Americans and Canadians culture Q&A Thread.

[Buzz Rules]

Okay, now that we got the fluff questions out of the way, here is a big one...

Soda, Pop, or Soft Drink?

Soda=Pop, Soft Drink=milk/juice/water

 

[prairie_girl]

Canadians/Americans, will you be tuning into the big WCQ games on Friday and Tuesday ( or my WCQ thread for updates)? I wanted to ask this here because I keep hearing Canada media is making a big deal about the games and I’m curious if it’s true. Please don’t throw a tomato at me prairie_girl. *ducks behind a soccer goal*.

Haven’t heard about it at all and I actively watch sports programs and follow several on Twitter.

 

[prairie_girl]

Soda=Pop, Soft Drink=milk/juice/water

you call milk and water a soft drink??

 

[Wendy31]

I’ve never ever heard anyone in my life ever refer to milk or water as a soft drink.

Even here in the South where all soft drinks are cokes.

 

[Buzz Rules]

Haven’t heard about it at all and I actively watch sports programs and follow several on Twitter.

Your radio stations (TSN) keep talking about the games and your news stations as well (see my other thread for examples). I see sports writers retweet Www.Twitter.com/Canadasocceren posts.

 

[Buzz Rules]

you call milk and water a soft drink??

In the USA restaurants it’s listed as such. Soda is as well, but I just don’t think of it as one.

 

[Frozen Canuck]

you call milk and water a soft drink??

Yeah, milk and water are not soft drinks in my book...

Okay, now that we got the fluff questions out of the way, here is a big one...

Soda, Pop, or Soft Drink?

The soda/pop debate is old news.

You should see what some areas of the US do when it comes to milk shakes vs. chocolate milk. Taken from the internet,

"According to the American Heritage College Dictionary, a milkshake is a “a beverage that is made of milk, ice cream, and often flavoring and is blended or whipped until foamy.” Unless you live in New England, where a milkshake would never include ice cream. Adding ice cream makes it a “frappe” drink. "

So, yeah. You read that right. Chocolate milk is a milk shake (in the area that we currently live), but if you want a chocolate milkshake, then you would need to be ordering a frappe.

 

[Buzz Rules]

I’ve never ever heard anyone in my life ever refer to milk or water as a soft drink.

Even here in the South where all soft drinks are cokes.

It’s 50/50 where I live.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

you call milk and water a soft drink??

As long as there is no alcohol mixed in, they are indeed soft drinks.

 

[Buzz Rules]

Haven’t heard about it at all and I actively watch sports programs and follow several on Twitter.

Examples:
https://www.tsn.ca/radio/edmonton-1...ey-got-booed-off-the-bus-in-toronto-1.1719173

 

[seshat0120]

So, yeah. You read that right. Chocolate milk is a milk shake (in the area that we currently live), but if you want a chocolate milkshake, then you would need to be ordering a frappe.

As a lifelong New Englander, I can tell you that a milkshake and chocolate milk are not the same. Chocolate milk is milk that has syrup stirred in...it's still the consistency of milk. A milkshake is milk and syrup that is (as the name describes) shaken until it takes on a creamy consistency and has foam. A frappe does, indeed, have icecream added to the milk and syrup. So, they're three individual beverages - chocolate milk, milkshake, and frappe.

 

[tvguy]

In the USA restaurants it’s listed as such. Soda is as well, but I just don’t think of it as one.

I just checked the online menus of two of my favorite restaurants and they list BEVERAGES which includes soda, coffee, milk, smoothies, milk shakes, beer, wine and cocktails.

 

[Buzz Rules]

I just checked the online menus of two of my favorite restaurants and they list BEVERAGES which includes soda, coffee, milk, smoothies, milk shakes, beer, wine and cocktails.

Like I said, I’ve seen soft drinks listed different ways.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

It's called pop around here

A soft drink I have never seen used to describe milk juice or water. Soft Drink in menus usually has it's own thing where they list off what they have. Milk and juice or water are listed separately from that IME.

Around here a common question is "do you have coke or pepsi" to which that does not just mean Coca-Cola or Pepsi but rather what products you have. Sometimes it is asked or said by the waiter/waitress "we have coke products" (for example). That means they would have Coca-Cola, Sprite, Fanta, etc. If you said Pepsi products that means they would have Pepsi, Sierra Mist, Mountain Dew, etc.

Dr Pepper is most of the time what I order (aside from Coke Zero or Sprite) and in that case it's "do you have Dr. Pepper" as the question asked and most of the time they do and if they don't the normally thought of somewhat of an equivalent Pibb Extra (still often referred to as Mr. Pibb) is usually available.

 

[ronandannette]

Canadians/Americans, will you be tuning into the big WCQ games on Friday and Tuesday ( or my WCQ thread for updates)? I wanted to ask this here because I keep hearing Canada media is making a big deal about the games and I’m curious if it’s true. Please don’t throw a tomato at me prairie_girl. *ducks behind a soccer goal*.

