"I'd like a coke." "What kind?" "Huh?" "Dr Pepper, Coke or Sprite." "I'll take Dr Pepper Coke"

February 16, 2007 1:58 PM

Pop Vs Soda
posted by Stynxno (52 comments total)

Neither. "Fizzy drinks."
posted by jamesonandwater at 2:02 PM on February 16, 2007

Awesome. Although I couldn't figure out where I learned to speak (military brat), so I couldn't contribute. But Soda, for sure.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 2:03 PM on February 16, 2007 [1 favorite]

This is amazingly awesome! Now lets see it with a blue-state / red-state overlay.
posted by grobstein at 2:03 PM on February 16, 2007

Again?
posted by Eideteker at 2:03 PM on February 16, 2007

Double, unfortunately.
posted by Terminal Verbosity at 2:05 PM on February 16, 2007

Where's the Bi-coastal option for those who only say Soda-Pop.
Still very awesome.
posted by French Fry at 2:07 PM on February 16, 2007

You're all wrong. It's "highway cleaner."
posted by Leather McWhip at 2:09 PM on February 16, 2007

Tonic.
posted by ericb at 2:12 PM on February 16, 2007

Well, depends on if you're having it w/ a hoagie or a grinder, don't it?
posted by docpops at 2:13 PM on February 16, 2007

...or, with a bomber, hero, Italian, po'boy, submarine, torpedo or wedge!
posted by ericb at 2:17 PM on February 16, 2007

...or a fried jumbo sammich.
posted by octothorpe at 2:20 PM on February 16, 2007

To be fair, those don't belong in the same category as a po'boy.
posted by Pacheco at 2:20 PM on February 16, 2007

To be fair, those don't belong in the same category as a po'boy.

Yeah -- probably so.

BTW -- just found this interesting article: History of Hoagies, Submarine Sandwiches, Po' Boys Sandwiches, Dagwood Sandwiches, & Italian Sandwiches.
posted by ericb at 2:25 PM on February 16, 2007

It's pop all the way here in Oregon. Craziest fucking thing I ever encountered after growing up in Virginia. That and the meth. Oh, also, I never heard anyone use the term "drive truck" before if they were a truckdriver. Kind of like in PA where they say "haul Amish".
posted by docpops at 2:26 PM on February 16, 2007

Best response filed as 'other': "Hey Southerners. Can I offer you a Ford automobile? What kind? Oh, a Mercedes, maybe a Ferrari. To you guys they're all Fords right? Idiots."
posted by ardgedee at 2:30 PM on February 16, 2007

The fucking stupidity of saying "I'll take a Pepsi Coke" would have stopped me dead cold as child, even if I was from the deep south.
posted by Muddler at 2:31 PM on February 16, 2007

Sody pop, damnit!
posted by lekvar at 2:37 PM on February 16, 2007

As a child, I thought all soda was Coke, and would get angry when I ordered it in a restaurant and was never asked "What Kind?" -- but I don't know if that was a Southern California thing or a me being an idiot thing.

I will say that people seem to drink Coke exclusively in Southern California, and there is a helluva lot more Pepsi on the east coast than I ever dreamed there would be.

All that said, the fact that there are that many people that say "pop" blows my mind. I only hear people say it every once in a while and it sounds so quaint and weird it makes me laugh every time.
posted by pazazygeek at 2:38 PM on February 16, 2007

The "other" responses are - well, not really "funny", but instructive, as in here's what happens when you conduct your research over the internet. Twelve persons apparently order "penis" when they want a nice cold soft drink. That pales, however, to the whopping 2,504 folks who proudly order a "www.4chan.org".
posted by yhbc at 2:45 PM on February 16, 2007

but I don't know if that was a Southern California thing

A friend who used to work for Coca-Cola mentioned to me once that there are distinct regional preferences for brands and flavors. For example, he mentioned that orangle soda is more popular in the southeastern states and ginger ale (as a stand-alone drink, as opposed to a mixer with alcohol) in New England than elsewhere in the U.S. A flight attendant friend also said that planes are stocked with a higher percentage of ginger ale for flights leaving and heading to Boston's Logan airport.
posted by ericb at 2:46 PM on February 16, 2007

The fucking stupidity of saying "I'll take a Pepsi Coke" would have stopped me dead cold as child, even if I was from the deep south.

