Another NJ debate: Wawa vs QuickChek — Where I stand and why

You know where you stand on certain things. You either call it Taylor ham or pork roll. You either call it Italian ice or water ice. There either is or isn't a Central Jersey.

And you either love Wawa or QuickChek.

There was an article recently on NorthJersey.com comparing numbers to see which convenience chain is growing faster in New Jersey.

At present QuickChek has 162 New Jersey stores but Wawa has 282 Jersey locations. As far as growth? Through the end of this year Wawa plans in opening 15 more and QuickChek two more. If it were only by numbers you might think bigger is better and go with Wawa.

But which really is your favorite?

They both have some locations that serve gasoline but not all. They both have rewards programs. They both have a full deli counter (but one correctly calls them subs where the other calls them hoagies).

The similarities outweigh the differences. You're really not going to go wrong at either place. But I prefer QuickChek.

And it's not because I think their subs are a bit better (although I do). It's not because customer service is better or worse at one or the other. There's only one simple reason.

It's what I'm used to.

I grew up in Union County. Back then there was only one Wawa that I ever remember seeing and I can't even quite recall where it was. But where I grew up they were unheard of. So this was just some sore thumb of a store sticking out with a weird name.

My guess is it's this way for most people. You go with what you know. If you had a longer relationship with QuickChek you'll choose them and vice versa. I'm fine with Wawa but I feel the QuickChek stores are more my turf. Walking into a Wawa I feel like a Jets fan at a Giants game. Because that's how loyalty works.

So which are you more loyal to? Take our poll.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski only.

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