Last year saw convenience retailers place foodservice innovation at the center of their operations amid efforts to narrow the competition gap with restaurants. This year is shaping up to be more of the same, and even though 2026 is less than eight weeks old, several convenience operators have launched new food items that are generating buzz.
Here are some standouts.
Casey’s adds a new pizza
Casey’s General Stores launched its Barn Burner Chicken Pizza last month following its annual pizza competition in which team members develop new flavors and showcase their creativity.
The pie is built with a Sriracha sauce base and topped with grilled chicken, bacon, mozzarella and cheddar cheese, red onion, jalapenos and a finishing drizzle of Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce. Customers can purchase the pizza in select markets such as Indianapolis; Grand Rapids, Michigan; and Bloomington-Normal, Champaign-Urbana, Decatur, Peoria and Springfield, Illinois.
Stewart’s goes big for sandwiches
Stewart’s Shops debuted a new morning staple earlier this month with its Big Breakfast sandwiches. Available for under $5, the sandwiches are served on either a hard roll or bagel and can feature ham, bacon or sausage. They’re topped off with eggs and melted cheese.
Customers can also order a Stewart’s Meat Lovers Big Breakfast sandwich, a combo item featuring bacon, sausage, ham, egg and cheese on a hard roll or bagel.
Rutter’s takes on spam and grilled cheese
Rutter’s has added two items to its popular rotating menu so far this year. The first, a Spam roller grill dog, debuted in stores on Jan. 27. It’s an extension of the c-store retailer’s limited-time Spam menu that arrives every fall in partnership with Hormel Foods.
In early February, Rutter’s also revealed a new grilled cheese menu. The limited-time menu includes eight hot sandwiches that feature a different protein: BBQ pulled pork, Buffalo fried chicken, steak, bacon and jalapeno, Blazin’ bird, bacon, bacon triple decker, and a hot dog.
RaceTrac’s latest waffle and pizza offerings
Just because RaceTrac acquired sandwich QSR chain Potbelly last year doesn’t mean the c-store retailer is halting development of its proprietary foodservice offerings.
Earlier this month, the company launched the newest addition to its breakfast lineup with a hot honey chicken and waffle sandwich, available at participating locations for a limited time. It's a twist on RaceTrac’s waffle breakfast sandwich, which features chicken, eggs, melted cheese and hot honey.
Additionally, RaceTrac rolled out a new Southwest sausage pizza and an egg salad sandwich on cracked oat wheat bread. Like the waffle sandwich, the pizza and egg salad sandwich are available at participating locations for a limited time.
7-Eleven dials up breakfast
As of early January, participating 7-Eleven, Speedway and Stripes c-stores are offering new breakfast items.
Additions include a sausage, egg and cheese waffle sandwich, which features Belgian waffles with pearl sugar filled with eggs, sausage and cheese; crispy waffle tots; and El Gran Tocino breakfast tacos, which are wrapped in handmade tortillas and filled with bacon and cheese. The latter is a promotion at 7-Eleven’s Laredo Taco Company QSR.
