An authentic replication of an old-style American soda pop shop transposed in the modern era, the Soda Fountain of Venice is a great place to get a bite to eat and a glimpse of a previous age.
Photo by RYAN WASSERMAN
From the second you open the door, the aged atmosphere hits you like a wave. Light and old-timey décor adds to the festive atmosphere the restaurant radiates, and helps draw customers from cities around. From vintage soda signs to old-fashioned household tools, the owners have done much to make the shop look as much at home in the 1950s as it does in the twenty-first century. The restaurant has line booths all circling around an authentically-styled metal bar with a phosphate soda dispensing fountain.
The front facade has a time appropriate entranceway, with a grand awning printed with the restaurant’s name and massive pane windows and double doors. Just to the right of the doors is a large display case housing many vintage trinkets and accessories.
Next to the restaurant is Vinnie’s Pizzeria, The Soda Fountain’s sister restaurant. Items from the pizzeria can still be ordered while at the other shop as well, complimenting its already massive menu.
The food at The Soda Fountain is excellent. The restaurant primarily serves deli and diner foods such as sandwiches and salads, but also serve quite a few other entre options. The sandwiches are excellent, and named with quirky, fun old-style names such as “Edison’s Delight” or “The Gangster” . The star attraction is the $12 Dagwood Sandwich, a massive pile of meat, cheese, bread, lettuce and tomato. However, some of the meals served are a bit expensive.
The Soda Fountain’s main attraction is the phosphate sodas, from which it gets its name. They are carbonated beverages in the old style of phosphate-based carbonation. There are a large selection of these to choose from, and can be made in combinations to produce hybrids. There are also available a selection of ice cream drinks and sundaes, with almost as many individual ice cream flavors as soda flavors. There are recommended combinations of soda and ice cream for each individual desert beverage, but any flavor combination can be made at request.
The Soda Fountain was made to be a call back to a happy past of community, friendship, and soda, and it serves its purpose remarkably well. The food is excellent, the people are nice, and the shop is splendid.
Rating: 4.5/5 Torches