There's a new place in an old location in Middlebury to get your Slim Jim and Combos fix.

The Shell station at 520 Middlebury Road (Rt.64) finally re-opened about a month ago. I stopped in last night and filled up at one of the sweet new pumps in the huge parking lot, and snapped this photo of the front of the store.

Photo by Large "Convenience is Key" Dave
Photo by Large "Convenience is Key" Dave
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Things have changed quite a bit.

Photo by Large "Red Hot" Dave
Photo by Large "Red Hot" Dave
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As you walk into the new Shell, to the right is the wall of beverages and snacks. Every liquid you can imagine is in those coolers. There's a nice frozen section with pre-prepared foods like TGIFridays apps, Ben & Jerry's, Pizza Bites, etc.

Photo by Large "Pastrami" Dave
Photo by Large "Pastrami" Dave
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The heart of the new Shell is a deli counter that they've dubbed the Centre St. Kitchen. There are a couple of point of sale systems set up where you can customize your deli sandwich, place the order, and continue shopping while your sandwich is being crafted. All day breakfast sandwiches, three different soups, different pasta and potato salads, and a variety of fresh-made snacks line the counter.

Photo by Large "Chill Shoppe" Dave
Photo by Large "Chill Shoppe" Dave
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To the left in the new Shell is the coffee and frozen drink section, dubbed "The Chill Shoppe". I saw some exotic flavored syrups and flavored creams lining the sweetener and creamer station. A fro-yo machine, slushy machine, and a nice baked good section are also featured.

All in all, it's a vast improvement. The neighboring Mobil has some stiff competition outside of their window. Blarney Stone Pizza will definitely keep some customers pulling into their driveway, but as far as selection of product goes? The new Shell has that battle won.

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