Buc-ee’s not gnawing away at gas station cuisine

Previously unknown outside of Texas, the Buc-ee’s convenience store chain is multiplying so quickly that it probably ought to have a rabbit instead of a beaver for its mascot. But it’s the toothy grin of Bucky that’s become omnipresent across the South, with billboards on every interstate beckoning drivers to the next mega gas station—which is growing ever closer, with Arkansas, Louisiana, and North Carolina set to gain their first locations in the next year or two.

Buc-ee’s already has locations in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Whenever I pass one, I wonder what’s becoming of the independent gas stations operating in their shadow. So, I asked the nation’s foremost gas station food documentarian—Kate Medley, author of “Thank You Please Come Again: How Gas Stations Feed & Fuel the American South”—to check it out. What she discovered wasn’t anything close to what I anticipated, which is yet another reason why The Food Section believes in and backs on-the-ground food journalism.

This kind of reporting isn’t cheap to produce. We’re grateful to The Assembly for partnering with us on this important project, as well as the paying subscribers whose support makes our food journalism possible.

Speaking of paying subscribers, they’d typically be the only ones to see work of this caliber. But we’re sharing this photo essay with our entire email list today because we want folks to know where subscription dollars go—and what kind of coverage they can look forward to finding in their inboxes every weekday morning if they take the next step in their relationship with TFS.–HR

The corporate marketing team at Buc-ee’s wants you to start thinking about their travel center hundreds of miles before you reach the interstate exit. “Only 262 miles to Buc-ee’s,” the billboards announce. “You can hold it.” 

In addition to their 100-plus gas pumps and interior spaces stretching larger than a football field, the Texas-based company is largely known for its prepared foods and snack offerings: brisket sandwiches, breakfast tacos, chopped beef, fresh-baked kolaches, warm tortillas, fudge, jerky, boudin.

Despite the allure of fresh beaver nuggets—a sweet wannabe in the Cheeto category—our goal was not the travel mecca itself when we headed toward the Buc-ee’s in Florence, South Carolina. In a part of the South with a longstanding tradition of great gas station food, we had to ask: “Are fresh beaver nuggets enough?”

According to the owners of local gas stations which were doing a steady business before Buc-ee’s came to town, probably not.

Crossroads #2 Becky’s Place

Becky Duke purchased the Crossroads #2 gas station in Lamar, South Carolina, in the early 1990s, renaming it Crossroads #2 Becky’s Place. She quickly decided to phase out gas entirely, and instead focus on hot food, grocery supplies, and other sundry items. “I sell anything that’s legal,” Duke says.

“Anything” includes holiday decorations, baskets of candy, cleaning supplies, housemade “meat skins” (the in-house term for cracklins), hoop cheese, and boiled peanuts. But Crossroads #2 Becky’s Place is perhaps best known for breakfast, which they begin serving at 5:30 a.m. The biscuits are made by hand each morning, using lard. When asked about the Buc-ee’s in nearby Florence, and how it has affected business, Duke scoffed. “I know all my customers by name. They’ll never stop coming.” 4792 Lamar Highway, Lamar

Eliza’s Vegan Cafe

“My customers say, ‘Freak Buc-ee’s, I’d rather eat healthy,’” says Markeyshi K’Patrick, owner of Eliza’s Vegan Café, located inside a Shell gas station near Interstate 95 in Florence, South Carolina.

“Grandma was not vegan, but she was a huge fan of healthy eating,” says K’Patrick. “I simply created a veganized version of Grandma Eliza’s most popular recipes.”

K’Patrick says most of her customers are travelers, few of whom are vegan.

“You could stand here on a Saturday, and my dining room looks like the United Nations. People from all backgrounds come to Eliza’s because I know how to season my food.” 1832-B W Lucas St., Florence

Holt Oil

Located in a part of Effingham, South Carolina that’s home to many warehouses, Holt Oil is a gas station that explicitly and enthusiastically welcomes truck drivers.

Tommy’s Superette

“I know my customers,” says Danielle Grant, manager of Tommy’s Superette in Florence. “When I see them coming through the door, I already know what kind of cigarettes to have on the counter and what kind of hot food to fix. You don’t get that at Buc-ee’s.”

Known locally as Tommy’s, this soul food cafe has operated in an Exxon station on South Irby Street for more than 20 years. Open for breakfast each day at 6 a.m., the bestsellers include salmon croquettes, fatback on a biscuit, fish-and-grits, Roger Wood sausage, and buttermilk biscuits. Lunch includes chicken livers, cornbread, neck bones, hog maws, oxtails.

“One of my regulars, he comes in every day, pushing a stroller with his dog named Gracie in it,” says Grant. “Gracie likes the Slim Jim’s. When they don’t show up, I know something’s wrong, and I start making calls.” 320 S Irby St., Florence

Looking for more alternatives to the Buc-ee’s in Florence? These nearby gas stations also have acclaimed kitchens:

King’s Express Chinese and Cantonese (Shell station): 2011 S. Irby St., Florence

Tommy’s Self Services: 960 W Lydia Hwy, Lydia

Meera’s Café (Shell Station): 701 N. Cashua Dr., Florence

Old Delmae: 900 S. Cashua Dr., Florence

Kate Medley is an award-winning photojournalist covering national news across the American South. She is the author of Thank You Please Come Again.