Soda Fountains in Hawaii
In the olden days many locals thought only rich people who had plenty of money could go to fountains, because of its location in town. It attracted at first many people coming overseas from the mainland having most of its clientele looking for an all american fountain service. It was nick named "Da Haole Counter", because there was not much regional with fountains at first, but that changed as locals started visiting more. In 1930s there were only a small few Soda Fountains in Hawaii and one of these is said to be the unforgettable and changed the scene to a much more local experience. This would be "Benson Drug Store" owned by the Bob Benson of the Benson Family on King and Fort Street in Honolulu Oahu. The location of a Soda Fountain would have a variety of uses and it was run by Soda Jerks. They would act as the customer service to the Fountain service and as the assistance to shoppers going in for retail. Customers would make the most of their little trip down town all dressed up and ready for a treat and what would be better than a savory lunch of soft meat sandwiches "tongue sandwich"? a jolly good time at the Soda Fountain being served by the Soda Jerk getting some good times with some good company and of course good grindz (eats). Make no mistake that going for ice cream was seriously fun! The Fountain as a Social Spot Before there was meeting in the digital world people met in the real world at places which often times were known as "social hot spots" which were diners, cafes, and bars. A particular sort of bar that people who enjoy meeting at was the "Soda Fountain" that is a bar of soda that happens to serve up ice cream, sundaes, and a few other lunch dishes. Soda Fountains were inside drug stores, so their selection of retail goods had toiletries, candy, perfumes, and medicine. They were located near big businesses and offices were located back in the day of government offices, legal firms, big banks, and enormous private enterprise. Going to town was a big thing and a place of wonder, since many parts of the island were very underdeveloped. If people were heading out to town they would be getting their face put on and get all dressed up and tried to live it up by having a good time. Fountains were all over the place: Liliha Fountain, Ed & Don's in Kahala, Masa's Fountain in Kalihi (Pu'uhale), Rexall Drugs Soda Fountain in Aina Haina. Tiered Fruit Holder Back then they have tiered fruit holders with a number of fruits that they either served at lunch or with one of the drinks. The usual suspects would be Oranges for slices, Apples for a snack, Pineapple for garnishes or a split, and Bananas. Certain fruits would have to be held in the refrigerated areas like blueberries, strawberries, and candied cherries. Local Competition Pharmaceuticals They competed with another store called "Hollister Drug Store" which has its own stories of the time and was nearby, so customers would have decide to go to one store or the other. The legacy of these times would be from Benson store manager Sydney Kosasa in 1949 opened Thrifty Drugs on waialae ave. He later on would go off to found the ABC empire in 1964 that is all across the tourist areas of town-side Honolulu. Soda Fountains were often additions to Drug Stores in the neighborhood and were apart of America's History of American Ice Cream. They would have to learn to adapt to the market in Hawaii and fit the tastes of the people in Hawaii. It would not be easy, because what works in one place for a business changes with the location and Hawaii is definitely a real diverse mixture of people that would come for business trips, tourists, and locals. Soda Jerks The term soda jerk comes from a pun on soda clerk. The term would come from its origins of pulling the handle of the soda fountain with a jerking motion and thus it was the title of the person making the hand crafted drinks the soda jerk. The dessert drinks made by a soda jerk varies and is complicated with a list of recipes involving: Draft Drinks, Milk Drinks, Cream Drinks, Tea Drinks, Carbonated Soda Drinks, Sundaes, Splits and Boats, . Soda Jerks were behind the counter of Fountain Bar which served flavored soda water, ice cream soda, and in Hawaii it there was added fruit juices, lunch choices, and shakes to the list. Its like having a bar that specialized in sodas and mixtures that would be catered to the customers order of how they would like to have their drink. The Soda Jerk has countless combinations of drink combinations to make for a great experience only found at the soda fountains that seek to preserved the recipes. Draft Drinks, have a flavored syrup with the addition of fruit that can be either crushed or just use the juices from juicing it. Add some carbonation and it is a draft soda drink or make it a Ice Cream Soda "aka Cow" by blending vanilla ice cream to the mix until fully mixed. Some may mistake it for a float, but the key differences are that a float still has the scoop in the drink and sometimes another scoop on top with whipped cream and a cherry. Milk Drinks, have milk and back then it was whole milk (nowadays 2%) which could make all the difference in its buttery taste. Milk drinks had ice cream and could be blended or even include malt powder or as the Jerks use to say that it would make a milk drink Malted and thus a Malt. It was optional if customers wanted their milk drinks carbonated or have addition syrup on top or even mixed. Carbonated Drinks, is using carbonated water and adds flavored syrup and is the namesake of the counter itself the "soda drink". The syrup and carbonation are the stars of this sort of drink and back then it was very sugary, but in the modern day setting there is quite a high demand especially in Hawaii for sugar-free syrups. Soda Fountain Counters Transition In the 1960s, the food items served at Soda Fountains were becoming very popular and some even converted their lunch counter area into a full-fledged lunch counter and minimizing the amount of soda drinks. What this was would move the soda fountains more to the side while sandwiches and dinners would be taking the stage to not only accompany soda and ice cream but be the main menu items customers would come for. Those who use to go for some sweet treats at the Soda Fountain would be turning to alternative sweet shops. They would go to the Crack Seed shop, or the early Ice Cream Parlors that had Sherberts, and Shave Ice Shops. It would be a big deal when discussing if the choice would be brought up of Ice Cream or Shave Ice where it could even cause for an argument if two didn't agree on which delight they wanted to go eat. These establishments would all be the beginnings of the changes of Hawaii's unique menu of desserts.
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