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OT: Buc-ee's "convenience" store

A new Buc-ees opened on I95 near Florence SC last year. It's unreal. It has 120 gas pumps (seriously), and the store itself is 53,000 sq feet. The mens bathroom alone is probably over 2,200 sq ft.

And I agree with the prior poster about folks who leave their cars to go shop inside.
 
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Are we talking about the original Pechins down in Dunbar proper, or the one that they moved to, up in the old Laurel Mall? I remember the cafeteria in the old one. You could eat like a pig for $1.50, back in the late 70's.
The original location in Dunbar is the only I call Peachins. And yes, 15 cent hamburgers, 10 cent fried dough, we are like kings. Went there a ton in high school. And what a driving experience in the parking lot, people just parked any and every where.
 
Anyone been to a Buc-ee's?

I made the mistake on my way home from Destin FL over the weekend. Total cluster-F. Total redneck Disneyland. :)

First, the line to get into the parking lot extended halfway down the exit ramp of the highway.

The line for a gas pump was terrible. Had to wait through a several cars while others tried to cut in or totally blocked cars that were finished pumping from leaving.

Total idiots pumping gas, leaving their cars at the pump and going shopping despite a line of people waiting to get gas.

A line for the bathroom. My wife had to wait in a line that made the line at old Pitt Stadium look short. I'm not kidding. It was at least 50 women deep.

People just waddling through the store taking videos and pictures like they are visiting the Lourve.

Others pushing and shoving to get sandwiches out of the sandwich case.

Rude people in the parking lot refusing to take turns at 4 way stops.

I was so entertained by the people and angered at the same time. I'd love to watch a webcam feed of the parking lot, gas pumps and inside the store. One of the greatest people watching events of my lifetime. :)

The gas was super cheap (under $3 per gallon of regular, $3.16 for premium), the sandwiches were really good. The bathroom was super clean. And the beaver nuggets were the perfect sugar jolt to keep me alert for the horrible Nashville traffic that was ahead of me.

Overall, I'd totally go back, but not in the middle of the day during a busy travel weekend. Maybe at 3am on a Tuesday or something.
Living in Texas I would say Buccees is my favorite thing in Texas
 
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The original location in Dunbar is the only I call Peachins. And yes, 15 cent hamburgers, 10 cent fried dough, we are like kings. Went there a ton in high school. And what a driving experience in the parking lot, people just parked any and every where.

I can recall the store itself being built over a stream. And they'd cut holes in the floor after floods to drain the water out of the store.

The thing I remember most is the license plates of cars from WV, MD, OH in the parking lot. My mother would always point that out to me.

And as far as what the parking lot looked like, here ya go...

4b26705cb4a8d36d41afeaf99155952c.jpg
 
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Are we talking about the original Pechins down in Dunbar proper, or the one that they moved to, up in the old Laurel Mall? I remember the cafeteria in the old one. You could eat like a pig for $1.50, back in the late 70's.
I don't recognize the new one as a legitimate replacement. It's really not the same at all. I was very disappointed on my one and only visit.
 
I can recall the store itself being built over a stream. And they'd cut holes in the floor after floods to drain the water out of the store.

The thing I remember most is the license plates of cars from WV, MD, OH in the parking lot. My mother would always point that out to me.

And as far as what the parking lot looked like, here ya go...

4b26705cb4a8d36d41afeaf99155952c.jpg
Great picture! Yes it was built over the stream, crossed a bridge entering the property.
On one of our Pechin's adventures, while eating, two guys came out with a chain saw and proceeded to saw a table no more than 15-20 feet away, said they needed some wood. We laughed our arses off, I forget a ton of stuff but will never forget that.
 
I'll take redneck Disney over the real one any day.

You should read Joe Queenan's book Red Lobster, White Trash, and the Blue Lagoon--a treatise on all things pedestrian. His glossary in it refers to Branson, MO as a "cultural penal colony." Pretty funny stuff.

A NY Times elitist decides to travel the country to explore the common man's America. He's loathsome but quite hilarious. I do this (visit truck stops and small America) myself whenever I drive back from Vegas to PA in the summer to avoid issues with taking my dog. Vegas airport won't ship dogs in summer. The heat kills them.

I'll take redneck Disney over the real one any day.

You should read Joe Queenan's book Red Lobster, White Trash, and the Blue Lagoon--a treatise on all things pedestrian. His glossary in it refers to Branson, MO as a "cultural penal colony." Pretty funny stuff.

