Utah’s soda addiction only getting stronger
Utah is known for many things, including the great snow, Zion National Park and Lake Powell. Utah’s dirty soda craze is the newest addition to this list.
“Today, we took 150 to 200 orders probably in an hour,” said Grace Walker, an employee at Whips, a local soda shop. “A lot of moms come through the drive-thru, and they’re regulars. We see them at least once a day. Some even come through twice a day with their kids.”
According to Salt Lake Magazine, one soda shop in Utah, Sodalicious, claimed they sell enough soda in a year to fill an Olympic swimming pool.
So, what started this dirty soda trend that seems to have Utahns obsessed?
“I would trace the craze to when the first Swig was opened. I think that’s when it really started,” Walker said. “It was one of the first shops to open, and now more stores are branching off of it and trying to make it their own.”
Sarah Murphy, former Whips employee and avid Diet Coke fan, agreed Swig was the shop that started it all.
“If I go from Cache County all the way to Utah County, you will find a Swig in almost every city. Same with Sodalicious — those are kind of the ones that started at all,” Murphy said.
Murphy thought the lack of people who drink coffee in Utah played a part in the soda trend.
“So many people don’t drink coffee, and they’ve turned to soda as a substitute,” she said.
Murphy said when she worked at Whips, there was always a line of customers waiting at 8 a.m. to get their fix for the day.
Walker thought the number of teenagers and young adults also played a part in why soda is a huge hit.
“I think because there are so many kids and teenagers here in Utah, it’s just kind of a social thing. Our lobby always has kids coming in during lunch or after school just to get pretzels, cookies and drinks, and just hang out with each other,” Walker said.
Utahns’ obsession with dirty soda blew up on TikTok last year.
Currently, the hashtag #utahsoda has 144.7 million views. Most views are from people outside the state, curious as to why Utahns would add more sugar to an already sugary treat. Others are ready to jump on board.
In a video by @erinqueen2, she shows her followers how to make a “Utah dirty soda.”
In her video, she said, “The people of Utah, they got me.”
The video currently has 4.5 million views and counting. She now has a series of making Utah dirty “sodies.”
On Swig’s official TikTok, they have a video of cars lined up at one of their locations in Texas. The caption reads, “You thought dirty soda was just a Utah thing?”
There are thousands of videos and different hashtags of people in and out of Utah talking about and trying dirty soda.
Walker said it doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon.
“It’s just something that customers get to look forward to,” she said. “It’s coming to the drive-thru and getting their perfect milk soda drink with a cute sticker on their cup.”
-Alivia.Hadfield@usu.edu
Photo by Bailey Rigby