APlus Sunoco To Enter Fast Food Business With Tex-Mex Food

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Gasoline stations are no longer just for pumping gas. They've become convenience stores and, more recently, fast food restaurants.

"I get gas, I eat here. I do a lot of shopping here," said Carol Thompson of Greensburg.

The two biggest gas competitors here for meals to go are Sheetz, which pioneered in this market in 1984, and Giant Eagle's GetGo Kitchen stores that opened in 2004.

On Friday, officials cut the ribbon for a new competitor: APlus Sunoco on Mt. Pleasant Street in Greensburg.

Besides the traditional cuisine of hot dogs, pizza, and salads, Sunoco is now offering something different.

What will make this APlus Sunoco store so unique is the Mexican food like this chicken fajita.

As part of another deal, Sunoco acquired the Laredo Taco Co. chain from Texas, and is now slowly introducing that Tex-Mex menu to their APlus Sunoco stores.

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"Greensburg is the first test market for us. We're going to build seven more in Pennsylvania this year," Sunoco's Jeff Shields told KDKA money editor Jon Delano on Friday.

And an additional 20 will be added in other states, all featuring Tex-Mmex food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

"Everything we make here is fresh ingredients made from scratch every day, and I think that's what sets us apart right there," says Christie Bloom, the manager of the Greensburg A-Plus Sunoco.

Greensburg mayor Robert Bell sampled the fare.

"It's really, really good, and I'm excited to have them here and, as you can see they're a lot of people here," said Bell.

As more A-Plus Sunoco stores add the Tex-Mex menu, it means a tripling of employment at each store, like Greensburg.

"We used to have eight employees. We've now expanded it to 22, and we're still looking for some more. So if anyone out there is interested, come on down," says Bloom.

Sunoco has 158 convenience stores in Pennsylvania.

How quickly Laredo Taco comes to the one nearest you depends on how well this year's test marketing goes.