Regional Subtleties

elSicomoro · 11-03-2002, 01:20 AM

I've traveled enough of the US to notice "the little things" that change as you move from one region to another. This became more apparent when I was in Boston last weekend.

In Massachusetts, you might do your grocery shopping at Shaw's or Super Stop and Shop. You can find Red Fusion in a 2 liter bottle, and you can actually redeem your plastic soda bottles for cash. You can order a lobster omelette a restaurant named Bickford's. You'll pay about $1.60 a gallon for gas, and bowling alleys have both standard lanes and lanes for candle pin bowling.

In Philadelphia, I do my grocery shopping at Acme or Super Fresh. I can only find Red Fusion in cans and 20 ounce bottles, but I can buy a Dr. Pepper at McDonald's...and we have several sodas made by Canada Dry. Ginger ale seems incredibly popular in the northeast, while it's not as prevalent back in St. Louis. I can order a pork roll omelette at IHOP, and I pay about $1.40 a gallon for gas.

In Southern Illinois, you can still buy the "new" Coke (or Coke II, as it is now known). You can also buy sodas named Double Cola and Ski. There are several fast food chains in St. Louis that we don't have in Philadelphia, like Jack in the Box, Sonic, Long John Silvers, and Fazoli's.

What have you seen in your travels?

juju · 11-03-2002, 02:18 AM

I've noticed that in other cities they often have the same commercials as in my city, only the guy from Arkansas is chopped out, and there's like this other guy on there, talking about how he's locally owned and operated, or whatever.

I dunno where they get off stealing our commercials, but the least they could do is not chop out our local celebrities!

elSicomoro · 11-03-2002, 02:31 AM

That got me thinking about May Department Stores commercials, and how they're all the same...all they do is change the name of the store depending on the area.

Tobiasly · 11-03-2002, 10:51 PM

Syc, have you heard the commercials for the Shane Company jewelers in St. Louis? You know, with the incredibly dry and monotonous Tom Shane being your Friend In The Diamond Business?

I thought there was only one of those stores, in Louisville (where I live) until I went to school in Missouri. Then I heard the exact same commercial as they have here, except instead of ending with "on the corner of Hurstborne Lane and Taylorsville Road", it ended with whatever their location is there.

It was kinda surreal because I had one of those moments kinda like where you think you see someone you know, except then you realize oops, no, I know that person from a city 400 miles from here.

elSicomoro · 11-04-2002, 06:51 AM

Tob, really? *looks at their website* I always thought they were just another St. Louis jewelry store. Interesting...they have 22 stores. Their St. Louis store is at the Promenade in Brentwood.

Where did you go to school at in St. Louis?

I used to see commercials for this place called the Jewelry Factory in Bethesda, MD...it talked about what they did, showed their location, and their staff outside the store waving. I thought this was merely a local DC joint, until I saw commercials here in Philadelphia for The Jewelry Factory in Norristown, PA (set up in the same way as the one in MD). Last weekend, I saw a commercial in the Boston area for the same place (though it had a slightly different name).

In other interesting differences:

--I've never seen scrapple or pork roll in St. Louis, though many of you that have never been to St. Louis or Chicago may be baffled by the "pork steak."

--Until I went to Chicago (and we have it in Philadelphia too), I never knew that Diet Rite came in 900 flavors other than Cola.

--In St. Louis, there is a local soda company called Vess, that makes about 8000 different flavors of soda, including knockoffs like Dr. Schnee (their version of Dr. Pepper), and more unusual soda flavors, like peach.

--In DC, Dr. Pepper products are distributed by Pepsi. Here in Philadelphia, they are distributed by Coke. In St. Louis, they are distributed directly by Dr. Pepper-Seven Up.

--In the midwest (particularly places like Indiana and Ohio, IIRC), there is a popular red creme soda called Big Red. I haven't seen a red creme soda here in Philadelphia yet (though we have white creme soda, like Barq's).

--When I lived in St. Louis, the only times I ever saw Fanta sodas were generally in a Coke soda fountain. When I started traveling outside St. Louis, I saw several flavors in cans (and they make like 8000 varieties too). Now, I'm seeing it in places here in Philadelphia in 20 oz. bottles.

perth · 11-04-2002, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tobiasly
Syc, have you heard the commercials for the Shane Company jewelers in St. Louis? You know, with the incredibly dry and monotonous Tom Shane being your Friend In The Diamond Business?

I thought there was only one of those stores, in Louisville (where I live) until I went to school in Missouri. Then I heard the exact same commercial as they have here, except instead of ending with "on the corner of Hurstborne Lane and Taylorsville Road", it ended with whatever their location is there.

It was kinda surreal because I had one of those moments kinda like where you think you see someone you know, except then you realize oops, no, I know that person from a city 400 miles from here.

theres more than one? those fuckers!

~james

Tobiasly · 11-04-2002, 12:16 PM

Quote:

I always thought they were just another St. Louis jewelry store.

Quote:

theres more than one? those fuckers!

Exactly! They insiduously try to give you the impression that they're this little family-owned shop in Your Hometown that has been quietly importing their wares directly from Antwerp for generations, to give you the best deals in town.

