But Pool can’t take credit for the idea behind it. According to Pool, the flavor was designed to evoke memories of childhood summers or going to a music festival for the first time. Kaleidoscope is the golden child of the bunch… at least it was initially. Perhaps its no surprise then that Hoodoo took months to perfect. It’s a soda that both burns and refreshes. “The names for soda seemed a bit tired,” Pool adds. No, those are not the names of strippers at the dodgy club downtown. As you might expect, they’re well thought out, a little strange, and a lot inventive. That really appealed to Roots and led to its two flavors. Pool notes “At Roots it’s not so much about one ingredient standing out, it’s about the ingredients coming together to make something new.” Pool initially sought to create a carbonated lemonade, a popular flavor outside of America, but felt more inspired by cola and how all of its flavors coalesce to form a signature taste. Are these guys soda jerks or power ballad writers? One thing’s for sure: they’re motivated to create. This mission to bring soda back to its roots. They note on their website that they want “to make the best soda possible using and honouring only the best ingredients, and sending it off into a future yet unimagined.” I like to read that quote set to triumphant piano music. You get the sense that there’s this intense drive behind the company. Tired of the current state of the industry, Mark Pool founded Roots Soda Co. Competition was fun and not cutthroat. Roots Soda asks, “what if that never went away?” That’s the mentality they have when making soda. But before the two mass manufactured brands put a strangle hold on the soda market, your favorite ice cold bottled beverage was made at local soda fountains and bottlers were bountiful from town to town. Even today in the midst of a resurgence where craft and gourmet soda are putting more and more pressure on the big boys, there is still a monopoly. Watching hockey, eating sushi and listening to a DJ playing house music, all while enjoying an unusual cocktail called the Wabbit, doesn't feel odd in the slightest.History: “The landscape of soda is one of ruin.” Bleak words from the founder of Roots Soda Co., Mark Pool. There's a heck of a lot going on here, but none of it feels out of place. The Hyde Out manages its split personalities much better than poor Dr. There's a pool table nearby, and flat-screen TVs. One wall is emblazoned with the bar's motto - "Make drinks, not war" - while another features a stylized portrait of an owl. There's a whiskey bar in the back, a sunny patio strip out front, an open-air bar attached to the patio and a third bar next to a sushi kitchen. In others, it's a posh lounge, with plush booths and intimate lighting. In some spots, it's industrial, with metal fixtures and distressed wood. The road-facing exterior is nonchalant and easy to miss, especially if you don't recognize the Hyde Out's logo, a stenciled "H" in a box. There's an amusingly small parking lot out back, which is, amazingly, valet only. It's close enough to walk if you tire of pounding music and shoulder-to-shoulder crowds, but it's separated enough that you get the feeling the people at the Hyde Out have arrived deliberately, and not as part of a bar crawl. This place really is a bit of a hideout from the nearby S Howard Avenue party strip.
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