Devoted to the art of soda pop and supporting the small businesses behind each bubbly drink, Galco’s Soda Pop Stop features more than 500 flavors of soda at its Los Angeles storefront and nationwide through its website at www.sodapopstop.com.
Beginning in 1897 as an Italian grocery store, Galco’s changed “flavors” when son John F. Nese took helm of his father’s store in 1995 and lined the shelves with classic, small-batch, exotic and hard-to-find sodas. With a mission to support small soda makers, Galco’s motto is “Freedom of Choice” which mirrors Nese’s determination that customers have the right to choose from more than just a handful of mass-produced, big-business selections.
Today, sodas from all over the world can be found at Galco’s – brewed from Brazil to Jamaica, from Germany to Australia – and sought out traditional brands that use 50s, 60s and 70s recipes with cane sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup. Walking the aisle, sodaphiles can find flavors as diverse as cucumber, coconut and rose petals as well as traditional colas, ginger beers and sarsaparillas that are brewed by hard-to-find smaller bottlers. Galco’s features 450 unique micro beers, 60 types of bottled water, a selection of old-time candies and toys as well as a complete deli and its famed “Blockbuster” sandwich.
Does anyone know a good place to buy unusual beers? We have gotten to love a beer called Wreck Alley. Sometimes Ralphs or Vons has it sometimes not. The liquor guy doesn't even know it. Bev Mo no longer carries it and either does Green Jug.