First-day photos, MDOT’s big win and what you missed from Buc-ee’s opening
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Buc-ee’s officially opened in Harrison County at 6 a.m. on Monday morning.
- Heavy traffic is expected around Menge Avenue Exit 24 as crowds visit the site.
- Early visitors received free shirts and shopped limited-edition branded items.
The party is on as the first Buc-ee’s travel center in Mississippi opened at 6 a.m. in Harrison County.
Traffic around Menge Avenue Exit 24 of I-10 was smooth during the early morning hours, though it began to pick up as the 10 a.m. ribbon-cutting neared.
Those who watched construction of the new interchange and the 74,000-square-foot building can finally step inside. And if it’s still a little early for you, or you’re at work, Buc-ee’s is open 24 hours, 7 days a week.
It’s time.
-------------------------------------------------
Our opening day coverage
Residents celebrate the long-awaited opening of Buc-ee’s
Buc-ee’s owner shares his passion with South MS
Traffic problems like Alabama? Never had ‘em
Got FOMO? Want to see if we have pics of you? Here is our photo gallery
Buc-ee’s survival guide: Getting in and out (and what to get while you’re there)
-------------------------------------------------
Mississippi exclusive
4 p.m.: Want to impress your Buc-ee’s-obsessed friends? The Harrison County store is the only one offering exclusive light blue Mississippi-branded T-shirts. The shirts, featuring the classic Buc-ee’s beaver, are available in all sizes, from extra small to 4X.
— Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
Day 1 souvenir
3:30 p.m.: Russell Gillis and Jessie Gillis secured their own limited-edition Mississippi Buc-ee’s stuffed animals. The pair said they’ll be returning, as Russell Gillis lives down the street, and they always look forward to meeting new people and old friends everytime they visit the fan-favorite gas station.
“It’s such a great culture and place to go. You can get everything you need,” Gillis said.
— Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
Brisket + fudge = Happy
3 p.m.: The chopped brisket sandwich is the crown jewel of the Buc-ee’s grab-and-dip offerings. Smoky brisket chopped and dumped between two backyard cookout buns. The satisfaction is in the simplicity.
What’s better than fudge? Assorted fudge. One box, 12 fudge blocks. Banana pudding, M&M, Cheesecake and nine other flavors that will knock out any annoying road trip passengers.
— Scott Watkins
-------------------------------------------------
Buc-ee’s, from behind the lens
2:30 p.m.: Our Hannah Ruhoff was on the scene well before the sun came up. Take a look at her photo gallery from opening day and see if you can find yourself or your friends.
— Tim Thorsen
-------------------------------------------------
Monday’s big winner: MDOT?
2 p.m.: The cars kept coming. But hours after the first fans rushed inside Mississippi’s new Buc-ee’s travel center on Monday, it was clear that fears of gridlock on Interstate 10 were mostly overblown. Here’s why.
— Tim Thorsen
-------------------------------------------------
Meet the lead beaver
1:30 p.m.: Arch Aplin III, the man behind the store, returned to South Mississippi wearing his trademark cowboy hat, a Buc-ee’s bandage on his hand and custom boots with the Buc-ee’s beaver logo on them. Here is what the man behind the store had to say Monday.
— Tim Thorsen
-------------------------------------------------
Oh, fudge
1 p.m.: Are you a fudge fanatic? Buc-ee’s offers a wide variety of fudge options, from peanut butter chocolate to birthday cake. Fan favorite flavors like dark chocolate caramel and tiger butter are flying off the counter and into shopping carts. The thick chocolate fudge lined with sweet caramel will leave you craving a soda — and maybe another piece. Lily’s grade: 5 out of 5. For sure.
— Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
Don’t skip the chips
12:35 p.m.: Sure, you’ve heard of Beaver Nuggets, but did you know Buc-ee’s sells fresh-made beaver chips? This snack-packed basket is filled with golden, crispy potato chips. Pair it with a brisket sandwich and you might just be in heaven. Lily’s grade: 4.5 out of 5. They could be crispier and could use some ketchup, but I also can’t stop eating them.
— Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
Party favor
12:15 p.m.: Brooke Ball and Robert Stubbs seized their opportunity to buy a Buc-ee’s gas pumping beverage dispenser after seeing it on TikTok.
