Know Any good Soda Jerks?
By
Gerry Niskern
When you get that craving for something special in an ice cream concoction you need to see your local Soda Jerk. Sometimes a sundae, soda, float or just a cone will do.
Actually, no one seems to know how the term “Soda Jerk” came about. The word jerk just means someone who works putting things together with lots of energy. Somehow the word got attached to local kids, usually teenage boys, who worked behind the soda fountain in the local drugstore.
I remember the thrill of sharing a chocolate soda with my mother. I don’t know how old I was, but I had to stand up in the booth to reach the tip of the straw. The booths were in a little room in the back of the Drug Store (probably great for dating couples). What made our adventure more exciting was the fact that mom always cautioned me, “ Now remember, don’t tell your sister!” Sister was older and in school.
I never told.
When we moved to Phoenix, the Capitol Drugstore, on the corner of l7th Avenue and West Jefferson was close to us. Ice cream and candy wasn’t available during the war, but if I had a nickel I got a lemon coke from the soda fountain.
Lots of office staff strolled the long diagonal sidewalks from the State Capitol over to the corner and across to the drugstore for lunch. In those days it was rumored that more than a few political deals were worked out over the marble counter at the soda fountain by state legislators.
The last soda fountain I discovered was at the McAlpine Diner and Soda Fountain located at 2303 N. 7th St, here in Phoenix. Some of my friends from the P. U. H. S. class of 50 wanted to meet there for lunch a while back. A few of them who grew up on the East side had always gone there after school for ice cream. Being a West side girl I had never heard of McAlpines, but immediately fell in love with everything about it. The original old drugstore décor and ice cream specialties. They had to close during Covid, but will be opening up in the next few weeks.
Try it, who knows? You might even see a Soda Jerk.
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Don’t communicate with that other reply . I think it’s spam . Someday you and I should go MacAlpines for an Ice cream !
yes, for sure
I want a chocolate soda!
I was excited to go to Alpine s before the pandemic and loved it. I worked at the capital drugstore when I was 16. Loved chocolate cokes. Bobbystegall
yes, I was glad one of the gals thought of it because I wasn’t familiar. My son loved it when we went and now the other one wants to get a chocolate soda because he says he hasn’t had a good one since he was a little kid.
How wonderful!! We had a great place we always stopped at on the way Northwest to Yellowstone every summer it was a hit. I remember climbing up on the tall bar stools waiting for the best concoction you could imagine. Yummm. Thanks for helping me remember Gerry!!
That’s good. Every one remembers their soda fountain.