Buc-ee's gives update on its largest ever store in huge blow to Florida
Florida may go big, but Texas always goes bigger.
Days after Florida claimed the bragging rights to the nation's largest Buc-ee's, the celebration was cut short by a harsh reality check.
Buc-ee's has built a cult following by turning the humble gas stop into a Texas-sized roadside spectacle, famous for its sprawling footprint, spotless bathrooms, and beaver-branded snacks and swag.
The iconic gas station chain recently announced plans to open a host of new locations across the country in the coming years.
One of the newcomers - to be located in Fort Pierce, Florida - was originally billed as the biggest Buc-ee's yet.
Spanning 76,000 square feet - roughly half the size of a Walmart Supercenter - the Fort Pierce Buc-ee's was billed as a behemoth.
Plans called for 120 gas pumps, 18 electric vehicle charging stations and more than 700 parking spaces, a footprint that would have nudged the current record-holder in Luling, Texas, out of the top spot.
But the bragging rights didn't last long. Officials later acknowledged a planning error, confirming that Fort Pierce's Buc-ee's will not, in fact, be bigger than the Texas giant.
An aerial view of the Buc-ee's in Luling, Texas - the chain's largest location to date, spanning about 75,000sq ft with 120 fuel pumps, a title it is set to lose once a new, even bigger Buc-ee's opens outside Texas
More than a gas stop, Buc-ee's has turned pit stops into destinations
There are aisles of branded apparel emblazoned with Buc-ee's grinning beaver mascot
'Contrary to recent reporting that the proposed project in St. Lucie, Florida will be our largest store, Luling, Texas is, and will remain, the largest Buc-ee's Travel Center in our fleet!' said Stan Beard of Buc-ee's.
'Planning departments throughout the country have different parameters for reporting building sizes in official planning documents. This is an example of that confusion.'
By the end of 2026, the 'Disneyland of gas stations' will open four more of its iconic outposts, with another 15 planned in the years that follow.
Florida, Tennessee, and Arkansas are the states set to see the most new Buc-ee's locations as the chain pushes deeper into the Southwest and Midwest.
As it plants its flag in new corners of the map, it promises more supersized pit stops with a hundred-plus gas pumps, a store packed with brisket and beaver nuggets, and famously clean bathrooms.
Buc-ee's has a cult following, particularly among Gen-Z, thanks to its social media-friendly snacks and over-the-top scale.
Fan favorites include the Sausage on a Stick, Dr Pepper Icees, and an entire wall of jerky.
The company remains privately owned and famously tight-lipped about its finances, adding to the mystique around a brand that has turned the humble gas stop into a piece of Americana.
Buc-ee's is rapidly expanding beyond its Texas roots, with new travel center locations planned in cities across states like Ohio, North Carolina, Kentucky, Arizona, and more
The expansive interior of the Tennessee Buc-ee's that used to be the world's biggest convenience store
Buc-ee's cute red-shirted beaver mascot is so popular even unauthorized third parties sell them online
The largest Buc-ee's location is a 75,000 square-foot station with 120 fuel pumps that opened in Luling in 2024.
The Luling location had snatched the title of biggest Buc-ee's from a location opened up in Tennessee back in 2023.
When the monster station opened in Sevierville, Tennessee,the Daily Mail visited to see crowds of shoppers camped out overnight to witness the opening. The store features 120 gas pumps, a barbecue brisket counter with a 'Texas round-up station' and rows upon rows of beef jerky.
But perhaps the most popular thing to eat at Buc-ee's is its famous Beaver Nuggets - caramel corn.
The other side of the store sold merchandise, including t-shirts, mugs, socks, stickers, swimsuits and other items emblazoned with the Buc-ee's beaver. That site, which has 400 full-time employees, also has a 250ft car wash.
