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Vermont - no fast food. Actually pretty hard to find in most of the state, and even in the most populous areas, choices are severely limited. The culture seems to be mildly against chains in general.
Facts. This is so true in northern new England. I think I ate once at a McDonalds in Maine, but that was attached to a hotel.
Kinda goes for all of New England except inside 128 and SWCT, and even there you can find it but the chains are extremely limited in selection. Definitely no real pride beyond Dunkin Donuts which most people dont think is very good or anything to brag about a la Cookout or Wawa.
Facts. This is so true in northern new England. I think I ate once at a McDonalds in Maine, but that was attached to a hotel.
Kinda goes for all of New England except inside 128 and SWCT, and even there you can find it but the chains are extremely limited in selection. Definitely no real pride beyond Dunkin Donuts which most people dont think is very good or anything to brag about a la Cookout or Wawa.
It's economics more than culture. Low population density leads to low fast food density. You need a certain head count in a certain radius to make a fast food place work (economies of scale allow for the pricing people expect in fast food).
As a result you get base coverage from the biggest national chains in the bigger cities and towns as well as near tourist sites and along major highways but not much else.
I have yet to hear any Northeasterner to have any positive thing to say about Wawas. They were actually the settings of several horror stories about why they left.
You're joking, right? Wawas literally have a cult following in the Mid-Atlantic.
And while no large chain will have absolutely stellar customer service, the value, food/beverage offerings, and efficient layout of Wawas make them far superior to any other convenience store chain the US, bar none.
I've also literally yet to meet a surly Wawa employee in the many years of being a customer--seriously.
A lot of these are now more than regional, and I wouldn't consider some fast food (to me that's pulling up to a drive through window, getting your food and leaving).
My favorite for Cleveland/NE Ohio is Mr. Hero (Roman Burger... enough said). They got over 100 locations but think everyone is in Northern Ohio. There are a couple in Toledo and maybe Columbus got a couple now but its still regional specific.
The other one is Swenson's in Akron. It'll put pretty much any cheeseburger to shame (including some from local chains that branched out national). Swensons still probably has less than 20 locations but is moving into Cleveland in recent years. How good is it? LeBron is an absolute health freak but he is not turning down a Swensons burger. The shakes too, smh.
It's economics more than culture. Low population density leads to low fast food density. You need a certain head count in a certain radius to make a fast food place work (economies of scale allow for the pricing people expect in fast food).
As a result you get base coverage from the biggest national chains in the bigger cities and towns as well as near tourist sites and along major highways but not much else.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Duderino
You're joking, right? Wawas literally have a cult following in the Mid-Atlantic.
And while no large chain will have absolutely stellar customer service, the value, food/beverage offerings, and efficient layout of Wawas make them far superior to any other convenience store chain the US, bar none.
I've also literally yet to meet a surly Wawa employee in the many years of being a customer--seriously.
WaWa is amazing and I'm blessed to have one 10 min from my house. Nobody dislikes WaWa.
also to VV point
Yes density for Vermont and Northern New England but how come CT MA RI
don't have
WaWa
White Castle
Zaxbys
Pollo Loco
Jack in the Box
Checkers /Rallys
Hardees
Del Taco
Waffle House
Sizzler
Long John Silvers*
Raising Canes*
Bojangles*
Krispy Kreme *
Sonic *
Church's
Sheetz
Highs
CookOut
In N Out
Cici's pizza
Whataburger
Fat Burger
Tim Hortons
Nathans Famous
or various others
*= less than 10 locations between the 3 states or entered the market after 2020.
these are 3 of the top 4 most densely populated states. IMO It's mostly culture. I remember a popeyes got put on hold for 5 years deep in inner city Boston due to neighborhood groups protesting its presence. It never opened and has been vacant for 7 years.
WaWa is amazing and I'm blessed to have one 10 min from my house. Nobody dislikes WaWa.
also to VV point
Yes density for Vermont and Northern New England but how come CT MA RI
don't have
WaWa
White Castle
Zaxbys
Pollo Loco
Jack in the Box
Checkers /Rallys
Hardees
Del Taco
Waffle House
Sizzler
Long John Silvers*
Raising Canes*
Bojangles*
Krispy Kreme *
Sonic *
Church's
Sheetz
Highs
CookOut
In N Out
Cici's pizza
Whataburger
Fat Burger
Tim Hortons
Nathans Famous
or various others
*= less than 10 locations between the 3 states or entered the market after 2020.
these are 3 of the top 4 most densely populated states. IMO It's mostly culture. I remember a popeyes got put on hold for 5 years deep in inner city Boston due to neighborhood groups protesting its presence. It never opened and has been vacant for 7 years.
Most of these aren't in D.C. and inner suburbs either. Either because they're regional chains from somewhere else in the country or because their kind of food doesn't have much of a following among the 'enlightened' folks in this area.
It's not like New England doesn't have its own chains which it's known for nationally like Dunkin Donuts (out of MA) and Subway (out of CT) or more regional ones like D'Angelo or Bertucci's.
I remember a popeyes got put on hold for 5 years deep in inner city Boston due to neighborhood groups protesting its presence. It never opened and has been vacant for 7 years.
I think you're thinking of Chik-Fil-A, not Popeye's. There's been a longstanding Popeye's in Everett Square since forever.
The real issue is cost of overhead/real estate/logistical limits vs traffic potential.
Then there are cultural factors: Krispy Kreme being an infamous example of being a style of doughnut that New Englanders, who have their own local doughnut culture, don't care for (way too sweet). (Then again, Dunkin' basically transformed itself out of that business into the beverage business with legacy food options.)
I have yet to hear any Northeasterner to have any positive thing to say about Wawas. They were actually the settings of several horror stories about why they left.
The only places I've seen wawa's is in NJ and PA. Never seen them in NYC or CT which is where I've lived most of my life before moving to western Washington state (going on 7 years now here) and obviously they are not a thing here as well. Isn't it more a mid-Atlantic thing because I've never seen them in the northeast.
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