Of all the iconic food commercials from our era, none has reached the height of the Wawa pizza advertisements. From YouTube ads to billboards to TV commercials, Wawa has done a fantastic job marketing its newest food feature. However, while I do commend whoever designed the marketing campaign for Wawa Pizza, I ultimately find this new menu option to be mediocre at best and lacking any sort of signature appeal that will entice consumers enough to order it for their traditional Friday night dinner.

I ordered my Wawa pizza around 30 minutes before I went to pick it up. The adventure started well enough as a special sale allowed me to get $5 off the renowned cheesy dish, making the normally $16 pie cost $11. After some thought, I ordered a pepperoni pizza with a garlic-seasoned crust. I also purchased a hoagie for my brother as he wasn’t quite as enticed by Wawa´s newest item. About 25 minutes later, I went to my local Wawa to pick up said pizza. After arriving, I located the pizza but the sub was nowhere in sight. After asking around I discovered that this Wawa had been incredibly swamped with orders, and my brother’s hoagie was lost in the shuffle. The operator however was quite gracious and offered to make another hoagie for us for free and give us a $10 gift card for our troubles. I accepted his offer, and after about 10 minutes, I walked out of the store with a sub, pizza, and gift card in hand.

After arriving home and setting the pizza down on the table, my first impression was that it had an incredible smell, and, just like the advertisements had stated, it had certainly been made fresh. After selecting my slice of pizza, I noticed that Wawa was incredibly gracious with the pepperoni, and I was not disappointed by the amount of pepperoni on my pie. The first few bites of the pizza were tasteful enough, though the lack of spice from the very hefty amount of pepperoni along with its burnt quality did sour my mood. The layer of cheese on this pizza was good, and, while I usually prefer saucier pizzas, the Wawa pizza sauce did not leave me disappointed. Regrettably, I could not taste a smidge of the garlic-seasoned crust.

After all was said and done and my Wawa pizza was nothing more than a few crumbs on my plate, I couldn’t help but feel a bit empty. While the pizza wasn´t bad by any means, there was nothing that special that made it stand out from the other pizzas I’ve had in my life. The poor spice level of the pepperoni pizza and the lack of any extraordinary cheese or sauce made this pizza average. And without all the discounts I received, this normally $16 pizza does not justify its price. While I may not have loved the pizza, I think that if you need a last-minute pizza that will provide a palatable serving to your family on Friday nights, Wawa Pizza has my vote.