7-Eleven

7 – 11 is a couple of blocks from our apartment. It’s a good little convenience store, and for what it is always manages to stock some kind of option or alternative for what I’m really looking for. For instance, they don’t carry anything organic, but when you’re in a bind for a fresh pizza, eggs or milk at 12:30am, 7 – 11 is a dependable provider of the basics.
They get 3 stars because in comparison to WaWa, Circle-​K or Hot Spar in Japan, I’d actually stop at those places regularly to get delicious, fresh, vegetarian healthy food and drinks regularly.

Convenient to my house and always there when I need it. This location used to be the old Buttery Restaurant when I was a kid, but you’d never know it by the renovations that they’ve done. It’s a standard 7 – 11, not great and not bad. It’s good when I’m in the Charles Street area and need a quick snack or a drink — which is exactly what it’s designed to be.
Sure, it’s a modern eyesore next to historic monuments, but so was the Buttery when it was there and no one ever bitched about that, so as far as I’m concerned, I’m okay with it being there. It serves its purpose, especially when the next closest ²⁴⁄₇ convenience store is on Calvert and Eager and a pain for Peabody students to get to.
You won’t be able to get to it when there’s a major event going on down on Charles Street, such as the Baltimore Book Fair or the St. Patrick’s Day parade, because it’s always mobbed — be aware.

(03/​11/​2012) We get that corporations are evil and modernity has destroyed the historic charm of Baltimore’s Mount Vernon, but the 7-​Eleven is here and it is what it is supposed to be: convenient. A friend talked me into a post-​St. Patrick’s parade binge snack, the infamous Beef Patty. It was cheap ($ 1.39), warm and pretty tasty. They only had the «mild» that day, but still, the meat filling was highly seasoned with black and cayenne pepper, maybe garlic powder and some cumin, and of course, salt; the pastry crust was yellow with tumeric and hint of curry powder, was tender, somewhat elastic-​y. Man, if only the things came deep-​fried…
* next up, the anatomically defying Buffalo Chicken Roller.

Clearly a team effort was needed to pull of this evil deed. Curse you Kingpin, Dr. Doom, Darth Vader, and free market capitalism. Not even the well-​wishing, concerned citizens backed by all sorts of cuddly and impotent historical societies could prevent this disaster. Now, there in plain sight of our nations first president’s first monument glows a glassed chamber filled with synthetic substances designed for your consumption. To add insult to injury it is dirty, poorly organized, overpriced and gloats in your eyes and ears with its energy sucking fluorescent lights and fridge fans operating non-​stop, 24÷7÷365.
Don’t forget to grab some fun shaped rubber bands on your way out, It’ll look funny when your body swells up!

Here’s a new convenience store near the Washington Monument. Convenient, but a bit of an eye sore at night against the nightscape near the monument.