“During parties it’s going to be a fun little centerpiece,” Stubbs said.
— Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
Leave some for the rest of us
Noon: Buc-ee’s attendees are flocking to the Texas Round Up station to enjoy brisket sandwiches and tacos, some of the most sought-after treats during the grand opening.
“It’s just what you need when you’re on the road and it’ll fill you up for the rest of your trip. It’s real barbecue too, not just some stuff that you’d pick up at a gas station,” New Orleans food influencer Brian Maurice said.
— Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
We’re issuing a Traffic Warning
11:40 a.m.: We’ve got from a Traffic Watch to a Traffic Warning at the Harrison County Buc-ee’s. Which means we’ve gone from having the ingredients for a traffic problem to having a traffic problem. While cars arrived and exited smoothly for most of the morning, business is very much picking up. Customers have begun parking across the street and walking over to Buc-ee’s.
— Hannah Ruhoff and Tim Thorsen
-------------------------------------------------
Soon ...
11:30 a.m.: In Texas, there is incredible brisket everywhere. A full four years ago, Texas Monthly was asking if Texas brisket could get any better. And while I wouldn’t go so far as to call Buc-ee’s brisket the best I’ve ever had (Hello, Goldee’s), it more than holds its own in the Lone Star State. Which is a long way of saying, yes, I’ll be getting to Buc-ee’s as soon as I can for a sandwich ... or two or three.
— Tim Thorsen
-------------------------------------------------
She’s here for the brisket
11:15 a.m.: Ashley Begley wrangled her crew of three toddlers and a 5-month old to witness the Buc-ee’s grand opening first-hand.
“They’ve all got t-shirts and the baby has a onsie on,” Begley said.
Begley said she’s been dying to get her hands on the famous Buc-ee’s brisket sandwich.
— Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
Gift from the (parking) gods
10:55 a.m.: Helen Dvorak and Noah Hyatt came from Vinton, La. to celebrate their friend Tina Dorr’s 65th birthday.
“When I found out the grand opening was on my birthday I knew I was going to go,” Dorr said.
Dvorak warned, however, that the parking was not something to look forward to.
“We prayed to the parking gods and got a parking spot, only after we prayed,” Dvorak said.
— Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
Special trip
10:45 a.m.: Elizabeth Briscoe works at Lobouy Senior Center in Pass Christian and guided a number of older adults during their trip to Buc-ee’s.
“I was most looking forward to the t-shirts, paraphernalia and the barbecue brisket,” Briscoe said.
— Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
Buc-ee’s Bash
10:30 a.m.: Kristen Thornton journeyed from Mandeville, Louisiana, to visit Buc-ee’s with her two sons, Beau (center) and Carter. Beau Thornton’s recent 7th birthday party, she said, was Buc-ee’s themed.
“We’ve had it marked on the calendar for opening day for forever,” Thornton said.
— Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
Raining on the parade
10:15 a.m.: Rain is falling in Harrison County, soaking reporters and dignitaries at the planned 10 a.m. ribbon-cutting, but cars are still arriving nonstop at Buc-ee’s. The National Weather Service in Slidell said heavy downpours could lead to scattered flash flooding across the region on Monday. But dark clouds were already clearing after 10 a.m.
The grand opening ceremony was briefly disrupted after the short downfall and moved inside. Shopper Shelton Espey said he wasn’t fazed.
“This is pretty tame. I think it was a good idea to move it indoors because the rain was coming. I’m used to it,” Espey said.
— Martha Sanchez and Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
Getting busier
9:55 a.m.: It’s getting busier the 10 a.m. ribbon-cutting nears at Buc-ee’s. Some minor backups formed after 9:45 a.m. on Firetower Road. The roads around Buc-ee’s are busier than normal, but traffic is still moving.
— Martha Sanchez
-------------------------------------------------
Gas prices
9:45 a.m.: Keith Yost traveled from New Orleans on his motorbike to enjoy Buc-ee’s coveted brisket tacos and cherry sours.
“I go to Buc-ee’s pretty much across the country when there is one. I’m so glad this one is closer to my home.”
