{"id":119727,"date":"2019-06-28T05:12:35","date_gmt":"2019-06-28T10:12:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thevwindependent.com\/news\/?p=119727"},"modified":"2019-06-29T05:48:45","modified_gmt":"2019-06-29T10:48:45","slug":"rambers-roost-to-close-unless-a-buyer-is-found","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/2019\/06\/28\/rambers-roost-to-close-unless-a-buyer-is-found\/","title":{"rendered":"Rambler\u2019s Roost likely to close this fall"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

SCOTT TRUXELL\/<\/strong>independent writer<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

MIDDLE POINT — Unless a buyer steps forward before late September, the iconic Rambler’s Roost on Lincoln Highway will cease operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Co-owner Susie Thompson confirmed the restaurant\u2019s pending closure on Thursday, but she said the gas station and convenience store portion of the business will remain open after September.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Kitchen equipment and fixtures will be sold in the fall, unless someone buys the Rambler’s Roost. <\/strong>Scott Truxell\/Van Wert independent<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt wasn\u2019t an easy decision because I\u2019m dedicated to this community,\u201d Thompson explained. \u201cI\u2019ve been in business either here or in Middle Point for over 40 years and I care about the people, but I also care about by own health. As I\u2019ve gotten older, I\u2019ve had little spells with my heart and other little issues, and it\u2019s too demanding.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt requires that I\u2019m going to get dressed and run out here every minute of the day and night to keep it open, and I\u2019ve done that for almost 20 years. I just think it\u2019s time for me to step back and retire.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Rambler\u2019s Roost has been on the market since early 2016, and the asking price has been reduced more than once. The building itself has been in use since 1951, when it was known as Conrad\u2019s. Thompson and Penny \u201cPJ\u201d Burnett purchased the business in 2001 and turned it into a 24 hour, seven day a week, 365 day a year operation,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thompson stressed that the business is doing well financially, and she added that if the restaurant doesn\u2019t sell by September 29, she and Burnett will expand the gas station and convenience store.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe would have a month of getting ready for a liquidation sale, which would be the booths, all the commercial equipment, stoves and refrigerators would be sold and then we hope we could expand the convenience store and make it larger,\u201d Thompson said. \u201cIt just won\u2019t be so labor intensive and I won\u2019t have to be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thompson added without the restaurant, it\u2019s possible the gas station won\u2019t be open 24 hours a day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBetween 11 p.m. and 7 a.m., I don\u2019t believe we can generate enough to pay someone $10 an hour,\u201d Thompson stated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

She also said despite those plans, she\u2019d love to have someone come forward and purchase the entire business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe would be tickled to death to sell it because I\u2019d love to see the restaurant stay open,\u201d Thompson said. \u201cMy heart and soul is in the restaurant.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SCOTT TRUXELL\/independent writer MIDDLE POINT — Unless a buyer steps forward before late September, the iconic Rambler’s Roost on Lincoln Highway will cease operations. Co-owner Susie Thompson confirmed the restaurant\u2019s pending closure on Thursday, but she said the gas station and convenience store portion of the business will remain open after September. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t an […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-119727","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-07-31 11:32:19","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119727","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=119727"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119727\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=119727"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=119727"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=119727"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}