Gas Station Food

[jamiemaw]

GAS STATION FOOD: You're on the road, passing through Merritt (the Gobi Desert of dining opportunities) or abandoning Hope (where you can go Home again) and you just want to get where you're going. After you've gassed up, that is.

Where are the best gas stations in Western Canada to fill up the other tank--to pick up some quick road food, placate kids maybe--and move on with dispatch? Could be country, or it could be rock, then roll downtown.

Your confessions here, please. Midnight cravings also welcome.

[*Deborah*]

Jamie, as a frequent passer-through of Hope and Merritt, I must say that I prefer the Home restaurant in Merritt to its namesake in Hope.

I have had a decent doughnut and hot chocolate at the doughnut shop near the Petro-Can in Merritt, late late one night.

I refuse to eat anything that isn't prepackaged and fully chemicalized by a national (or multinational) purveyor of snacks from a gas station...The gas station sushi phenomenon makes me green without even having to take a bite.

[Daddy-A]

I like the really really big Husky station in Chilliwack(?) for fuelling up. As kids, we were allowed to get a can of pop, a bag of chips and the latest issue of Mad or Cracked ... no Sick was ever allowed. We had standards.

Today, we try to make a lunch ahead of time. Barring that, I agree with Deborah re: the Home restaurants. However 90% of my experience is with the Hope restaurant (old highway), which is on the way to and from our family cabin. No gas station is attached.

For gas station food I guess the "best" IMO would have to be Chevron with the assortment of Bread Garden goodies ... sushi notwithstanding.

A.

[Badiane]

We always stop at the White Spot express thing at Chevron stations. Decent food, fresh, and without the annoyance of actually visiting a White Spot. The new expanded menu gives you greater options. Clean restrooms, too

Beyond Hope, we will stop at any Husky restaurant, because while the food isn't fancy, it is very homestyle and reliable. Good clubhouse sandwichs, cinnamon buns and other standbys that can be relied on not to poison you. Clean restrooms and they don't mind if you are a bit travel worn.

If we can't find something appealing, we always look for the nearest Safeway or Save-On...lots of them have those sandwich deli counters and they are actually pretty good. And the washrooms are clean.

If you are passing through Grand Forks and those regions, a bowl of Dukhabor borscht is worth a detour.

As for road food, the most commonly found snacks are Fresca, C2, sugar free slurpees and cashews, along with Salt and Vinegar chips and sunflower seeds for me, and Doritos and any kind of chocolate bar for him.

[jamiemaw]

Jamie, as a frequent passer-through of Hope and Merritt, I must say that I prefer the Home restaurant in Merritt to its namesake in Hope.

I have had a decent doughnut and hot chocolate at the doughnut shop near the Petro-Can in Merritt, late late one night.

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Could you direct me to the Home in Merritt? I realize that it's a town that's hard to get lost in (and usually I'm only in the mood to gas and go at the Super-Save, where they sometimes have good homemade grilled hot dogs in support of Women's Softball/Rotary/League of Nicola Valley Transvestites). Occasionally I fight off the hordes at the Tourism BC kiosk at the crossroads, but the only gas you're going to get there is from the chronically underdone dogs--they usually chime in right around the toll booth. Speaking of which, the new restrooms there have a sign over the toilets strongly suggesting that you not drink the water.

And I'll keep an eye out for that doughnut shop--Does it have a name?

Edited July 19, 2005 by jamiemaw (log)

[*Deborah*]

Jamie, as a frequent passer-through of Hope and Merritt, I must say that I prefer the Home restaurant in Merritt to its namesake in Hope.

I have had a decent doughnut and hot chocolate at the doughnut shop near the Petro-Can in Merritt, late late one night.

