This may be the most controversial column I’ve written so far in my brief tenure as managing editor. Buc-ee’s - I don’t get it. Since its opening fairly recently in Crossville, I’ve seen countless people posting online about this seemingly magical, super-sized gas station and convenience store. I’ve also seen a proliferation of Buc-ee’s T-shirts and merchandise being worn by people around town, including some of my friends. The Buc-ee’s shirt seems to have reached the level of status symbol that a Hard Rock Cafe shirt once held in the '80s and early '90s.
So, it was with a healthy level of excitement that I embarked on a trip to Crossville Sunday afternoon. My brother- and sister-in-law, Greg and Buffy, live in Alcoa so Crossville has become a convenient halfway point to meet up. Usually, Cracker Barrel is our standard spot, but the allure of a brand-new Buc-ee’s sparked my interest and had me more eager than usual to make the journey. After all, from what I’d seen, this place was the Disney World of gas stations. I was ready to see what the hype is all about.
The Disney World comparison seemed apt when we approached our destination. My iPhone map’s destination time went from 1:11 to 1:34 as soon as we got on the interstate and ran into a big red line on the app. There was an over 20-minute wait just to get from the short exit to the Buc-ee’s parking lot. It was pandemonium with little-to-no parking available in the sizable lot.
After sitting in nearly stand-still traffic for long enough to do a considerable amount of research about Buc-ee’s online (home of America’s cleanest bathrooms!), we finally decided the most prudent path was to park in the near-empty outlet mall parking lot and walk across the street to the glorious gas dispensary.
Upon entering, the excited atmosphere of the wall-to-wall crowd did indeed resemble a theme park, complete with people lining up to take pictures with someone in a gopher mascot suit. It's definitely not your average convenience store. The space is HUGE but not huge enough to keep one from running into someone every few feet.
The store's offerings put me in the mind of an overblown Cracker Barrel, with perhaps less of a central theme to the offerings. There are the usual convenience store selections like candy, drinks and an overwhelming selection of snacks. But they upped the ante with a giant jerky bar, pulled pork, brisket, roasted nuts and - what seemed to be the most coveted item - Beaver Nuggets.
As far as merchandise, the Buc-ee's logo beaver face was stuck on just about everything imaginable. And there was a large home decor section that seemed to lean heavily to what I call the "live, laugh, love" aesthetic.
If you love Buc-ee's, I'm glad you do. Goodness knows I'm into plenty of things not everybody understands. And perhaps I just saw too much hype, but, after approximately 30 minutes of walking around and waiting for the excitement to overtake me, I left with a bag of Beaver Nuggets and a sense of confusion about what I'm missing.
Standard managing editor Seth Wright can be reached at (931) 473-2191
