Monday, November 1, 2010

The Wawa 'Gobbler'

Wawa 'Gobbler'

There's a lot of things I like about Wawa. The fact that it's open 24 hours a day in a city that basically shuts down at 10 pm is nice. The fact that I never have to talk to anyone, and that I get to order everything from a nifty touch screen is pretty spiffy too. Ooh, and their milkshakes... getting a milkshake from a convenience store feels so wrong, but tastes so right. It's really hard to explain to anyone not from NJ or Pennsylvania why Wawa is so full of win, but it really isn't just a convenience store, it's like a home away from home. So much in fact, that it even has your Thanksgiving meal covered, in portable form, otherwise known as the Wawa Gobbler.

The Gobbler isn't anything groundbreaking or special. It's simply hot turkey laden in gravy, stuffing, cranberry sauce, all packed inside a hoagie roll (you can add cheese and bacon too... both highly recommended).

Wawa 'Gobbler' innards

No the turkey isn't fantastic, the cranberry sauce comes from a refrigerated can, and the stuffing feels... mealy, but when all three unite in sandwich form, something glorious results. While this wouldn't appeal to most advocates of 'fine dining,' I absolutely loved it (yes, even sober). A blend of sweet and tart from the cranberries, an odd contrast of textures from the stuffing, and turkey that doesn't taste half bad, all make for an oddly satisfying sandwich on the cheap.

My only complaint here would be the fact that it's as messy as it is delicious. The gravy overruns everything, soaking into the bread into a soggy mess of failure. Pro-tip to combat this would be to simply ask the person at the sandwich counter to try to strain your turkey before slapping it down on the roll. If you ask nicely, they'll comply 9 times out of 10. This actually works terrifically well, and makes the sandwich infinitely more enjoyable. You're welcome.

17 comments:

Patrick @ Appetite for Good said...

WOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW THIS IS WHAT IM TALKING ABOUT! thanksgiving in your hand! maybe next stop should be to put all this in a blender with the gravy and slurp it out of a tapico straw

Danny said...

haha amazing. so you can talk to the guys at the counter after you order from a touchscreen? they should let people order with twitter next. i will love that shizzle.

btw i heard that the turkey sandwich from lenny's is the bomb. has all the same ingredients, turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce... probably more expensive at lenny's though

Nicholas said...

Patrick - no doubt this sandwich is legit as fuck. I'm not sure I want to make this into slushy form though. I like the texture of the stuffing a bit too much to blend it to oblivion.

Danny - well I prefer not to talk to the guys at the counter after ordering, but for the sake of the sandwich I do. If they let people order from Twitter... shit would hit the fan. The only reason this works is because you have to pay for your ticket before they'll make your sandwich.

I saw this on Lenny's menu, but it was like $8 or $9 so I didn't get it. Try it and let me know how it tastes man.

Patrick @ Appetite for Good said...

oooooooooooooo just found out COSI also has one... however probably not as filling as Wawa's but I love cosi's bread! I want to check out to see if they have gravy as part of the sandwich. Actually what would make these really legit is have gravy as a side like an au jus and you DIP your thanksgiving sandwich in it omg omg someone needs to do it NOW

Rodzilla said...

Though I'm a loyal Sheetz customer. I can admit that sandwich at least looks good.

Sue said...

Ahh, looks so good! I heard about a sandwich just like this at my school but it's only available at the undergrad dining hall. If it's anything like Wawa's Gobbler, than I must persist in pestering my bro about getting me one!

Nicholas said...

Patrick - Cosi's is probably better though. Like made with real turkey haha.

Rodzilla - I want to try Sheetz. Everyone raves about it so much that I wanna know what's so fantastical.

Sue - undergrad dining hall + turkey/gravy sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. Or at least it was at Columbia. I assume everything is better in CA, so maybe it's awesome?

bionicgrrrl said...

I never even heard of Wawa, but now I want it! I love anything with stuffing. Totally off topic, but I used to always get the roast chicken with stuffing at Tom's. I might have told you already. If I have, just ignore me.

Nicholas said...

bionicgrrrl - NOPE, you never mentioned that before. I didn't like Tom's all that much when I was around there, I could really use one of their milkshakes now though. As for the sandwich... you just gotta time a visit to Philly around Thanksgiving, then you're golden for a gobbler :)

Anonymous said...

Get yourself to a Capriotti's and get a Bobbie (http://www.capriottis.com/menu.html). It puts the Wawa stuff to shame!

-- A fellow Fattie (who's Professor-age, but loves a good, bad-for-me meal every once in a while) :-)

Nicholas said...

Anonymous - thanks for the suggestion... Cherry Hill is a bit aways, but I'll get one the next time I'm out there :)

Ryan @ Ryan's Baking Blog said...

I actually just got back from Wawa, there really is nothing better.

A Chap said...

For the record, there are Wawa's in Maryland (and probably a few other states) as well. Sheetz is ok, but Wawa is better. I second Anonymous's endorsement of Capriotti's Bobbie.

And yes, I realize this is an old post but I feel like I know you through the food you eat.

Nicholas said...

Ryan - werd. Nothing better.

A Chap - also in Jersey! but I've never appreciated it more than in Philly though, given their asinine closing times. I'll make my way to Capriotti's in the Spring, duly noted if that many people suggested it.

:) food is a very personal thing haha

Anonymous said...

Yum, WaWa! Do they still have the "golden sauce"? I loved that on their hoagies.

Nicholas said...

randian - not sure! Is that what it's actually called? "Golden Sauce?" I'll have a peek at their ordering thing next time.

Anonymous said...

Is that what it's actually called? "Golden Sauce?

That or something very similar is what I recall. If it's no longer on the menu, you might try asking one of the employees if they remember it.

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