Wawa Is America’s Best Convenience Store | Eater

"Begun in 1964 in Folsom, Pennsylvania as an outgrowth of a dairy business and transformed in the 1980s by adding a deli counter and coffee, this regional convenience-store-and-deli chain has grown to over 850 locations while retaining a cult-like following. Its menu staples — from French vanilla coffee and Shorti Hoagies to hot breakfast sandwiches and no-fee ATMs — and its hoagies made on Amoroso’s rolls have become touchstones of Philadelphia-area identity, as has stocking local brands like Herr’s and Tastykakes. The brand plays a civic role beyond food, rushing to open a flagship downtown store for the pope’s 2015 visit, distributing branded water during Mass, feeding first responders, and even offering a cardboard Bishop of Rome for selfies; a skyline billboard welcoming the pontiff captured the chain’s deep local resonance. Expansion has produced larger Super stores and occasional local pushback over scale, traffic, and competition with family-owned gas stations, while rivalry with Sheetz highlights regional loyalties; its strength comes from being both massive and unmistakably local, the source of persistent nostalgia that people seek out in person or via an app." - Meghan McCarron