Galco's Soda Pop Stop

When I heard about Galco's Soda Pop Stop, I thought it would be awesome to have freshly made soda.  An old fashioned treat!  But when I showed up I was surprised at what I found.  A soda grocery store.  It is a throwback to the age when every county had its own small soda manufacturer and every town its own beer brewery. This shop carries an immense variety of soda brands from all corners of the US, and as far away as Romania. They have over 500 different sodas in glass bottles and half forgotten candies. They also carry over 450 different beers from around the world and over 60 different types of bottled water.  You'll be amazed at the selection.

The business began as a small Italian grocery store in Los Angeles, California. It has been family owned and operated for over one-hundred years. The focus of the store has changed to soda pop and beer but the Italian deli in the back of our retail store still remains.

The passion for soda began when John F. Nese, the owner,  was a child. His father's best friend owned a soda pop bottling plant where John loved to visit in the 1950's. In 1995 John began increasing his assortment of sodas not only out of love, but also as a protest to some of the larger soda companies that were not offering him the same prices as his larger competitors. He figured why not support other small businesses such as his own? It took a few years, but the idea finally caught on! People started journeying from far away places to get a look at the store with over 400 sodas.

We went and toured the store, looking at the different exotic flavors and the old classics.  We finally decided on two bottles to get to drink from the cold fridge selection.  Grete also decided to get some candy cigarettes and I got a good news bar.  We sat in the deli area and drank our soda.  It was nice having the soda because it was an incredibly hot day.  

 

You will definitely find something you want at this store.  You'll most likely end up buying way more than you intend on buying but it will be a good experience and you will surely be impressed. If you can't get to the store you can order online as well.