Buc-ee's Ranks Third in Convenience Store Survey. How? We Unpack This Nugget.

If Buc-ee's is third — pray tell — what two convenience stores top it?

QT? Hold on while we wipe coffee off the screen. Let's unpack this.

Buc-ee's started as a small gas station in South Texas in 1982 and has blossomed into a wonderland. Walking through a store on a busy Saturday makes one believe that humanity got something right. This quasi-travel center is now the purpose of road trips.

There are about 50 Buc-ee's in nine states throughout the South. The sparkingly clean bathrooms are what initially set this store apart. A full-time restroom attendant elevates the game to unheard-of opulence once only reserved for clubs and casinos.

Unique snacks like Beaver nuggets, beef jerky, fresh fudge, quirky tchotchkes and fun shirts made pulling over an adventure.

When I met with the director of the Michelin Guide — who had flown in from France — a few weeks ago in Austin, I'd hoped they'd gotten to visit a Buc-ee's. They didn't. Big bummer.

Most people agree with the allure of Buc-ee's, but apparently not everyone. On Oct. 1 the American Customer Satisfaction Index released its inaugural convenience store study based on 5,710 respondents. It was a tight race, but Wawa from the West Coast took top billing with a score of 82 out of 100. QuickTrip finished second at 81, followed by Buc-ee's and Murphy USA each at 80.

The high-scoring chains offered robust food options helping them achieve top rankings. According to the study, hoagies are a big draw for Wawa customers and the QT Kitchens are popular (we hear the pizzas aren't bad).

“The top-performing convenience store brands are now on par with fast food chains in terms of food quality and variety, offering customers a wide range of fresh, gourmet options," says Forrest Morgeson, associate professor of marketing at Michigan State University and director of research emeritus at ACSI.

Dallas-based chain 7-Eleven earned one of the worst scores. Which, yeah. Most of our worst retail experiences start and end at a 7-Eleven. Why can't they figure it out? Some of them are so bad, it's hard to imagine they're not trying to be the worst. Why install a cappuccino machine only to laugh at customers who ask if it's working? And some smells you never forget.

Shell got the lowest score of 74. But it feels like Shell is just there for the gas. Outside of refueling and high-school kids trying to grab a snack between classes, the expectations are low.

A lack of locations might have hurt Buc-ee's most in the survey. Buc-ee's are largely scattered across rural areas, not designed for "convenience." Getting to Buc-ee's in Hillsboro or Temple from major population centers like Austin or Dallas isn't convenient at all (but so worth it once you arrive).

Thirty-four percent of respondents in the survey also gave high marks for a store's mobile app and the effectiveness of mobile order pickups. Funny, we didn't realize there were apps to pick up food at gas stations.

This points to the trend of convenience stores encroaching into fast food territory. In the survey, Buc-ee's, Wawa and Casey General Stores all exceeded the metric that looks at the quality of cooked food compared to fast food restaurants. We'd take a sandwich or cheese and meat tray from Buc-ee's over a burger from Wendy's 10 out of 10 times.