We Don’t Have Coke
I am never early for anything in my life. And I’m barely ever on time. Late. Late. Late. So when I arrived at my friend Whitney’s bridal shower at exactly 11 am—showered, hung over, and pleased with my sexy parking spot with 51 minutes already stacked in the meter—I was of course, very proud of myself. Then I tried to open the door and it was locked. Yea, Farmers & Fishers wasn’t open. Panic. The manager came over and unlocked the door.
Manager: “We’re not open yet, we open at 11:30.”
Me: <Took a step back, swinging head from side to side, am I at the right restaurant? What day is it? Am I that hung over? Fuck.> “Um.”
Manager: “Are you here for the bridal shower.”
Me: <Phew!!!> “Yes.”
Manager: “It doesn’t start until 12. But you’re welcome to sit at the bar and wait.”
Me: <Are you FUCKING KIDDING ME?!?! The bar! I can’t even look at alcohol. Kill me.> Oh man. I’m never early for anything. Thanks. And where can I get some change for my meter?”
Manager: “The bar.”
After feeding the meter, I play on my iPhone for an hour (at the seat next to the host stand), mostly flipping through pictures of magnificent dresses on the Style.com app. When we get in the private room I’m offered wine. Instead I ask for a Coke.
Server: “We don’t have Coke…”
Me: <Giving a WTF look. Pepsi blows.>
Server: “…Is RC Cola okay?”
Me:<Change the pisted WTF-look for a more quizzical WTF-look.> “Sure.”
RC Cola? Whaaa?
I haven’t seen RC Cola since I was on the elementary school birthday party circuit and someone’s parents wouldn’t shell out the, um, extra 40 cents for Coke and instead bought this cheap RC Cola crap.
The server brought out a few glass bottles of RC Cola. Glass bottles? I have never seen the cola outside of a 2 liter plastic bottle and now it’s at a nice restaurant on the Georgetown Waterfront in freaking glass bottles.
So I’m thinking — is this a new trend? Remember when bars started selling Natty Bo and Schlitz cans at bars for some sort of play on irony? Or whatever. Well, maybe this is a new iteration of honoring the low class. If meatloaf and other traditional homey, cheap meals have become the popular choice for dinner, than maybe this frugality has infiltrated the drink market as well?
But now I’m dying to know if anyone else has seen a sudden recurrence of RC Cola? Talk to me.
The gas station next to my house has 20 oz. RC bottles for 70 cents, and I often get that if I just want a cheap soda fix, even though it’s not particularly good. They also have a bunch of antique sodas, but since their RC is in plastic as opposed glass, it doesn’t seem to be part of that trend. That’s the only place I see it though. The grocery stores and even the dollar stores have their own off brands…I think RC’s new niche is the “random location” sale.
SNOB.
RC Cola is a far superior soda to Coke & Pepsi. Just because it doesn’t have the market share that large multi-nationals have does not make it low class. Snob, indeed.
I guess it depends on where you are. I generally associate it with small town restaurants here in the South, where it’s remained steadily popular forever. I remember liking it more than Coke or Pepsi when I was a kid. It mixes with Bourbon in a rather pleasant fashion. 🙂
I’ve seen RC vending machines, old signs, new signs, etc. There’s even an RC and Moon Pie festival in Bell Buckle, TN:
http://www.bellbucklechamber.com/rcmoon.html
As I understand it, the drink originates and is still popular in the south. Something about the formula being flatter. Whether that helps it pair with moonpies or the climate better, I’m unsure.
The increase in distribution may be because RC has gone through the acquisition ring over the last 10 years, and is currently owned by Dr. Pepper, so they have the big company there to push the product.
Never triEd rc.
An hour early?? There’s another leg pulling story