Rack & Helen’s Bar

Can’t say enough good things about Racks! The service is excellent. The food is fantastic. One of the best places to go to in New Haven!

Excellent manager!!! Always going out of his way to create a great experience. We drove a long way to get our favorite Bacon wrapped jalapeño peppers; when we found out it wasn’t «under 21/​family night» and we had a minor with us, he made us an order to go! For free!!! Wow!

Took a while for a server to get to us but very good service after that. The bartender makes an excellent vodka martini and the burgers are great. Next time I visit, I’m committed to try their take on the legendary Hoosier «Manna»… a fried pork tenderloin sandwich (sorry, arteries). Then there are the Sausage Rolls…

Rack & Helen’s is not the place to go if you’re dieting or have restrictions, but there are times when I’ve seen enough vegetables and grilled chicken or fish. On those days, R&H is incredible! For the first time in the two decades I’ve lived in Fort Wayne, I’ve never eaten a sausage roll. Since there didn’t seem to anything that wasn’t going to require an extra couple of hours in the gym, I went for it. My dinner companion chose an Alaskan White Fish dinner with homemade cole slaw and fries. A tray of six different sauces w brought for the roll with a variety of sauces that ranged from mild and sweet to hot and tangy. I can’t imagine anyplace that would serve a better roll since this one was a 14-​inch pizza crust folded over and filled with finely ground American sausage and mozzarella cheese. It was baked a golden brown and easily cut with a fork. It was excellent, but now that I can say I’ve eaten an Indiana staple, I think I’ll leave the speciality for true Hoosiers. The fish, according to my fellow diner, was excellent. There was a mound of filets and fries served with R&H homemade cole slaw. The fried pickles we had as an appetizer was the best I’ve eaten anywhere. Sliced thinly lengthwise, coated and deep fried, the appetizer was served with a fantastic sauce. It was incredible! It’s not a good idea to make this type of food a regular part of the diet, although it was obvious that a few of the customers didn’t realize that was a bad idea, but the next time clean eating isn’t going to do it for the night, Rack and Helen’s is right next door to Fort Wayne on Broadway in New Haven.

Stopped in for lunch with my boss, great place to have a casual business meeting! Laid back, welcoming atmosphere with great food!
I had a BBQ pulled pork wrap that was the lunch special, served with a fresh made in house Cole Slaw in the wrap and hand-​cut french fries on the side. The wrap came with an array of BBQ sauces that were all made in house as well!
Great place to have a fresh, quality meal, and a great place to spend the night with friends as well. I have been many times, and will continue to come back!

As always, this review was done by my wife for her Facebook friends.
Burger Quest — Week 7: After a one-​week burger hiatus we were more than ready for some cow, so it was off to New Haven, IN to visit Rack & Helen’s Bar & Grill. Rack & Helen’s has been a popular mainstay in New Haven for many, many years and it’s little wonder once you experience the friendly service, great food and welcoming atmosphere of this Broadway eatery. Upon entering one is impressed by the unique layout of the tables in varying shapes, sizes and heights to accommodate any party’s comfort. Once seated we were pleased by the attention given by not just one server, but several staff members, cheerfully ensuring that our every want was addressed. Then came the menu offering entrees and sandwich styles not found just anywhere. We didn’t dare linger too long over the menu overall because, after all, were there to sample burgers. Rack & Helen’s has seven different ground chuck burgers from which to choose in the price range of $ 7.99 to $ 16.99 including house cut fries. Although the menu does state the weight of the hand-​formed patties, they appeared to be ½-​pounders. Scott decided on the Jalapeño Pepper Jack Burger ($ 9.99). The beef on this sandwich is seasoned with a spicy five-​pepper dry rub and topped with two slices of pepper jack cheese, crispy thick-​cut bacon, and sautéed jalapenos. Jalapeño mayo is served on the side. My choice was the Southwest Burger ($ 9.99) which was seasoned Santa Fe style and smothered in Colby cheese, pico de gallo, guacamole and a poblano cream sauce. The menu boasts the fact that the beef is never frozen and it only took one taste to attest to its truth. This was fresh, quality meat that was quite juicy (not greasy) with a hearty, rich flavor that only the better cattle can produce. Now, those of you who read our reviews regularly know that we put our bovine delicacies to the test by piling on the extras to see which increment (s) of the sandwich wins. In this case, not only was our first bare burger bite fantastic, but the gift of the cow’s flavorful sacrifice stayed true to the end, shining through the toppings. The house cut fries are some of the best around so it was difficult to leave them alone to save room for the beefy behemoths in front of us. We had a very satisfying experience at Rack & Helen’s and it gets a double thumbs up from us. But don’t just take our thumbs’ recommendation… stop in and see for yourself! FYI: Full bar service is available, and for the beer enthusiast, Rack’s offers over 20 taps of domestic, import, and craft beers as well as 45 bottled brands. Those with a more-​than-​hearty appetite may want to consider The Big Rack Burger ($ 16.99) containing twice the beef, four slices of crispy bacon, two slices of American cheese, two slices of Swiss cheese, two slices of pepper jack cheese, lettuce, tomato, and pickles OR the Smokehouse Burger ($ 10.99) seasoned with a BBQ dry rub and topped with pepper jack cheese, pulled pork, grilled ham, carmelized onions and a berry jalapeño jam. Parking is available on the street and in a lot behind the building.

