Here’s something you might not have noticed the last time you stopped at A&W. Your drink arrives without ice, and that’s no accident. A&W Canada takes a different approach, preferring to serve its drinks without adding ice that can dilute the flavour.
The tradition makes particular sense with its famous root beer. Anyone who has enjoyed one in a frosted glass mug knows there’s something special about that experience. The chilled mug is part of A&W’s identity, and it’s a little touch that sets the restaurant apart.
But what works inside the restaurant doesn’t necessarily work at the drive-thru. A frosted mug is one thing. A paper cup sitting in your car on the way home is another. By the time you get home, you might wish you had a few ice cubes to keep your drink cold.
And are commercial ice machines really that expensive to operate? One US restaurant equipment supplier estimates annual utility costs at $400 to $1,000, with maintenance and professional cleaning adding to the bill. Its combined estimate comes to roughly $900 to $2,200 a year, or about $2.50 to $6 a day. That’s not pocket change, but it’s hardly a king’s ransom for a restaurant either. These are general US industry estimates, not A&W’s actual expenses, but they certainly don’t make a few ice cubes sound like an extravagant request.
Some customers appreciate a full cup of undiluted pop, while others would happily welcome a few cubes, especially when taking their order home. I can understand both sides, but something is unsettling about bringing home a fast-food meal, reaching for your drink and discovering there’s not a single ice cube in sight.
What is going on here? Is El Niño going backwards? Has the planet decided we’re heading into another Ice Age, and nobody bothered to tell me? I want my Ice Age, preferably in a paper cup with a generous helping of frozen cubes.
I have nothing against a frosted mug when I’m sitting inside A&W, but when I’m taking my meal home, I want my drink cold when I get there. A little ice never hurt anybody. Sometimes a few cubes are exactly what the doctor ordered. Well, perhaps not my doctor, but you get the idea!
Maybe there’s room for compromise. Keep serving drinks without ice by default, but let customers ask for a few cubes if they want them. We’re talking about ice cubes, not a major overhaul of the restaurant business. Sometimes the smallest things get people talking, and A&W has managed to turn a simple glass of pop into a debate.
So, what’s your preference? Do you like your A&W drink ice-free, just the way the company intends, or do you want a handful of cubes to keep things cold on the drive home?