...well, I guess it worked, because my wife and I got her engagement ring and both our wedding sets there!

Tobiasly · 11-04-2002, 12:23 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by sycamore
Where did you go to school at in St. Louis?

I went to Southeast Missouri State in Cape Girardeau.. I had friends who lived in St. Louis that I'd go visit every now and then.

Quote:

In the midwest (particularly places like Indiana and Ohio, IIRC), there is a popular red creme soda called Big Red. I haven't seen a red creme soda here in Philadelphia yet (though we have white creme soda, like Barq's).

Yeah, that stuff's like crack for people who like it. They serve it at all the White Castles around here. I'm not that big a fan of it, but one of my coworkers from our Chicago office brings back cases of the stuff whenever he's in town.

elSicomoro · 11-04-2002, 02:27 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tobiasly
I went to Southeast Missouri State in Cape Girardeau.. I had friends who lived in St. Louis that I'd go visit every now and then.

My bad on the St. Louis thing...I must have mixed up the commercial with the school comment.

Holy shit! I went to SEMO for 3 semesters (1994-95)...was an RA (or as they call it now--Community Advisor) in Myers Hall for a semester.

Cape was an interesting place, but boring as could be. Then I discovered that the school sucked for my major and high-tailed it back to St. Louis for the rest of my collegiate studies.

Quote:

Yeah, that stuff's like crack for people who like it. They serve it at all the White Castles around here. I'm not that big a fan of it, but one of my coworkers from our Chicago office brings back cases of the stuff whenever he's in town.

I miss Big Red. They used to sell it (and Big Peach) in one liter bottles at QuikTrip. I used to drink that (and Dr. Pepper) like water.

Unfortunately, my mom couldn't bring any thing like Big Red, or Schlafly Oatmeal Stout, or Jack in the Box tacos out here 2 weeks ago. Damnit! Now I have to wait until I go back to St. Louis, which at this point should be around the 12th of Never.

Cam · 11-04-2002, 03:01 PM

One of my friends love this drink called Hawaiian Treat,(I think that's what it's called if I'm wrong sorry). You can't buy it in North Dakota but when some other friends went home to Minneapolis they brought back a bunch for him. I had never heard of it before I came to school.

perth · 11-04-2002, 03:03 PM

hawaiian punch maybe?

~james

elSicomoro · 11-04-2002, 03:13 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Cam
One of my friends love this drink called Hawaiian Treat,(I think that's what it's called if I'm wrong sorry). You can't buy it in North Dakota but when some other friends went home to Minneapolis they brought back a bunch for him. I had never heard of it before I came to school.

I've never heard of that, but I've heard of Tahitian Treat (made by Canada Dry) and Hawaiian Punch.

Tobiasly · 11-05-2002, 11:08 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by sycamore
Holy shit! I went to SEMO for 3 semesters (1994-95)...was an RA (or as they call it now--Community Advisor) in Myers Hall for a semester.

Cape was an interesting place, but boring as could be. Then I discovered that the school sucked for my major and high-tailed it back to St. Louis for the rest of my collegiate studies.

Whoa, that is pretty freaky! I went there from 93 until 97. I lived on floor 2 of Towers South all four years though.

Cape pretty much sucked all possible ass, as far as a college town went. We're talking the big shiny buckle itself of the Bible Belt here, folks. There wasn't a bar within miles of the campus. "Interesting" I guess is a good adjective for it, but not in a good way!

elSicomoro · 11-06-2002, 09:49 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tobiasly
Whoa, that is pretty freaky! I went there from 93 until 97. I lived on floor 2 of Towers South all four years though.

Aw shit...we're going to have to start swapping Cape stories now.

I'm sorry you had to live in South for 4 years.

After Dearmont closed, that officially became the worst on campus...well, except for maybe the old football dorm on Greek Row. I lived in West my first year on campus (right after the remodel), then got the CA gig in Myers my last semester.

Quote:

Cape pretty much sucked all possible ass, as far as a college town went. We're talking the big shiny buckle itself of the Bible Belt here, folks. There wasn't a bar within miles of the campus. "Interesting" I guess is a good adjective for it, but not in a good way!

Now you know there were several bars along Broadway, right by Houck Field. I'm not saying that you necessarily wanted to go to them, but they were there.

And I'm sure you spent a few nights over at the Purple Crackle.

Several of my mom's friends went there after high school, and at the time (mid-70s), SEMO was the party school. Then, the school cracked down in the mid-80s, and all the party folk took their act to SMSU in Springfield. By the time I got there, it was fucking lame-o. It was starting to get a little better when I left at the end of '95...but apparently not by much.

And it's a great school if you're majoring in nursing, education, or historical preservation. The business program is getting better too. Part of the reason I originally went to SEMO was to get away from St. Louis...and the small town gig was alright...for a while. And if people like that sorta thing, it's cool...just not for me.

I had some great times down there though, most of them involving alcohol.

Cam · 11-07-2002, 11:16 AM

Quote:

I've never heard of that, but I've heard of Tahitian Treat (made by Canada Dry) and Hawaiian Punch.