For those gassing up, the cost of a gallon of unleaded is going for $2.37. Other stations nearby have lowered their prices to that, or something close to it. According to AAA, the average price for a gallon in the Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula area is $2.59.
— Mary Perez and Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
The eyes of the world ...
9:30 a.m.: OK, maybe not the eyes of the world, but the eyes of the Gulf Coast are on South Mississippi this morning. Newspapers and TV stations from across Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama have descended on Harrison County for today’s festivities. And Buc-ee’s fans from across the region have been spotted on Day 1.
— Tim Thorsen
-------------------------------------------------
Open. For good.
9:15 a.m.: Missed your morning pilgrimage to the Buc-ee’s grand opening? Don’t panic — their sliding doors never sleep. Whether you’re looking for a midnight brisket sandwich or need a stretch break during a long drive, Buc-ee’s may just be your new go-to.
— Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
Not a party without a DJ
9 a.m.: Tabari Daniels, a local real estate agent and content creator, is setting up outside of Buc-ee’s for a 9 a.m. DJ set.
“Obviously this is a very big deal. We’re talking about a Buc-ee’s. It has finally come. This is one of the most anticipated activities on the Mississippi Gulf Coast,” Daniels said.
— Lillian Foster
-------------------------------------------------
Tailgaiting
8:45 a.m.: The back of his pickup truck made for a good tailgate breakfast for Randy Doubleday of Mandeville, Louisiana. He and his son planned their return trip from their vacation to coincide with the opening of Buc-ee’s. The food is all grab-and-go.
— Mary Perez
-------------------------------------------------
Chew on this
8:30 a.m.: Jerky fills and entire wall at the Harrison County Buc-ee’s. Want something different? Try lemon peppered, Bohemian garlic, cherry maple or maybe ghost pepper, if you like it hot.
— Mary Perez
-------------------------------------------------
Randy the Pitmaster
8:20 a.m.: He was everywhere — warming up the crowd, posing for photos, checking on the brisket that’s his authentic Texas recipe used at all the Buc-ee’s. Randy Pauly is at all the openings to “share the love, share the passion” for great barbecue, he said. “I’m a competitive barbecue guy,” he said, and Buc-ee’s approached him eight years ago asking for brisket for all the Buc-ee’s. “Make it competitive worthy,” they told him, and now the brisket sandwiches are the hottest seller in the store and available all day and night.
— Mary Perez
-------------------------------------------------
It’s not a disaster
8:05 a.m.: Rumors and thoughts of a Buc-ee’s traffic apocalypse appear to have been greatly exaggerated. While the parking lot has plenty of cars, and lots of folks are at the gas pumps, it’s been a relatively easy in-and-out for customers during the two hours since the doors opened.
— Martha Sanchez
-------------------------------------------------
Got a sweet tooth?
7:50 a.m.: Samples of Buc-ee’s Beaver Nuggets are available for people to try, and that’s just the start of sweet treats. Throughout the store are cinnamon rolls and other pastries, their famous cinnamon coated pecans and a fudge counter that’s got all the favorites and some you’ve possibly never tried, like banana pudding fudge, birthday cake fudge and even key lime pie fudge.
— Mary Perez
-------------------------------------------------
The beaver says so
7:35 a.m.: We didn’t need the confirmation, but Buc-ee’s has made it social-media official.
— Tim Thorsen
-------------------------------------------------
Breakfast at Buc-ee’s
7:30 a.m.: Carlos Hurtado from Biloxi arrived at 5:30 a.m. — early enough to score a T-shirt. He bought chocolate milk and a breakfast sandwich. He had visited other Buc-ee’s before but was excited to have one near home. “It’s cool — just it being down the road,” Hurtado, 19, said. “I’ll be coming to Buc-ee’s a lot more.”
— Martha Sanchez
-------------------------------------------------
A long night
7:25 a.m.: The kids that were first through the door? They earned it. Last night, Brandon Green slept with his son and nephews in his truck bed so they could be among the first to rush into Buc-ee’s Monday morning. They parked across the street, at Dollar General, and set an alarm for 3 a.m. The group said Ayden Spear, Green’s nephew, made the first purchase at the new store: cotton candy mints. “We just wanted to come and have fun,” Green said. “It’s like the Chic-fil-A of gas stations.”
