Pretty much says it all

[KayMichigan]

Growing up we usually ordered soda, but now I just get water. It's much healthier and soda at restaurants is expensive.

 

[mumto3girls]

Depends. If they have Coke Zero I will almost always order that. If they don’t I will get water, or unsweetened tea, occasionally alcohol. Two of my kids usually order water, one usually a fountain drink and now that she’s of age she loves to order alcohol because her sisters can’t. We usually do an appetizer or two to share. Almost never would we each order an appetizer. Rarely any dessert.

 

[kanerf]

Often got a soda as a kid, but always get water. I don't drink a lot of water when I am out doing whatever, but as soon as I sit down to eat, I seem to drink quarts of the stuff. As for apps, no most of the time unless something is really interesting. Like others, I sometimes just get an app or two for a meal. Not mentioned in your list, but I do enjoy an adult beverage from time to time.

 

[brockash]

Water is healthier.

Water is cheaper. ??? Are we just throwing facts out??? I'm confused; that didn't seem to have anything to do with what's being asked?? Did you mean to say that you were/are a "water is fine" family BECAUSE it's healthier?

 

[BayouQueen]

Says it all is right!
I’m a soda and apps girl married for 43 years to a water guy. The conflict is real!

 

[slo]

I voted - other

Growing up - Soda no appetizer

Married into - Soda and appetizer for special occasion

Now at 51yrs old - Water and no appetizer for a regular day
Soda/alcohol and appetizer for special occasion

 

[BrianL]

We very rarely went out to eat at sit-down places. I can hardly ever remember doing it, really. We would usually pick-up some barbecue or something and bring it home. If we ate at the place, it was usually jsut soem fast food, McDonald's or something. We mostly drank water at home, or sweet tea was usually available too, but as a kid I didn't drink that much.

 

[AppleDumpling]

No hard and fast rules. Depends on the time and place, and how I feel at the moment. Sometimes soda, sometimes iced tea, sometimes a glass of wine, sometimes just water. Ordinarily, we only get apps with a larger group and then we’ll share a few,

Rarely ate in restaurants growing up. Even fast food was an infrequent special treat, as was soda, which we didn’t drink at home,

 

[tzolkin]

For those who said soda/milk when they were a kid, but water now-- how much of that is because the drink came with the kids' meal so that was still the cheap option? But the parents would just get water.

We hardly ever went out to eat (not even fast food) when I was a kid, but on the rare occasion we did we would get a soda if it came with the meal. We never had soda at home and free refills was amazing. We were the kind of family that if we stopped at a gas station for a drink on a road trip, we would get one soda for all four of us kids to share.

Some of that is still ingrained, but it's odd what things stick and what change. I absolutely hate paying $3-4 for a soda in a restaurant, but I'm fine with paying $7-20+ for a craft beer or cocktail. (I never once saw my parents get alcohol at a restaurant.)

 

[Mysterian]

I had sprite, sometimes water, never apps.

Let's bring to attention the memories of those thick, pebbled, plastic tumblers we drank from at restaurants.
Usually filled with more ice than actual beverage:

 

[Mysterian]

Growing up we usually ordered soda, but now I just get water. It's much healthier and soda at restaurants is expensive.

Today I'm a water person, but back in the day, the soda typically became watered down due to all the ice in those glasses.

 

[KayMichigan]

Today I'm a water person, but back in the day, the soda typically became watered down due to all the ice in those glasses.

Ain't that the truth!! We used to eat at a fast food place called The Red Barn, and all I really remember about it is how watery their orange drinks were, because of all the ice. :b

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

When I was a kid I got pop, now I order water unless it is included. Paying for fountain drinks feels like such a ripoff. I can just have water til I get home.

I know it may be an unpopular opinion, but I think fountain drinks are inferior to canned/bottled.

 

[fla4fun]

Growing up, we didn’t eat out unless we were on vacation, and even then, dad would book somewhere with a kitchen, so it was just the meals on the road there and back. We could order what we wanted, but we had to finish what we ordered. Most of the places we ate were similar to diners, and didn’t really offer appetizers. As a kid, I preferred milkshakes to sodas though.

As an adult, I am some of both. Sometimes I order a soda and an app to share, sometimes I order water only and no app. It depends on many different factors, such as whether the weather is hot or cold, how long has it been since my last meal, the size of the entree I plan to order, etc. If it is hot, and I need to rehydrate, water is better than soda or tea. If it is late in the evening, I may choose water because it’s not caffeinated. My sister is the same as I am, and orders both ways.

 

[disney4us2002]

Depends. Almost a water + something else. We like to get an app for the table. If it's a Pepsi restaurant (YUCK!), then I'll get an iced tea or a glass of wine. If it's a Coke restaurant, then a diet Coke since we rarely have that at home.

 

[CdnCarrie]

As a kid pop or milk. Or a milkshake.
We didn’t eat out very often.

Now? Whatever I feel like. Sometimes water. Sometimes wine.

 

[superme80]

Soda was a huge treat when we went out. I don't think we really went to places where they asked if you wanted an appetizer. Growing up Sizzler and Denny's were "Special" places. We did go to a local place that had amazing minestrone soup, so that was the only place we got an appetizer.

 

[ozliz]

We had apps, often to share but usually just water. It’s still that way as an adult.

I recently read that ordering water on a date is a red flag. I don’t stick to water because of the cost, rather because I rarely drink alcohol, try to eat rather than drink my calories and artificial sweeteners don’t agree with me. Hopefully that’s not the reason I’ve been single for a while!

 

[Colleen27]

You all seem to be missing the most important variable - Coke or Pepsi? Because sometimes you just want a Coke with your meal, especially if you're out for American/pub food, but in a Pepsi place the correct answer is always "water is fine".

Appetizers could go either way depending on where we're eating and how hungry we are, but the drink choices are 100% dependent on what kind of soda the restaurant serves.

 

[DCLMP]

I’m a water, alcoholic beverage, and app girl. Apps are usually the best thing at a restaurant. I can skip the entree an desert.