Subject: Soft Drinks

• All Coked Up

  Vanilla Coke is back! You might not have realized that it went away, of course, especially if you eat regularly at Rubio's, the only major food chain to keep it on its soda fountains. But yeah, they replaced it with Black Cherry Vanilla a while back, which was decent but not as tasty. Now plain Vanilla has returned, along with Vanilla Coke Zero (which is basically Diet Vanilla Coke with one additional additive that I can't spell off the top of my head). But as awesome as it is to have VC back

  May 29, 2007

• Get Your Rocks Off

  As a frequenter of the AMC 30 at the Block every Thursday night when they show all the new releases, I've also become a fan of Cafe Tu Tu Tango, the most adjacent restaurant, and bar that seems to stay open the latest. It was only last week, however, that I realized they don't serve my usual beverage. Not exactly. Double-Jack and Diet is my drink, and before I proceed I imagine I need to justify the "Diet" part. Two things: 1. In high school, my dentist told me it was better for my teeth to d

  August 6, 2007

• Caffeine 'n' Cartoons

  So what's up with the dude on this coffee package? The label says "high octane," but he looks like he's just kinda chill. Maybe the motorcycle drank the coffee instead. I don't even like coffee much, but Starbucks keeps sending me stuff in the mail, like a $5 gift card recently -- II guess the makers of high octane didn't want to be outdone, so they passed along a whole big packet of their product, which I left in the break room for our sales staff to enjoy. If you start noticing a lot more ads

  November 14, 2007

• Candy Kush Machines

  The future is now; the future is Marijuana Vending Machines. Technically termed PVMs, or Prescription Vending Machines, and now available at Herbal Nutrition Center in LA, the similarity between these and candy or soda machines ends at the name. They're installed behind secure dispensary doors, only dispense medication (including anti-depressants or Viagra) according to an individual's specific prescription as recorded on RFID-tagged cards, and exist to reduce pharmacy overhead rather than make

  January 28, 2008

• Because You're Ugly: Rock the Runway

  The Art Institute is seriously starting to become my favorite place to visit in Santa Ana - every time I'm there for some event or other I wonder why my USC education couldn't have had the kind of cool events these folks seem to put on on a regular basis. Rock the Runway, this past Saturday, was a fantastic fusion of almost everything cool: a hipster fashion show, gourmet catering for all, skateboarding demonstrations, live bands, live art demonstrations, and free Mountain Dew. Admission price?

  March 3, 2008

• Fast Food Reviews: New Mountain Dew Flavors

  As you can see, I'm not fundamentalist in my definition of fast food. All mass-produced snack product is fair game, as perhaps could be noted by the fact that the first one I did involved the Dave & Busters menu. On a late night beer run, I espied a display at the 7-11 with three new kinds of Mountain Dew. Since I adore all Dew except for that pretender flavor that you can only get at Taco Bell and doesn't even taste good with vodka, this was like a goldmine. Alas, two of these flavors are temp

  May 25, 2008

• Famima!! opens in Fountain Valley

  If 7-Eleven and Mitsuwa sired an offspring, that child would be Famima!! And contrary to what may seem like an overenthusiastic beginning to this post, the exclamation points -- both of them -- are part of the brand name concocted by FamilyMart, the Japanese company with over fourteen thousand such stores throughout the planet, including about a half dozen already in L.A. The first Orange County store opened in Fountain Valley last week, hawking onigiri and boxed sushi, "gourmet" sandwiches an

  July 20, 2008

• Tomorrow: OCRA Mixer at Manhattan Super Club

  Tomorrow, the newly formed Orange County Restaurant Association will have it's first mixer at the Manhattan Supper Club in Orange. Admission is $20 for OCRA members and $30 for non-members. Admission fee covers appetizers, soft drinks and one specialty cocktail. Guest receive a 15% discount on food and drinks if you wish to purchase additional items. It'll be cash at the door, but if you want to RSVP, you can do so here.

  October 20, 2008

• My Lawn

  September 14, 2000

• An Ode to Cheerwine

  August 17, 2006

• FDA Wags Finger at Diet Coke's Vitamin Claims

  The FDA has issues with Coca Cola's new Diet Coke Plus.  It sent the company a letter earlier this month about the drink, which Coke purports to have a "refreshing taste...AND several essential nutrients" with "each 8 fl. oz. serving of Diet Coke Plus provid(ing) 15% of your RDI for niacin and vitamins B6 and B12, and 10% for zinc and magnesium". So what do the feds have a problem with?  It's the word "plus", believe it or not.  The FDA says that the drink fails

  December 24, 2008

• [Hole in the Wall] Wadiya, OC's First Sri Lankan Restaurant

  March 26, 2009

• The Return of the Drive-In

  June 7, 2007

• He Fights for Your Right to Pate

  March 16, 2006

• Saras Mercado

  June 2, 2005

• This week in international sodas

  December 9, 2004

• The Great Zucchini

  September 23, 2004

• Brand X

  May 30, 2002

• Emop!

  November 22, 2001

• Flee

  August 2, 2001

• Success Through Snacking

  July 5, 2001

• Trout Season

  January 11, 2001

• The Edwards Crown Affair

  October 19, 2000

• True Grit, With a Side of Pie

  October 12, 2000

• Gypsy Den World?

  August 19, 1999

• Selling Out

  August 12, 1999

• Bedouin Soundclash

  July 23, 2009

• Overheard in Orange County

  "I'd say 'marry me,' but I wouldn't wanna, like, be a statistic." - guy to gal at Coco's in HB on 7/7/07. MySpace Polls - Take Our Poll Santa Ana's Old County Courthouse is usually closed on Saturdays, but it'll be open today - starting (surprise, surprise), 7 a.m. Some advice for the truly superstitious from ABC's Rob Hayes: "...Swing by a 7-Eleven, buy a 7Up and pay the $7 admission at the (Hollywood Park) racetrack."

  July 7, 2007

• Five Great International Sodas

  Obvious observation of the year: it's hot. Go to these place we haven't discussed in years, all fine eateries, and cool down with their native sodas:​PUPUSERIA SAN SIVAR: The hole-in-the-strip-mall takes special care with their pupusas, which have a crispy yet malleable crust encasing thick, sticky cheese. Meanwhile, an oily, impossibly sugary plantain laying alongside refried beans is like a battle between the lush tropics and the Spartan plains of El Salvador on the tongue; a side of sweet s

  August 31, 2009