Interesting read for Wawa fanatics, as well as those of us who know little about the C-Store giant…
Wawa was great when I was younger–deli meats & cheeses were sliced to order for each hoagie. You could even buy loose rolls and lunch meat. Now, not so much . . . it’s been at least 10 years since I’ve eaten their food and they no longer offer lunch meat or rolls. Quite frankly, Philly has enough independent hoagie spots with much better (albeit more expensive) sandwiches.
They may not have been in Center City, but you couldn’t go 5 blocks in the neighborhoods of Philly without seeing a Wawa. When I first moved to the burbs 5+ years ago there was a dearth of Wawas–only one near me. Now there are four, and another super Wawa (gas pumps, seating) is under construction.
But I do visit Wawa every week or so for their no-fee ATMs and state minimum cigarettes. And with Philly’s exorbitant taxes on cigarettes and drinks, the Wawas bordering the city have dedicated counters for cigs and extensive soda fountains.
I will agree that the Wawa employees are always friendly and helpful and the stores are always clean inside and out. (Can’t say the same for the few 7-11s in the area.)
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Thank you for your comments, Kim. Was hoping the post would elicit details like you provided.
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When my nieces and nephews moved to CT, FL. CO, etc they missed Wawa. But I guess we all adjust to what’s local.
In NJ, Wawa still provides fresh muffins, prepared salads and decent coffee daily. When I’m driving the tour bus, they remain One of many a late night stop.
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Wawa, and their hoagies, was a staple for the nearly 4 yrs I lived on Penn campus, so I have a soft spot for them even though I no longer live in Philly. My work still takes me occasionally to Philly, and there is a nice big one by the office (around 19t St). I would say they look a lot nicer than what I remember from 20 yrs ago. They used to remind me much more of your typical 7-11s, but now they look much fancier (maybe just the ones in Center City?).
We recently did a Dunkin vs Wawa coffee taste test in the Boston and Philly offices, and probably not surprising each local office preferred their own. Surprisingly, I went with the Wawa coffee, even though I never had it before.
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