Every couple of weeks, I travel to somewhere in Oklahoma—always to a restaurant I have never been but always wanted to try. Sometimes it’s an eatery that is completely under the radar, and sometimes it’s a viral sensation that gets massive buzz… but this time it’s kind of both.
You see, this weekend my wife and I went to Pops 66 Soda Ranch, Arcadia’s state-of-the-fizz soda outlet at 660 W. Route 66 on—where else—Route 66. Sadly, I had only been to the now-defunct Pops in Nichols Hills around 10 years ago, so we were revving to go check out the original.
It was a clear, bright Saturday afternoon and I was getting hungrier as I drove down the backroads to the very small town of Arcadia. As we entered the city limits a few miles down the road, I could smell the charbroiled burgers and, even if it was in my head, the carbonated bubbles of sugary, fizzy soda-water.
Passing the elaborate 66 ft. soda bottle that waves down every car on the road looking for soda pop, premium gas, or both, we parked and saw the out-of-place glass behemoth that is Pops, looking like a tonic-based Fortress of Solitude in the middle of nowhere.
But the inside was different, as there was no solitude to be had. The place was shoulder-to-shoulder, and bumper-to-bumper, with prospective customers carrying sleeves of homemade six-packs, old-timey candy, and $50 commemorative sweatshirts, while the other half of the place were waiting for a table for real diner food.
We immediately got a table alongside the glass window, just outside of the restaurant and into the actual store.
As our cheerful waitperson took our drink order—a vaunted Cheerwine for me, a Pops-branded root beer for my wife—we planned to look around, but a line developed next to us, so we decided to wait for it to slow down.
It didn’t.
Instead, we ordered our meals—Oklahoma diner classics—and talked about all the souvenirs on display near our table, including Pops shot-glasses, Day-Glo sweatshirts, and novelty license plates (I know what my wife’s getting for Christmas)!
After a few minutes, our food arrived. My wife had the Okie Noodler ($13.99), named for the Okie-based hand-fishing fad. It was, for all intents and purposes, four deep-fried catfish fillets, dusted in Cajun seasoning.
With exceptional fried okra on the side, this meal was pretty good. The fish had a golden-brown hue that looked great, but the flavor fell a little flat, with the Cajun seasoning doing all the work. More of that, please!
I had the signature Pops Burger ($15.99). Featuring two Angus beef patties as the main star, it was supported with American cheese, smoked bacon, fried onions, jalapeños, and topped off with Pops BBQ sauce.
Complemented by my choice of potato chips—bad call—the well-done burger delivered about what you'd expect for a diner. What really powered the thing was the Pops BBQ sauce, a sweet-heat addition that punched up the burger with unexpected flavor.
The crowd momentarily parting, we left our jackets and toured the amazing selection of ice-cold sodas. We’re talking everything from root beer and cream sodas to orange, red, and blue drinks, regular colas to top-shelf one-offs, and, of course, name-brand pop and esoteric small batches—they had them all!
My wife and I picked up the Dublin Fru-Fru Berry Soda, Hosmer’s Red Lightning, and Dang! Butterscotch Root Beer to try at home later—but in the moment, the best-looking thing on the menu hit our table: the Root Beer Bread Pudding ($8.99) with a scoop of ice cream ($2.50).
This was a truly magical dish—root beer-flavored, raisin-plumped bready-cake with a double scoop of tasty vanilla ice cream—and it filled me with no regrets about lunch. As a matter of fact, when you come to Pops, forget dinner and save your calories for dessert!
No doubt Pops is an Oklahoma bucket-list item—for the bustling atmosphere, the tasty desserts, and, of course, the coldest soda by the longneck bottle. On a bright day along Route 66, it’s exactly the kind of roadside stop worth pulling over for. Pop a top and pop a squat, partner.
Cómpralo ya!
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Follow Louis Fowler on Instagram at @louisfowler78.
