Top 12+ foods from Buc-Ee's that you should avoid completely

Cosmic Pops

I know what you're thinking: Cosmic Pops are on this list just because I hate fun. Well I'll have you know that, as a diehard Pop Rocks fan, I see nothing wrong with popping candy. In fact, I think it's a unique alternative to regular old candy when the mood for something sugary and thrilling strikes. Buc-ee's Cosmic Pops, however, ruin a perfectly acceptable concept. These candies are tiny clusters filled with popping candy, rather than being made up entirely of popping candy, like you might initially think. The outside of the candy clusters is hard and doesn't melt in your mouth, so you have to bite into it to get the popping started. They come in cotton candy, cherry cola, lemon lime, and orange cream flavors.

Cosmic Pops don't really pop — what they do can more accurately be described as "bubble." With popping candy, you expect more of an exhilarating popping sensation, but this Buc-ee's snack turns "exciting" into "mildly annoying." If that wasn't bad enough, the candy flavor is all wrong. It tastes like a sugar cookie instead of a hard candy, making the different flavors pair horribly with the consistency. Cherry cola is the most palatable, while lemon lime is easily the most egregious. All of the flavors are too sweet, even for such a quirky candy.

Beaver Tots

Tater tots are a classic gas station food, and usually — as long as they're hot and fresh — they're a delicious snack that's easy to munch on while driving. The tater tots at Buc-ee's, which are dubbed "Beaver Tots," aren't much worse than the average gas station tots, but that's why they've earned a spot on this list. Buc-ee's has set the standard pretty high for itself, and its tots just don't cut it against its much more worthwhile snacks.

The worst thing about Beaver Tots is their saltiness. Tater tots should be one of those road trip snacks that you can eat a hefty cup of, dipping them in various sauces, without suffering immediate dehydration. A nice sprinkling of salt is necessary, but these potato nuggets go overboard. I also take a lot of issue with their name. Calling them Beaver Tots implies that there will be something special and Buc-ee's-esque about them, but they might as well be tater tots from the freezer section of Walmart. There's absolutely nothing special about them, unless you count their Dead Sea levels of salt.

Cinnamon rolls

Cinnamon rolls are a perfect dessert. A delicate pastry imbued with sweet, slightly earthy cinnamon gives the treat depth, while mouth-watering icing coats the top, giving it the intense sweetness characteristic of Southern desserts. But Buc-ee's tarnishes the cinnamon roll's good name with a low-quality product that's worth leaving in the pastry case. No matter what some people might say, I'm of the belief that there actually is such a thing as a bad cinnamon roll.

Buc-ee's cinnamon rolls can vary, depending on when you're able to get your hands on one. When they're hot and fresh, they're not bad, although they're far from the best cinnamon rolls in Texas. However, chances are you're not going to snag one when it's piping hot and fresh, but rather after it's been sitting in the pastry case for a while, slowly getting hard and stale (and there's no microwave at Buc-ee's to offer any salvation). The icing doesn't have a bold vanilla flavor — instead, it tastes like pure sugar, drowning out the already-sparse cinnamon.

Chicken salad

Bad chicken salad is such a huge disappointment, since good chicken salad is one of the best fast meals you can grab on the road. It's not greasy like a lot of other gas station grub, and it fills you up on the cheap, getting you ready for the next leg of your journey. But as appealing as regular chicken salad might sound, it isn't the thing to get at Buc-ee's for a reason.

There are no varying textures in this chicken salad. The chicken is shredded to oblivion, creating a smooth texture that's made even worse by way too much mayo. The eviscerated chicken and extra mayo gives the chicken salad a texture like Greek yogurt — not something you'd want on a sandwich. The mayo has a sweetness to it that stands front and center, since there's nothing else in this chicken salad to add any real flavor, like chunks of celery and onion. Don't get me wrong — onion and celery are present, but in such a minuscule amount that they're doing zero heavy-lifting in the flavor and texture departments.

Buc-ee's cranberry pecan chicken salad is a much different story. Nuts add crunch and the sweet mayo works with cranberries, so stick with that chicken salad in your sandwich if you're really craving some mayo-drenched chicken at Buc-ee's.

Lemon Crisps

Lemon desserts are pure perfection, but not the way Buc-ee's does it. Its Lemon Crisps were once, allegedly, much better in the past than the version it whips up nowadays. Today, the Lemon Crisps are tiny cookies that come in a cheap-looking plastic tub. There isn't much that makes these cookies look appealing — no dusting of sugar or layer of icing. They look like they could taste like anything.

When making desserts with sour citrus fruits, it's imperative that the sugar-to-fruit ratio is balanced so it's neither too sweet nor too sour. Buc-ee's clearly doesn't understand this ratio, because its Lemon Crisps are bitter and far too tangy. This acrid flavor is followed up by a cheap, artificial aftertaste that makes it seem like they were flavored with lemon-scented all-purpose cleaner. Their texture doesn't act as any saving grace, either. They're not quite crunchy and are too hard to be considered a soft, chewy cookie, so they're kind of hovering around in dessert limbo.

Bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit

I'm a New Yorker, so I know what makes a good bacon, egg, and cheese, and I'll be honest — I never expected a great one to come out of Texas (no offense). The best bacon, egg, and cheese comes from a bodega at 5 a.m., when you're either heading to work or just getting ready to call it a night. They rarely come from a gas station, and certainly not from Buc-ee's.

Buc-ee's bacon, egg, and cheese has a Southern twist: it comes on a biscuit instead of a classic kaiser roll. A buttery Southern biscuit is a real treat, but this biscuit is so buttery that it becomes pasty, oily, and hard to stomach. It also falls apart easily, which is a major bummer if you grabbed one to eat while driving. While the eggs are fluffy and tasty, they're accompanied by one measly sliver of bacon, which doesn't even add adequate crunch to this greasy sandwich. One of the best parts of the iconic BEC is the way the cheese melts into the eggs to create a soft, creamy mixture that compliments crunchy, thick-cut bacon. But the cheese on Buc-ee's BEC biscuit is ultra-processed and doesn't melt onto the biscuit properly, making for a horrible start to any day.

Salads

As you can probably imagine, salads are far from the most popular item at a fast food joint known for its smoked meats and greasy snacks. But I appreciate Buc-ee's for offering something a little lighter, because spending hours in the car after wolfing down a greasy meal is never a great time. Buc-ee's typically serves a garden salad, Greek salad, and a chicken Caesar salad — basically, the three universally-loved classics. It's also been known to offer a Southwest Cobb salad, but it's unclear if this item is still around or if it's been discontinued.

Buc-ee's salads are so close to being good — they're pretty hefty for the price, and they're loaded with plenty of toppings. The Caesar dressing in particular is creamy, decadent, and flavorful, but the chicken that pairs with it isn't the best vessel to carry its umami, peppery flavors. In fact, it's so dry and bland that no amount of dressing can save it. But the worst part about Buc-ee's salads is the lettuce. It's always old and wilted, and any salad enthusiast knows that — no matter how good the toppings are — if the bed of lettuce that everything rests on is old and slimy, the salad is ruined.