No it wouldn't, because it would be the way everybody talked and thus completely normal. But since you're not, it seems strange, and therefore (if you're of a particular personality type) fucking stupid. "Look, that person is different from me! HA-ha!"

it sounds so quaint and weird it makes me laugh every time.

"Look, that person is different from me! HA-ha!"

Also, this is a double post. Same title, even.
posted by languagehat at 2:49 PM on February 16, 2007

White people drink carbonated beverages like this.

Black people drink carbonated beverages like this.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 2:50 PM on February 16, 2007

I rise in defense of the south, even though I say Soda.

This "Pepsi coke" and "Dr. Pepper Coke" is a bunch of slander. Nobody is going to ask for a "Dr. Pepper Coke" any more than they're going to ask for a "Pepsi Pop" or "RC Cola Soda". (Or, for that matter, a Charmin Kleenex). The generic is just that - for the labeling of all soda-type-beverages. When going from general to specific, you always drop the generic label for the name brand.

"I'd like a coke"
"What Kind?"
"Dr. Pepper, please."
posted by absalom at 2:58 PM on February 16, 2007

No matter what you call it, one odd twist is that seemingly everyone says "coke machine" regardless of what it sells.
posted by George_Spiggott at 3:06 PM on February 16, 2007 [1 favorite]

The proper dialog is:

"I'm hot, grab a coke from the fridge"
"Pepsi, or Mountain Dew?"

Nobody says Pepsi-coke that I've ever hear
posted by Megafly at 3:09 PM on February 16, 2007

Yeah. I guess I still don't get the logic behind calling everything a Coke. I can sorta understand calling all colas "coke". (When I'm at a restaurant I'll order a Coke, meaning a cola, but specifically Coke, if they have it, because Pepsi's just not the same, dammit.... Or I'll order a Sprite, and have them bring me whatever the brand of clear citrusy soda is....) But Mt. Dew is not Coke. It's Mt. Dew.
posted by Green Eyed Monster at 3:21 PM on February 16, 2007

Also, when did diet soda become the default? I've ordered a Coke at restaurants, and half the time they bring me diet without asking. Another quarter of the time, they will ask me if I mean diet. "diet, right?" as opposed to "regular, right?" Am I the only person not drinking diet soda? There must be others, I drink a lot of Coke, but nearly enough to support the entire regular Coke market by myself...

P.S. no they are not hinting that I need to be on a diet. or at least they frickin' better not be.
posted by Green Eyed Monster at 3:26 PM on February 16, 2007

Around here if you order a "coke" at a restaurant, and they serve Pepsi, they will ask you if Pepsi is ok instead.......
posted by peewinkle at 3:36 PM on February 16, 2007

I use the word coke for any carbonated beverage. The word soda gives me the creeps.
posted by LoriFLA at 3:36 PM on February 16, 2007

Ha, this is actually a Triple! It is a great link though.
posted by supertremendus at 3:43 PM on February 16, 2007

Yeah, mostly they say they have Pepsi products.
posted by Green Eyed Monster at 3:46 PM on February 16, 2007

Thanks God several people chimed in that this is a double.

Save me from the doubles!
posted by aerotive at 3:57 PM on February 16, 2007

In La. they say coke. For the record, when we order a coke, nobody has ever asked me what kind, if they dont have coke, they will ask if Pepsi will do. That Pepsi-Coke shit is crock of shit. I say soda and that refers to whatever caramel-colored, artificially-sweetened, highly carbonated beverage that you have in stock. Fuck!
(I've also been told that I sound like I am from the New England area, maybe that has something to do with it)
posted by winks007 at 4:07 PM on February 16, 2007

Second most popular of the 'other' responses was 'Luigi is hotter than Mario'

I call this 'busted'.
posted by Frasermoo at 4:23 PM on February 16, 2007

I'd imagine that the tendency to refer to caramel-colored soft drinks as 'coke' is similar to the tendency to refer to any tissue as 'kleenex' or to a printed copy as a 'xerox.'

