In December 2007, Rich Donohue, a five-year franchise owner with a restaurant in Ironton, Ohio, purchased the Rax trademark. In 2006, there were 26 locations remaining in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia. As other fast food chains added kids' meals, Rax created its mascot, Uncle Alligator, who featured in all the kids' meals and toys, always involving some sport or activity (e.g. īy December 2005, the brand was owned by Carpediem Management Co., with 51 locations, of which 11 were company owned and 40 were franchisee owned. In July 1997, the Rax brand was purchased by Cassady & Associates. This caused a change in strategy, and a buyer was sought for the remaining company-owned restaurants. However, in November 1996, Wendy's International made an offer to purchase 37 Rax restaurants, intending to convert most of them to Tim Hortons. The company was planning a revival for the Rax concept, including a new, simpler menu, a new store prototype, and a new logo and color scheme. īy 1999, the chain had dropped to 150 franchises, with 450 locations. As part of a turnaround plan, the company sold the Hardee's units it owned that were not originally Rax stores and changed the company's name back to Rax Restaurants Inc. However, by 1996, the difficulty of converting Rax restaurants to Hardee's placed too much pressure on Heartland, and they were forced to once again file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Heartland planned to convert all Rax restaurants into Hardee's by 1997. merged with North Carolina-based Franchise Enterprises Inc, renaming the company 'Heartland Food Systems Inc.', and becoming a Hardee's franchisee. Post 1992 bankruptcy Ī former Rax restaurant in Vermilion, Ohio Delicious campaign began, Rax Restaurants Inc.

Delicious, a sportcoat wearing, briefcase-toting divorcee, in order to attract adult customers. to create a new animated character named Mr. That month, a new advertising campaign was formulated with Deutsch Inc. īy August 1992, the chain had faded into obscurity. The company attempted to convert under-performing outlets by forming joint ventures with Miami Subs and Red Burrito as they scaled back many of its stand-alone locations to its core markets, particularly in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Ĭompounding the decline was a management buyout of the company in 1991 and numerous changes that occurred on the company board. This transformation drove away its core working-class customers, blurred its core business, and caused profits to plunge for Rax as other chains, such as Wendy's, took advantage of Rax's techniques and improved on them. Rax began to transform its restaurants from basic restaurant architecture into designs containing wood elements and solariums, with the intention of becoming the 'champagne of fast food'. ĭuring this time, Rax began diversifying its core roast beef sales by adding baked potatoes, pizza and a dinner bar with pasta, Chinese-style food, taco bar, an 'endless' salad bar, and a dessert bar. Īt its peak in the 1980s, the Rax chain had grown to 504 locations in 38 states along with an unknown number of restaurants in Guatemala. This location was later featured on an episode of Pittsburgh Dad. Peak Īn older Rax, as shown in 2007, still in operation in Lancaster, Ohio. In 1988, the company decided to reduce the size of its money-losing salad and food bars to help reduce expenses and refocus on sandwiches. By June 1984, the 300th location had opened, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. In 1981, the chain introduced baked potatoes and salad bars to its menu.

By then, Rax had grown to over 221 restaurants in 25 states. RAC was renamed Rax Systems Inc., then again to Rax Restaurants Inc.

The JAX restaurants were renamed Rax to be more suitable for trademarking and franchising, with the first Rax branded franchise restaurant opening in Columbus, Ohio. RAC eventually decided to focus on the roast beef business, and began franchising the chain. RAC purchased the remainder of RIX from General Foods, and returned the JAX name to the restaurants. Patrick Ross, a franchisee of multiple restaurant chains including Wendy's, Ponderosa Steak House, and Long John Silver's.

The remaining 10 units were franchised units owned by the Restaurant Administration Corporation (RAC), headed by J. General Foods ran the chain until 1978, when most of the restaurants closed down. In 1969, Roschman sold the chain to General Foods, who then changed the name of the restaurants to 'RIX Roast Beef'. Nicer restaurants near me.Rax was originally known as 'JAX Roast Beef', founded by Jack Roschman in 1967, in Springfield, Ohio.

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