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Could you direct me to the Home in Merritt. I realize that it's a town that's hard to get lost in (and usually I'm only in the mood to gas and go at the Super-Save, where they sometimes have good hot dogs on a grill in support of Women's Softball/Rotary/League of Nicola Valley Transvestites). Occasionally I fight off the hordes at the Tourism BC kiosk at the crossroads, but the only gas you're going to get there is from the chronically underdone dogs--they usually chime in right around the toll booth. Speaking of which, the new restrooms there have a sign over the toilets strongly suggesting that you not drink the water.

And I'll keep an eye out for that doughnut shop--Does it have a name?

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Doubtless the doughnut shop has a name, but I know not what it is. I will be through on the long weekend though, and should be able to tell you then. It's an independent, AFAIK.

If you take the 2nd Merritt exit (heading north on the 5, where the McDonald's is) The Home restaurant is past the Petro-Canada, on your right. I believe it's past the ABC Restaurant, but it's similarly situated in a motel.

Good burger.

[Memo]

The Husky House Restaurant - attached to the Husky station on Terminal Avenue North in Nanaimo - serves classic/standard (one or the other, or both) coffee shop/restaurant/diner fare. Good burgers. Food served on heavy china. Coffee cups with the swirly-border graphic. Rare views of Elvis and Diana driving past (on Terminal Avenue) with their new/used vintage-vinyl purchases.

[Vancouver Lee]

While I agree that the idea of sushi from a gas station is rather disturbing, has anyone actually tried it? I have to admit that I'm a little bit curious.....

[peppyre]

Come on Lee, take one for the team.

On the last road trip to the lake, we stopped at Whistler for something to warm us up and something to eat. The cabin is 4 hours from Pemberton, so the last stop is either Whistler or the gas station in Pemberton, which I only remember as the first pit stop after a very very long and bumpy ride. I wasn't looking at food at that point. I'll try and pay more attention next weekend when we head back up.

[Keith Talent]

There's a restaurant/store/liquor/gas stop at East Gate in Manning. (And no, I have absolutely no idea what it's called) It's run by a nice family from Fiji, and the restaurant has burgers etc. PLUS whatever grandmas special Fijian curry of the day is. Good goat. And as an added bonus, they've done the room up in typical '50's style, jukebox and everything, which while I abhor anything to do with faux-fifties hotrodding culture, I do enjoy the surreal experience of eating a nice spicy goat curry with homemade roti on the set of Happy Days. Makes a more interesting drive than Black Spot or some dirty truck stop.

[Daddy-A]

Could you direct me to the Home in Merritt.

<SNIP>

And I'll keep an eye out for that doughnut shop--Does it have a name?

Doubtless the doughnut shop has a name, but I know not what it is. I will be through on the long weekend though, and should be able to tell you then. It's an independent, AFAIK.

If you take the 2nd Merritt exit (heading north on the 5, where the McDonald's is) The Home restaurant is past the Petro-Canada, on your right. I believe it's past the ABC Restaurant, but it's similarly situated in a motel.

I suspect the donut shop is a Robin's. I think this photo from the eGullet surveilance satellite should help us out:

Yep ... that settles it.

A.

[*Deborah*]

Cheers, Arne!

[peppyre]

Could we be any geekier

[Vancouver Lee]

Satellite images of the restaurants we are discussing. We are truly obsessed. Good thing we hang around with each other as I don't think anyone else would understand.

[Ling]

^I showed one of the guys I'm dating this website and he was like, "My God, there are people who take pictures of FOOD?!!"

That's all I needed to know that nothing will come of the relationship.

[jamiemaw]

Deborah*,Jul 19 2005, 11:43 AM]

Could you direct me to the Home in Merritt?

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Thank you for your cartographic shepherding, Arne: you continue to distinguish yourself as both a forum manager and urban geographer and I believe that I can now plot myself with confidence from the Super-Save to Robin's Donuts. If I had only had this important information last weekend I might've been able to trade my ALL ACCESS Tim McGraw/Stompin' Outlaws /Billie-Jo Bryce PASS for some real sustenance.