Ahh that's it. Thanks sycamore

11-03-2002, 01:20 AM	#1
elSicomoro Person who doesn't update the user title Join Date: Jan 2001 Posts: 12,486	Regional Subtleties I've traveled enough of the US to notice "the little things" that change as you move from one region to another. This became more apparent when I was in Boston last weekend. In Massachusetts, you might do your grocery shopping at Shaw's or Super Stop and Shop. You can find Red Fusion in a 2 liter bottle, and you can actually redeem your plastic soda bottles for cash. You can order a lobster omelette a restaurant named Bickford's. You'll pay about $1.60 a gallon for gas, and bowling alleys have both standard lanes and lanes for candle pin bowling. In Philadelphia, I do my grocery shopping at Acme or Super Fresh. I can only find Red Fusion in cans and 20 ounce bottles, but I can buy a Dr. Pepper at McDonald's...and we have several sodas made by Canada Dry. Ginger ale seems incredibly popular in the northeast, while it's not as prevalent back in St. Louis. I can order a pork roll omelette at IHOP, and I pay about $1.40 a gallon for gas. In Southern Illinois, you can still buy the "new" Coke (or Coke II, as it is now known). You can also buy sodas named Double Cola and Ski. There are several fast food chains in St. Louis that we don't have in Philadelphia, like Jack in the Box, Sonic, Long John Silvers, and Fazoli's. What have you seen in your travels?

11-04-2002, 03:01 PM	#10
Cam dripping with ignorance Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Grand Forks ND Posts: 642	One of my friends love this drink called Hawaiian Treat,(I think that's what it's called if I'm wrong sorry). You can't buy it in North Dakota but when some other friends went home to Minneapolis they brought back a bunch for him. I had never heard of it before I came to school. __________________ After the seventh beer I generally try and stay away from the keyboard, I apologize for what happens when I fail.

11-03-2002, 02:18 AM	#2
juju no one of consequence Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Arkansas Posts: 2,839	I've noticed that in other cities they often have the same commercials as in my city, only the guy from Arkansas is chopped out, and there's like this other guy on there, talking about how he's locally owned and operated, or whatever. I dunno where they get off stealing our commercials, but the least they could do is not chop out our local celebrities!

11-03-2002, 02:31 AM	#3
elSicomoro Person who doesn't update the user title Join Date: Jan 2001 Posts: 12,486	That got me thinking about May Department Stores commercials, and how they're all the same...all they do is change the name of the store depending on the area.

11-03-2002, 10:51 PM	#4
Tobiasly hot Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Jeffersonville, IN (near Louisville) Posts: 892	Syc, have you heard the commercials for the Shane Company jewelers in St. Louis? You know, with the incredibly dry and monotonous Tom Shane being your Friend In The Diamond Business? I thought there was only one of those stores, in Louisville (where I live) until I went to school in Missouri. Then I heard the exact same commercial as they have here, except instead of ending with "on the corner of Hurstborne Lane and Taylorsville Road", it ended with whatever their location is there. It was kinda surreal because I had one of those moments kinda like where you think you see someone you know, except then you realize oops, no, I know that person from a city 400 miles from here.

11-04-2002, 06:51 AM	#5
elSicomoro Person who doesn't update the user title Join Date: Jan 2001 Posts: 12,486	Tob, really? looks at their website I always thought they were just another St. Louis jewelry store. Interesting...they have 22 stores. Their St. Louis store is at the Promenade in Brentwood. Where did you go to school at in St. Louis? I used to see commercials for this place called the Jewelry Factory in Bethesda, MD...it talked about what they did, showed their location, and their staff outside the store waving. I thought this was merely a local DC joint, until I saw commercials here in Philadelphia for The Jewelry Factory in Norristown, PA (set up in the same way as the one in MD). Last weekend, I saw a commercial in the Boston area for the same place (though it had a slightly different name). In other interesting differences: --I've never seen scrapple or pork roll in St. Louis, though many of you that have never been to St. Louis or Chicago may be baffled by the "pork steak." --Until I went to Chicago (and we have it in Philadelphia too), I never knew that Diet Rite came in 900 flavors other than Cola. --In St. Louis, there is a local soda company called Vess, that makes about 8000 different flavors of soda, including knockoffs like Dr. Schnee (their version of Dr. Pepper), and more unusual soda flavors, like peach. --In DC, Dr. Pepper products are distributed by Pepsi. Here in Philadelphia, they are distributed by Coke. In St. Louis, they are distributed directly by Dr. Pepper-Seven Up. --In the midwest (particularly places like Indiana and Ohio, IIRC), there is a popular red creme soda called Big Red. I haven't seen a red creme soda here in Philadelphia yet (though we have white creme soda, like Barq's). --When I lived in St. Louis, the only times I ever saw Fanta sodas were generally in a Coke soda fountain. When I started traveling outside St. Louis, I saw several flavors in cans (and they make like 8000 varieties too). Now, I'm seeing it in places here in Philadelphia in 20 oz. bottles.

11-04-2002, 03:03 PM	#11
perth Strong Silent Type Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Posts: 1,949	hawaiian punch maybe? ~james

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