Been here lots of times and really enjoy the food. My wife and I love the pizza, hamburgers, and sausage roll. Beer is selection is good too. Really nice there is no smoking anymore. Highly recommended.

Leaning towards 2.5 stars, ordered stuffed mushroom caps as an appetizer, my personal preference is a small cap which is seasoned. These were large, un flavored and moderate cheese. They were an appetizer that came out minutes before our sandwiches.(our party of 4) had a cuban. Not a cuban is what it should have been called., deeply disappointed in this sandwich, a Rack burger, bun was the best part. Other two sandwiches were okay. Great coleslaw, good macaroni salad. Service was hit and miss. One minute the waiter was all over the place, then he was gone for what seamed like a long time. Moderately priced, but I venture to say that I probably won’t add it to the list of places you can enjoy eating.

All I can say is I wanted to like this place. Have tried it twice and both times left wondering how the place is rated better. Great atmosphere if you like some action, noise, etc. in which I do. Staff is always nice, just haven’t liked the food as I would hope.

We went for lunch and the service was great. They had a nice lunch menu that was a great value. My coworker and I both got the soup, salad, and breadsticks combo for $ 6.99. It came with a decent-​sized salad, an enormous bowl of chili, and two delicious breadsticks with dipping sauce. I would definitely go back to try more of their food if I ever end up in this area again.

Not sure what is going on, but the last 3 times we went to R&H the whole south side of the bar is reserved. Seems weird as the whole appeal to a bar is you walk in, find a seat & get served. This pushes you over to the family side of the bar or the family seating area which is dingy & not appealing. Timing doesn’t seem to have a factor as we have been there on a weeknigt and weekends. The 1^st couple times I thought maybe something was going on, but now seems to be a pattern. These tables sat empty while we ate. Seems like a bad business plan not to let the seats fill. The family side was packed & I wonder how many people walked through the bar & just left after not finding a seat.
Food is okay, they have everything and anything on the menu so they don’t do anything particularily well. Fine for a drop in supper after work or lunch. But so not a place I am going to make reservations to eat.

Awesome place for yummy food! Never had any bad good! Friendly people and awesome service! Love the atmosphere!

I travel, so I a always looking for nice local places. Just had a pizza. It was great. I love thin crust and this hit the spot. Good atmosphere, will return the next time I am in town.

Went to Rack’s for dinner after I heard they are now NO SMOKING (Yeah).
We had the grinder and the Smokehouse burger. The grinder was toasted nicely and delicious throughout. The Smokehouse Burger is one of the best burger that I have ever had. They put pulled pork, smoked onions and ham on the burger and a great sweetish sauce. Yum.

Pretty good atmosphere. Food was a reasonable price and the service was exceptional. Highly recommended. Try the spicy pork tenderloin and pickle… Very good

Known for their rolls (calzones) and grinders. FYI, no drink specials on Mondays, but they have them every other day of the week. The bar setup is nice with several flat screen televisions. Not very smoky for an Indiana bar. The bar staff was friendly and knowledgeable about the beers and the menu. Nice little stop as you transition from I-​69 to US 24. Will be back!

I went there for dinner tonight. Was not expecting good «bar» food. But I must say it was rather good. I had the new Santa Fe burger which was big and delicious. It had plenty of guacamole and picca di gallo on it. The only problem that I had with it is that it didn’t have any other condiments on it. So the bottom of the burger was kind of dry. I also had the Italian pasta salad as my side which was also great. My friend had the Cuban sandwich. I took a bite of that too. The pulled pork had a very nice smokey flavor. It was a nice panini. He had the macaroni salad as a side. had to have a bite of that too. It was nice and flavorful. The service was nice. The prices are about the same as a regular restaurant. We will be going again so I can try more of the menu. They have quite a few things on there that I would like to try.

I have eaten here several times and it is always fantastic. If you are lucky enough to get the ribs which are only served a couple days a week, then grab them. They chicken wing appetizer they have is so big it’s a meal unto its self. Everything I have tried there is fantastic. I love the atmosphere which is kind of loud but that makes the whole experience more exciting.

Best all around restaurant in the Fort Wayne area. All the staff is great, food is on point, drinks are reasonable. Laid back atmosphere, just get there early on the weekend, the place fills up quick.

THIS is the place in town. i cant see a reason to eat anywhere else. the huge menu alone is so diverse, with all good pickin’s, that you could be kept busy trying new things for weeks at a time. Staff is totally on point, too (congrats to Nick who is celebrating his honeymoon in New York next month.)