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- Wawa is a beloved regional convenience store chain, which immediately won our love and appreciation after we visited the first time.
- While we once believed Wawa to be the best road trip pit stop imaginable, Texans told us that there was one chain that could one-up Wawa: Buc-ee's.
- We visited Buc-ee's and compared the two - and were forced to admit that the Texas chain beats out Wawa in every way.
In Pennsylvania, travelers worship at the altar of Wawa.
The chain of convenience stores has a near-mythical quality, with locals magnetically drawn to the promise of cheap gas, coffee, and an incredible array of delicious sandwiches.
We visited the chain in 2017, eager to see what all the fuss is about. We left as Wawa converts, spreading the good word on the chain's superiority to its dreaded rival, Sheetz.
However, on a recent road trip, we heard murmurs that there may be another convenience-store chain that could measure up to the wonder of Wawa. Buc-ee's, Texans said, was a highway pit stop unlike any other in the world - including Wawa.
"Better than Wawa?" we scoffed. "Impossible."
Yet we couldn't shake the vision of a Southern answer to Wawa's glory. So, we stopped by the chain to see how Buc-ee's measured up.
Here's who comes out on top in a cutthroat battle of two of the most iconic regional pit stop chains in the US.