[nwyles]

^I showed one of the guys I'm dating this website and he was like, "My God, there are people who take pictures of FOOD?!!"

That's all I needed to know that nothing will come of the relationship. 

←

Broom him fast before you miss any good dining opportunities. Life is too short to waste any days on bad meals. Get out now, run, run, run for your life !!!

[Daddy-A]

So is Husky the only chain of gas stations that has a restaurant attached? I'm pretty sure Esso did at one point as well, but unless there are some in the more rural areas, I believe that's no longer the case.

A.

[Jojosan]

When travelling past Kamloops, one of the first exits (sorry, don't know which one) will take you to a Petro-Canada/Restaurant - you can see it from the highway. It's a proper truck stop, complete with tons of big rigs and a separate dining area marked for truckers' use only. I usually have a soup and a sandwich or something along those lines - always fresh, fast and filling. And, they have a huge convenience store as part of the gas station, so all sorts of goodies to grab for the journey.

[merlin]

^I showed one of the guys I'm dating this website and he was like, "My God, there are people who take pictures of FOOD?!!"

That's all I needed to know that nothing will come of the relationship. 

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Too funny! The August issue of Bon Appetit contains a short note on the 5 megapixel Olympus Stylus 500 digital camera which apparently inlcudes a setting just for "us"..."cuisine mode" ..."lets amateur photographers shoot their favorite food in the most flattering light by accentuating warm tones and softening the flash."...the article concludes with the writer's observation, "Now, if only it had a "wash the dishes mode."

[jamiemaw]

^I showed one of the guys I'm dating this website and he was like, "My God, there are people who take pictures of FOOD?!!"

That's all I needed to know that nothing will come of the relationship. 

←

Too funny! The August issue of Bon Appetit contains a short note on the 5 megapixel Olympus Stylus 500 digital camera which apparently inlcudes a setting just for "us"..."cuisine mode" ..."lets amateur photographers shoot their favorite food in the most flattering light by accentuating warm tones and softening the flash."...the article concludes with the writer's observation, "Now, if only it had a "wash the dishes mode."

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Not to veer too widely off-topic, but seeing as we're talking about food travels . . . the convenience and incognito qualities of the Olympus Stylus 500 (called the Olympus Digital 500 in the US and about US$249-$299) rate pretty highly in my book: 5.0 megapix, 3X zoom, built-in lens cover, bright and generous 2.5" LCD rear screen, sturdy and weatherproof. But the best features are the numerous auto modes (some macro) at hand that control lighting and shutter speed, several of which are really helpful for food and restaurant photography: 'candlelight', 'document' (KGB-approved and useful for copying menus), 'cuisine', 'night-portrait', and 'behind glass' (which captures deli-case, Stalin's Tomb or window shots without reflection). Terrific and terrific value. There's an underwater case available too, although it's almost the same price as the camera itself.

It's also guaranteed not to draw attention to you, but rather to your pictures. In other words the Olympus is more likely to come out and the big and geeky Nikon SLR stay home. I learnt this lesson a while back when I asked Mac Parry (whom, cleavage aside, I consider to be the best portraitist for The Vancouver Sun) what kind of equipment he uses. He whipped an inexpensive Canon Power Shot out of his pocket and got a lovely shot of my cleavage.

Very good for taking pictures of gas stations too . . .

Edited July 24, 2005 by jamiemaw (log)

[*Deborah*]

When travelling past Kamloops, one of the first exits (sorry, don't know which one) will take you to a Petro-Canada/Restaurant - you can see it from the highway.  It's a proper truck stop, complete with tons of big rigs and a separate dining area marked for truckers' use only.  I usually have a soup and a sandwich or something along those lines - always fresh, fast and filling.  And, they have a huge convenience store as part of the gas station, so all sorts of goodies to grab for the journey.

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Sounds like the Copperhead Road exit just south of Kamloops on the 5. I've never eaten there that I can recall, but I concur that it's a good store with a large snack selection.