Pop/Culture Chicago Is Bottling Nostalgia in East Lakeview—One Rare Soda at a Time

In a city that runs on corner taverns, late-night pizza, and a deep bench of neighborhood institutions, something a little more unexpected is about to pop—literally.

Opening April 2026 in East Lakeview, Pop/Culture Chicago isn’t just another boutique trying to ride the wave of nostalgia. It’s a full-on sensory detour—part soda shop, part gallery, part treasure hunt—where the fizz hits first, but the curiosity lingers.

Inside the compact 1,200-square-foot space, more than 50 craft soda brands line the shelves like a global tasting tour in glass bottles. Think less gas station cooler, more collector’s cabinet. You’ll find everything from throwback Americana to niche international imports—mint ginger ale, bubblegum, chocolate-covered cherry, sour apple, and cranberry cream—alongside globally inspired standouts like sparkling honey oolong tea, Uji matcha ginger, and yuzu red shiso apple.

It’s the kind of lineup that turns browsing into an expedition.

Founder Jeremy Pinkwater didn’t set out to build just a soda shop. What he’s created feels more like a living collage of obsessions—years of collecting distilled into a space that invites you to wander, discover, and maybe lose track of time.

“I’ve always loved the idea of a place where people can discover something unexpected,” Pinkwater says. “Soda was a big part of that—but really, it’s about curiosity.”

That curiosity spills well beyond the bottle. The shop doubles as a rotating gallery of pop ephemera: original artwork, vinyl toys, streetwear, vintage collectibles, and blink-and-you-miss-it finds like a 1991 Air Jordan Flight Club calendar or nesting dolls modeled after rap icons from opposite coasts. It’s high-low culture with no apologies—equal parts corner store nostalgia and design-forward retail.

And yes, the soda is meant to be played with. Customers can build their own four-packs or six-packs, mix in syrups or flavor drops, and—soon—assemble custom gift buckets packed in classic galvanized tins that feel ripped from a Midwest summer cookout.

But what sets Pop/Culture Chicago apart isn’t just the inventory—it’s the intention. The space is designed to feel immersive without tipping into overload. Nostalgic, but not stuck. Hyper-specific to its East Lakeview address, yet globally sourced in its taste.

In a retail landscape increasingly dominated by sameness, this is the rare spot that leans into the strange, the specific, and the deeply personal.

Come for the soda. Stay for the story. Leave with something you didn’t know you needed.

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