WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. - Slim gasoline margins have station owners branching out to offer more than a fill up, the Los Angeles Times reports. Increasingly, prepared food has become a way to boost profits and gain repeat customers.

Convenience stores are transforming themselves into mini-restaurants, with such made-to-order fare as breakfast burritos, croissants, paninis and salads joining hot dogs and pizza. "We??re changing from gas stations that happen to sell food, to restaurants that happen to sell gas," said Jeff Lenard, NACS vice president of communications. Today, it might appear weird to get a freshly made salad while filling your tank, but in two decades, it will seem more natural, he said.

For example, around 11 percent of Chevron Corporation??s 395 company-owned locations offer food inside, many of which are a mini-version of a restaurant chain, such as McDonald??s or Subway, said spokeswoman Lori Carlisle. Independent stations also have customized delis and grills.

"This is, in so many ways, a natural evolution," said Daniel Conway, spokesman for the California Restaurant Association. He said, too, that the car culture really gave birth to the fast-food restaurant. "If you??re going to have the kind of traffic associated with a gas station, you??d like to be able to tap into those customers to sell something else."

Richard Speckman added a deli to his Mobil gasoline station. Today, the deli helps to keep the station operating ?" with a profit. The Corner Grill & Deli serves around 700 orders on a good day, with the morning bestseller being the breakfast burrito.

Since 2005, made-to-order sandwiches sold at convenience stores have increased in revenue 5 to 7 percent, said Tim Powell with Technomic.