— Martha Sanchez
-------------------------------------------------
Photo hotspot
7:15 a.m.: The most popular places to get photos on opening morning are with the Beaver statue outside the north entrance and with the Beaver mascot, who is posing with photos next to the signature Buc-ee’s red truck inside the store. The license plate on that truck? Buc-ee’s, of course.
— Mary Perez
-------------------------------------------------
Shirts and more
7:10 a.m.: Jackie LeBlanc, right, and daughter Amelia LeBlanc of Kiln started their shopping with new Buc-ee’s Mississippi T-shirts. They were wearing Buc-ee’s swag, but Jackie said they needed new sizes after losing 90 pounds. She was skipping the fudge and going for the cranberry almond chicken salad.
-------------------------------------------------
Loading up
6:55 a.m.: “We got our Buc-ee’s,” one woman dressed in a red Buc-ee’s logo shirt shouted out as she got out of her car and headed toward the store. It took a full three minutes for everyone in line at 6 a.m. to get into the store through the three entrances. A line immediately formed for brisket, and many people were filling carts with new Mississippi Buc-ee’s T-shirts and the limited edition stuffed, plush beavers.
— Mary Perez
-------------------------------------------------
Can you get here?
6:45 a.m.: Do you want the good news or the bad news? Traffic on the interstate and around Buc-ee’s is not a problem as the sun rises across South Mississippi. The bad news? The parking lot is filling up fast. So you can probably get here, but it might be a hike by the time you do.
— Martha Sanchez
-------------------------------------------------
Free shirts?
6:38 a.m.: That thing they told us about there not being any giveaways at the opening? Well ... about that: There were free T-shits given away to some of the first folks through the door, or at least the folks who could stop long enough to take them. There are (or were) also 5,000 limited-edition toy beavers with Mississippi branding available for purchase.
— Mary Perez and Hannah Ruhoff
-------------------------------------------------
Pull forward, people
6:30 a.m.: Want to start an online argument? Complain about folks leaving their cars parked at the Buc-ee’s pumps and not pulling into an actual parking spot. For the record, I’m on Team Pull Forward, though you’ll find passionate folks on both sides online.
— Tim Thorsen
-------------------------------------------------
What a scene
6:20 a.m.: The video above shows what it looked like when fans poured into Buc-ee’s for the first time in South Mississippi.
— Mary Perez
-------------------------------------------------
Brisket on the board
6:03 a.m.: If Texas had an official state sound, it might be blade cutting through brisket and slamming into a wooden cutting board. That, or Buc-ee’s now-iconic “BRISKET ON THE BOARD” callout, the first of which has now been heard in South Mississippi.
— Tim Thorsen
-------------------------------------------------
It’s open!
6 a.m.: The long wait is over. The growing crowd celebrates as the doors have opened at Buc-ee’s. Brisket is on the board, the jerky wall awaits and beaver nuggets will soon be consumed. Good luck, Buc-ee’s employees. You’re going to earn those wages today.
— Tim Thorsen
-------------------------------------------------
The final countdown
5:45 a.m.: The line continues to grow as we are 15 minutes away from the official opening of Mississippi’s first Buc-ee’s in Harrison County (despite what the Buc-ee’s tour shirt would have you believe).
— Tim Thorsen
-------------------------------------------------
Sign of the times
5:30 a.m.: Of all the Buc-ee’s shrits being worn by fans and being sold inside, is this the one folks want the most? Workers show off the grand opening shirts they will be wearing today.
— Mary Perez
-------------------------------------------------
Beaver believers
5:15 a.m.: How early did you need to get to Buc-ee’s to be the first person in line? For Amanda Yarbrough of Long Beach, 3 a.m. wasn’t quite early enough. She has a spot very close to the door, but says you would have needed to be present Sunday night to get the first spot.
— Mary Perez
-------------------------------------------------
We’re almost there
5 a.m.: 635 days ago, shovel first met dirt. We are now one hour away from the long-awaited official opening of the first Buc-ee’s travel center in Mississippi. Our team of reporters will be there to let you know how the traffic is, how the brisket is and everything else you could possibly want to know.
— Tim Thorsen
This story was originally published June 9, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
