, Ohio. I just ate there.

I grew up in STL and there was a Rax and Arbby's across the street from each other. My family, especially mom preferred Rax. Arbbey's was seen as the kopykat....

Well, I think there was a time when Arby's was pretty much a place for roast beef. You couldn't get a reuban or a pecan chicken salad wrap at an Arby's back in the day. The Rax, however, I think had a much more diverse menu than you would normally see from a fast food place in the 1980's.

http://www.rax-raxroastbeef.com/Home_Page.php

I still remember eating at rax when I first moved to columbus. I always hitthe salad bar and hated it. I did like the buld your burger bar. A burger with 4 slices of onion and about 10 tomatoes.

quote:

Originally posted by brittneal

I still remember eating at rax when I first moved to columbus. I always hitthe salad bar and hated it. I did like the buld your burger bar. A burger with 4 slices of onion and about 10 tomatoes.

I don't think I ever remember them having burgers. Are you sure that was Rax?

quote:

Originally posted by MicahHibler

http://www.rax-raxroastbeef.com/Home_Page.php

This is dated "Thursday, February 14, 2008 11:33 AM EST". Have there been any updates?

quote:

Originally posted by OHTraveler

There is still a RAX in Lancaster, Ohio. I just ate there.

We hit that Rax on a family road trip last Christmas season. It was quite pathetic and actually depressing. The employees had a crappy attitude and the service was very slow. It's the first restaurant for a long time that you see on US 22 if you are driving east across that portion of Ohio, so you'd think that they could do OK.

And very few customers visiting. Hmm, a feedback loop.

Yeah I remmmmmmmmemmmmmber loading my plate with tommmmmmatoes.

There used to be a Rax in Uniontown, PA. A friend and I would meet there once a week for their salad bar, the soup was great. I would say it's been gone about 10 years now.

There is a Rax/Subway combo restaurant in Youngwood, PA. I don't see many cars there.

Check out:

http://www.rax-raxroastbeef.com/ 

Though not certain, I'm close to pretty sure that there was a Rax in Lemoyne, PA that either closed its doors within days or weeks of opening or failed to launch just before opening.  If you were driving into Harrisburg, PA, from Rt. 15/11 (going into the city via the Market St. Bridge), you would pass this cluster of businesses, and there was an almost Rally's/Checkers-like "drive-around" joint that wasn't the aforementioned places.  I never saw it open, but the building was clearly brand new when I first passed by the place (anytime between 1999-2002).  It kept the signs until about 2005-06ish when the place was converted into a dry cleaners, but I knew it wasn't any of the "standard" drive-around joints because I was aware of most of them.  Looking at an old Rax sign after reading this thread, it looked quite familiar.

The thing is, does anyone know if the Rax chains started throwing the proverbial darts to the dartboard during the dusk of their pre-Donohue existence and toyed with scaling down their operations to exclude a dining area?

 If we are thinking of the same building on 15/11 it was not a Rax. I remember driving by several times in the 90's and then finally stopping one time. I can't remember the name, some racing themed name comes to mind. It could have been Checkers but I doubt it.

Here is a page on the dry cleaner business that's there now...I think we're thinking the same place:

Checkers, Rax, or heck...maybe even a wayward Krystal?