Scott checks in with memories of Brookdale soda

"...Hi.
I somehow stumbled across your site - WOW! Blast from the past!
I remember going to exchange the bottles @ Heller & Heller, someplace in Bloomfield, and someplace in Belleville near Newark I think.

When I was really young, I remember they even had a truck that did deliveries. I remember the bottles of soda stacked on the truck. NEAT to see the pictures.

If you're interested, Franklin Farms has an old Brookdale Soda Clock inside the store. Round, yellow and blue I think, and it still works! If you see him open, stop in and check out the time!

I think it's been there for 30 years and the guy who used to run the place was a distributor or a delivery guy - not sure, but there's a story there.

Its funny what you remember out of the blue sometimes. So many of my birthday parties as a kid had Brookdale sodas involved - for some reason I remember the lime - so bright green - and the fruit punch the most. They even had the plastic bottle tops to put on the bottle after it was opened. Kind of a translucent plastic I think. (I wonder if my parents have any at home?) If I come across any other Brookdale stuff, I'll keep you posted!

Thanks for running that blog! I put a link to it from the home page for now. I thought it would be neat for visitors to see other Belleville-related things too. Especially things that are no more.

Scott ... "

Edited from two separate emails from the same writer.

Copyright © 2009 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Photos and content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.

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Bobby Cole on Brookdale Soda

Brookdale Soda...The Best I've ever tasted

Growing up in Newark New Jersey in the 60's and 70's, I was exposed to the best food and drink you could ever imagine. I knew it too, and I can look back now and realize now how magical of an era it was in America's history. I could spend weeks and weeks talking about the different foods and beverages the inner cities of the Northeast had at their fingertips but for this post, I will discuss the greatest soda I have ever tasted.
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Thanks to Retrobobby for

Going Going Gone
A time it was...It was a time

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Father's Brookdale Route in Belleville and Newark

Hi,
My father also worked for BROOKDALE BEVERAGE.

I will never forget aunt Marie and uncle Joe and of course Barbara and Joseph.

Most of all i will never forget the wonderful picnics they gave all the employees, i think every year.

My father, Gene Merich, now passed away, had his own soda route which was in newark and belleville. I remember his brookdale truck and the wooden soda cases. I think my favorite flavor was the cream.

I could go on and on, just so many great memories with brookdale soda.

DIANA

Copyright © 2008 by Anthony Buccino, all rights reserved. Photos and content may not be used for commercial purposes without written permission.

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