Wawa gas pumps
Local favorite Wawa ranks near the top of a recent list of the best convenience stores in the country.
Food & Wine puts the chain at No. 2 in the U.S., only beat out by Texas' cult favorite Buc-ees, known for its massive stores featuring barbecue, branded snacks and variety of products.
Here’s what the publication had to say about Wawa:
"You’ll either make a ton of new friends or earn yourself a punch in the schnoz, but the fastest way to meet a lot of Philadelphians is to walk into a crowded room, and start asking: So, what’s the big deal with Wawa? Part of the glue holding the region together for generations, Wawa isn’t just a place for the best made-to-order sandwiches (say: HOA-GIE) and coffee in the industry, or great iced teas, house beers, ice creams, soft pretzels, and somewhat crave-able breakfast sandwiches—Wawa is where life happens. It’s where you run into everyone. It’s the community center, even an extension of your own living room. After generations of keeping things close to home, there are now more than 800 stores, all the way from Northern New Jersey to South Florida. If we’re very lucky, they won’t stop there."
Wawa operates more than 850 convenience stores, and more than 600 of those have gas stations. The first convenience store opened in 1964 in Folsom, Pennsylvania. The company recently revealed that it had a massive data breach that possibly affected all of its stores.
See what other Philly-area convenience store chains made the list at PBJ.com.
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