A NY Times elitist decides to travel the country to explore the common man's America. He's loathsome but quite hilarious. I do this (visit truck stops and small America) myself whenever I drive back from Vegas to PA in the summer to avoid issues with taking my dog. Vegas airport won't ship dogs in summer. The heat kills them.

Thanks for the recommendation. i will pick up Queenans book as this stuff interests me.

I would recommend "The Good Hand" by Michael Patrick Smith.

Smith is a liberal playwright from Brooklyn. He decides to go to North Dakota to see if he has the balls to work in the oil fields.


I thought the book was fascinating and a true depiction of blue collar America..."some of the baddest motherf&$kers you will find anywhere in America (The authors words).

Also connects North Dakota to NYC believe it or not, suggesting that the world can not function without oil / gas from the Dakotas or the finance machine found on Wall Street.

Well worth reading in my view.
 
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While the Bucees chain is huge, the largest truck stop in the world is off of I-80 in Iowa

the place stinks......
 
If you need to take a dump, Buc-ee’s rules….



Honestly, that alone makes it useful. I've driven around enough down south to know that a clean, gas station toilet just isn't something you see a lot of.
 
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Until SMF chimes in, I’m taking everyone’s thoughts and opinions with a grain of salt.

However the OP had me chuckling while reading the entire post 😂
 
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Anyone been to a Buc-ee's?

I made the mistake on my way home from Destin FL over the weekend. Total cluster-F. Total redneck Disneyland. :)

First, the line to get into the parking lot extended halfway down the exit ramp of the highway.

The line for a gas pump was terrible. Had to wait through a several cars while others tried to cut in or totally blocked cars that were finished pumping from leaving.

Total idiots pumping gas, leaving their cars at the pump and going shopping despite a line of people waiting to get gas.

A line for the bathroom. My wife had to wait in a line that made the line at old Pitt Stadium look short. I'm not kidding. It was at least 50 women deep.

People just waddling through the store taking videos and pictures like they are visiting the Lourve.

Others pushing and shoving to get sandwiches out of the sandwich case.

Rude people in the parking lot refusing to take turns at 4 way stops.

I was so entertained by the people and angered at the same time. I'd love to watch a webcam feed of the parking lot, gas pumps and inside the store. One of the greatest people watching events of my lifetime. :)

The gas was super cheap (under $3 per gallon of regular, $3.16 for premium), the sandwiches were really good. The bathroom was super clean. And the beaver nuggets were the perfect sugar jolt to keep me alert for the horrible Nashville traffic that was ahead of me.

Overall, I'd totally go back, but not in the middle of the day during a busy travel weekend. Maybe at 3am on a Tuesday or something.
What exactly is this place? Why would people take pictures and videos of a convenience store?
 
Sounds like the Walmart of convienence stores.
People always talk about Walmart as if there's always strange people there. Then there's the "People of Walmart" pictures posted on social media, but then I go to the 2 nearest Walmarts close to where I live and there's no strange or weird people, just sort of normal upper middle class looking people like the ones that live in the neighborhoods around them, and I'm kind of disappointed that I don't get to see the crazy Walmart people that everyone talks about.
 
People always talk about Walmart as if there's always strange people there. Then there's the "People of Walmart" pictures posted on social media, but then I go to the 2 nearest Walmarts close to where I live and there's no strange or weird people, just sort of normal upper middle class looking people like the ones that live in the neighborhoods around them, and I'm kind of disappointed that I don't get to see the crazy Walmart people that everyone talks about.

I was thinking more about the place being so large and seeminly chaotic. To your point, most Walmarts I've visited are certainly not full of upper middle class shoppers. But I also tend to stay clear of places like Cranberry. I like urban/city environments, or rural environments... put me in a place like Cranberry and I'm looking for the fastest way out.
 
I was thinking more about the place being so large and seeminly chaotic. To your point, most Walmarts I've visited are certainly not full of upper middle class shoppers. But I also tend to stay clear of places like Cranberry. I like urban/city environments, or rural environments... put me in a place like Cranberry and I'm looking for the fastest way out.
Just saying, there are 2 Walmarts I might go to, one is in a lower-middle class area, the other is more upper middle class, in fact one of the wealthier areas in the USA from what I understand, Ellicott City, MD and in neither do I see any weird people like you see on social media "People of Walmart" posts.
 
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