Nope, not a snowball's chance, even though I do have a hole in my schedule. The Raptors aren't playing either of those nights.

Okay, now that we got the fluff questions out of the way, here is a big one...

Soda, Pop, or Soft Drink?

I've never met a Canadian alive that called it anything other than pop, except maybe as an affectation.

I’ve never ever heard anyone in my life ever refer to milk or water as a soft drink.

Even here in the South where all soft drinks are cokes.

That is just so bizarre; I didn't know it before I saw it discussed here on the DIS. Do you know what the origin of it is?

 

[tarheelmjfan]

True but I was just talking about the interest level of Americans. Find a pic of the 2018 U.S. men's team and you'll know what I'm talking about and all the news stories about it. The dad bods were all anyone could talk about lol at least around here. The interest level skyrocketed and suddenly all of us were glued to our TV, there was a relatable factor. Like I said in my last comment about great skill of course it takes that. Don't take my comment as anything more than explaining how curling got huge attention here in the U.S

I get what you're saying about the players being relatable. I think it was probably the 2014 Olympics when DH really got into curling. He loved that they looked like a bunch of ordinary people out having fun. I'm pretty sure the majority of them were at least two sheets to the wind, if not three, which was the only thing I found entertaining about it. We weren't able to watch as much of the Olympics in 2018, so I don't know if things had changed much. If they have, DH will probably be disappointed. He's looking forward to watching curling again, but I'm not sure he'll like it, if the participants are now all finely tuned athletes.

I’ve never ever heard anyone in my life ever refer to milk or water as a soft drink.

Even here in the South where all soft drinks are cokes.

Not necessarily. I'm from the mountains of NC. Everyone I know says soft drinks. The only time people say Coke is if they specifically want Coke or want a cola drink & assume the establishment serves only Coke products. I've never heard anyone call a non-Cola drink a Coke. The same is true of my relatives in East TN, but that could be a holdover from where my niece grew up.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Yeah, milk and water are not soft drinks in my book...



The soda/pop debate is old news.

You should see what some areas of the US do when it comes to milk shakes vs. chocolate milk. Taken from the internet,

"According to the American Heritage College Dictionary, a milkshake is a “a beverage that is made of milk, ice cream, and often flavoring and is blended or whipped until foamy.” Unless you live in New England, where a milkshake would never include ice cream. Adding ice cream makes it a “frappe” drink. "

So, yeah. You read that right. Chocolate milk is a milk shake (in the area that we currently live), but if you want a chocolate milkshake, then you would need to be ordering a frappe.

Interesting. I'd never heard that before.

 

[Frozen Canuck]

I've never met a Canadian alive that called it anything other than pop, except maybe as an affectation.

Obviously!!! Otherwise, why would they have called it Pic-a-Pop???

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

He loved that they looked like a bunch of ordinary people out having fun.

Exactly!

 

[Wendy31]

Nope, not a snowball's chance, even though I do have a hole in my schedule. The Raptors aren't playing either of those nights.

I've never met a Canadian alive that called it anything other than pop, except maybe as an affectation.

That is just so bizarre; I didn't know it before I saw it discussed here on the DIS. Do you know what the origin of it is?

I’m not sure… it’s been that way all my life. The original Coca Cola was invented (made?) in Atlanta, GA, in the late 1880s, so maybe that’s why. Additionally, one of the original Coca Cola bottling companies (maybe even the 1st if I’m remembering my local history correctly) is in the city where we live, so Coke is very regional & traditional for us in this area.

But it’s always been a long-standing colloquialism of the South - that all soft drinks are cokes. And, even if not everyone refers to soft drinks as cokes, it’s still considered to be a southern “quirk,” that everyone likes to fondly poke fun of, if that makes sense.

”What do you want to drink?”

”I’ll have a coke.”

”What kind?”

“Sprite.”

Or…

“We’re having a party. Can y’all bring the cokes?”

”Sure… do you think just Cokes, Diet Cokes, & Sprites will be good, or should I also bring something else?”

I mean, I personally have never gone to a restaurant & ordered a Coke when I wanted something else, but it’s not uncommon to hear something like “What kind of cokes do y’all have?”

If I’m making a list for a party or something, I’ll write “soft drinks,” but a lot of others in this area would probably say “cokes” as a drink category.

Some of the older generation, especially in southern Appalachia, will still sometimes say “so-dee” or “so-dee pop.”

You’ll also sometimes hear ”cola,” & my mother-in-law sometimes say “Co-cola.” When we’re visiting, she’ll say to the kids, “Y’all go get you a drink. I’ve got some co-colas in the fridge.” And she may or may not actually have Cokes in her refrigerator. She often has orange & grape flavored soft drinks, but no actual Cokes.

But, as the older generation passes away, those terms are becoming less & less common.

However, it’s never ever “pop” - that’s one of the 1st tells for “You’re not from around here, are you?” ;-)