I use 'soft drink' to refer to Coke and Pepsi products generally. But if I want a Coke, I ask for a Coke. I would never use 'Coke' to refer to Pepsi. That's a sacrilege.
posted by inconsequentialist at 4:49 PM on February 16, 2007

In the category of weird and annoying lies "soda". What, like bicarbonate of soda to settle your tummy? Ok grandpa...
posted by scheptech at 5:06 PM on February 16, 2007

i'm still waiting for 'whipping shitties' to catch on:

http://cfprod01.imt.uwm.edu/Dept/FLL/linguistics/dialect/staticmaps/q_77.html
posted by breakfast_yeti at 5:13 PM on February 16, 2007 [1 favorite]

A percussionist I jam with is a transplant from Madison, Wisconsin, to te CA Bay Area, and he seems to take particular pleasure in ordering a "pop," pronounced "paaaa-hhhh-p," and making a big deal about it being OK 'cuse he's from Madison. Of course, nobody really cares, but he seems to like making the point.
posted by lekvar at 6:30 PM on February 16, 2007

The question is moot for me. I'm having a beer.
posted by A dead Quaker at 8:05 PM on February 16, 2007

Next up:

Tastes Fillng vs. Less Great
posted by mmrtnt at 8:17 PM on February 16, 2007

Whenever I'm in Metropolis I drink Soder Cola. I don't know what those goofballs in Gotham call it.
...or is this the wrong universe?
posted by Smedleyman at 8:48 PM on February 16, 2007

I'm conflicted about NJ, my former home state, but I have to say, this response on the NJ page was too perfect: "I say "Coke" for everything....even when I want a 7-Up or Hawaiian Punch. I also ask for "Jack Daniels" when I want Bacardi, a "Big Mac" when I actually want a taco, and an "Apple" when I have a craving for steak. Makes perfect sense, doesn't it?"

My story's a little weird. Born in the District of Columbia; first year of live in suburban Virginia; ages 1-9 in suburban Maryland; 9-15 in Austin, TX; 15-16 in central Illinois; 16-21 in North Carolina; 21-31 in all three states of the NYC metro Tri-State area; 31-32 (present) in Baltimore, MD.

So, my verdict? Soda FTW. All other words are nothing short of retarded. Thank you.
posted by CommonSense at 8:55 PM on February 16, 2007

Pop is a verb.
posted by Eideteker at 9:02 PM on February 16, 2007

Born in Minneapolis, and having gone to school in Madison, the distinction between "pop" and "soda" was significant, as all the Sconnies I met called it soda and I called it pop.

But even more significant was the term "bubbler", which these fascinating trogloditic sub-humans - not content to simply crudely refer to carbonated beverages as "soda" - also called what we typically refer to as a "drinking fountain".

In my five years among these barbarians, I never quite mastered their dog-like barking language. Though their ways of drinking quickly grew on me.
posted by mammary16 at 9:58 PM on February 16, 2007

Double? More like a triple.

And a very old one, at that.
posted by allkindsoftime at 9:15 AM on February 17, 2007

Growing in ND and now living in MN, anyone that uses the term soda sounds odd to my ears. And from the lips of some pretentious twits, it comes off as affected.
posted by Ber at 10:00 AM on February 17, 2007

Yeah. I guess I still don't get the logic behind calling everything a Coke.

It's just as logical as calling everything soda, even when it doesn't have sodium bicarbonate in it. Or calling everything pop, when it is in fact not your father nor is it infused with flatus. Or calling everything bliznorp or cruggles or smapdi or whatever other word might be used for that class of beverages. Nouns don't need to be logically derived from something else.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 11:25 AM on February 17, 2007

The British call it "whiffle-butter."
posted by mammary16 at 11:34 AM on February 17, 2007

A verbatim transcript:

Mom: "I am going to the store. Do you want me to pick up anything?"
Me: "Can you pick up some cokes?"
Mom: "What kind?"
Me: "A Diet Coke and a ginger ale."

We are Tennesseans.

Seconding othera that it's a similar situation to using kleenex and dumpster... both of which are product names.

Probably has something to to with Atlanta being the headquarters of Coca-Cola, and prevalence of their bottling companies in the South.
posted by kimdog at 12:03 PM on February 17, 2007

I agree with the conclusion on the page. ; )

(it's POP, dammit!)
posted by SisterHavana at 4:26 PM on February 17, 2007

I live in pop-land, but I call it soda. I have managed this for 13 years. The hick-term has not yet infected my brain.
It is called soda. Soda. Soda. Soda.
posted by oflinkey at 5:45 PM on February 17, 2007

In Tulsa, we used all three interchangably without malice or favor.

Behold! I have blown your mind with this fact.
posted by dw at 9:45 AM on February 18, 2007