Last Remaining Rax Restaurant in Illinois
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- Опубліковано 10 вер 2024
- It may not have won the "Roast Beef War", but there are still 8 remaining Rax Restaurants in the country, and the last one in Illinois is nearby in Joliet!
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I worked at one of the branches, in Cincinnati Ohio back in the 1980s. At that time, Rax was absolutely waxing Arbys for customer etc. We had a great group of kids working there and we took pride in moving the customers through as fast as possible. On friday nights, during the dinner rush, the drive thru would literally be 20 cars deep for several hours straight, because they knew they would get served very quickly and people liked the food better than most other fast food joints. (It wasn't unheard of for us to burn through 10 roasts in one evening.) The window timer spoke for itself on one of our best nights with the average wait at the window being 21 seconds. Believe it or not, the same dumb assed upper management, that helped run the place into the ground, were pissed off about that. Why those morons in their management decided to get into pizza, Chinese food and the rest was utterly beyond me.
I could definitely still see the efficiency, that day in Joliet. Everything and everyone moving along well. Everything was clean and fresh. It's unfortunate that the chain had to go down like that as it was really quality beef.
@humanbeing8400 I can believe it for sure. Heard nothing but positive things. Wish there had been more in the Chicagoland area. Arby's beef seems to have changed some from when I was younger to me.
some jackass in a suit who couldn't make his brain bigger than his ego i'm sure, thinking he has all the answers. what did you end up going into for work after that
I've drove by there countless times. After seeing the Mr. Delicious videos, I'm going to try it.
It was good. Place clean. Service quick. Definitely try it. I'm hoping to get back soon. :-)
I used to be a big Arby's fan until they started using beef that tasted like plastic, probably in the late 90's. I moved to this area about 20 years ago and discovered this Rax Roast Beef restaurant. Rax roast beef taste a lot like what Arby's had years ago. I do prefer Arby's sauce over Rax bbq sauce but this restaurant is great and I have been going here for years, my kids are even hooked on it and the staff here are great !!!
If I lived a little closer, I'd be eating there regularly for sure! And yes, I could definitely taste a difference in the meat.
The last time we ate at Rax was 1985, loved it!
Wow that is awesome! A great memory I'm sure. :-)
i’m one of the lucky ones! this is just down the street from me ❤
Lucky indeed! I would probably be going quite often as well if I lived close. :-)
wow neat. do you go there regularly
My friends and I would go to Rax in Marietta, Ohio as college students. The salad bar and sandwiches were great (This was early 1980's.). The store was very popular.
One of the things I remember about my visits to the Ohio Turnpike one in the '90s was the salad bar. :-)
Awsome
Burnsville,MN had one . Back in early 90’s when I was in high school
That is awesome. Didn't know there was one in MN.
used to stop in there on family trips in the 80s. we looked forward to the unique items. blueberry shake was one
A blueberry shake sounds really good right now lol. Hoping to stop by this Joliet location again sometime soon. :-)
I remember Rax from when I was a child, but actually forgot about it until today! When you showed the table it is the same design as my farmhouse in North Dakota. The countertops are white rather than the light blue, and have a more pronounced red in the shapes, but the same design. They're kind of an atomic look which was popular in the 1950's and '60's. The chair is cool too and if original, are worth a ton of money. Surprised to see in a fast food restaurant.
Thank you for sharing. I love hearing stories like this. I've gotten a surprising amount of positive comments on this video regarding their memories of Rax from their childhood. That is awesome. Mine consist mostly of quick stops on the Ohio Turnpike. But I've learned a lot since releasing this video. I loved the chairs and tables. They almost seemed in too good of a shape to be original. But it fit into the overall atmosphere perfectly.
Hey there Wayne. I closed that restaurant many times back in high school. The furniture was rock solid and a pain in the neck to move it all to sweep etc as part of shutting the branch down for the day. I would actually love to have some today as I am sure it would stand up for my great grandkids to use! lol@@memoriesbywayne
@@timschrage1694 I was amazed at how good of shape it was in. You would be hard to guess it was original. :-)
I eat at a Rax Restaurant in Columbus Ohio as kid a lot.
Big in Ohio for sure and I like that. I mean my first Rax experience was in Ohio as well, just as a traveler on the Ohio Turnpike. :-)
sadly, it looks like they had to remove the salad bar.
Yep. I suspect it was removed because of, 2020, and never came back. That was my favorite part of the one I visited as a kid. :-)
they did and i was so sad about it
Arby's roast beef is fine but it tastes to me like a diet version of Hardee's which tasted much richer and unhealthier aka better. Now that all the competitors are pretty much gone I guess we're stuck with it.
@@maestro-zq8gu discovered recently a Hardee's under an hour from me. But not too many left in the Chicagoland area for sure.
i have wanted to go down there for a long time! I think i have consumed every bit of rax content on youtube and the internet in general. the stupid thing is, i was just on the ohio turnpike and if not there, im sure somewhere else on my travels i was near one but didnt think to look. that is funny that they are an arbys competitor and they also do curly fries. i have got to get down there. well done on beating me to it!
Rax has a very fascinating storyline. I've dabbled a bit in the UA-cam rabbit hole for sure lol. Unfortunately to visit Rax on the Ohio Turnpike you would have had to do it in the '90s before they turned them into spaceships. Closest one outside Joliet is I think outside Cincinati. So yeah, definitely get out here while it still exists! The retro vibe of the whole place is worth it! Quick detour off of 55. :-)
There’s one in Lancaster Ohio. I’m typing this while sitting in the drive through waiting for a sandwich.
@@flashover604 enjoy! Hopefully I can enjoy a visit in Ohio sometime soon. :-)
I just want a gator juice bottle like I had 🐊😭
Please tell me more about this juice bottle. I'm not familiar. :-)
The RAX kids meal came with it.
@@AndyCorn awesome. I need to look that up. Sounds like a neat item.
Haha you remember those as well?
Me too.
I am glad that Rax is still around but sad that they are mainly in Ohio now and non in the Portland, OR area at all any more.
Those went away long ago in the 90s.
@@PinBallReviewerRepairs I was really surprised to learn that we had one left in Illinois. And they are taking good care of it too.
we still hav a rax in harlan,ky.
Last one in KY I believe. Hopefully one day I'll be down that way and I can vlog it as well. :-)
When I found Rax was still around but mostly in Ohio I also found out they have a website.
I used the Contact Us to ask when Rax will return to Portland, OR.
If I get a response I can let ya know.
And not sure if I will get a response or not I would most likely try to be the first to be at the new Rax location if they ever did come back to Portland. :)
Think they'll open new locations? That would be awesome. I will keep my fingers crossed for you! :-)
Just subbed.
Thank you, I appreciate it very much! :-)
Your sandwich looks good! Sadly the rax in lancaster ohio has roast beef with foul looking spots on it
Can't say I inspected mine too closely. But hey, I'm alive today to talk about it. So that is a good thing, lol. Luckily, it's been quite a while since I had a bad food experience anywhere, really.
Are there still jalapeños poppers ?
Unfortunately I do not remember.
Wendy’s atrium
Yeah, it kinda felt like one for sure.
I when to at rax a year ago aing speical taste too much like arby
I felt the cheese sauce on the roast beef was kind of different and actually liked it. I did miss not having the Arby's sauce though lol.