Sweet Moses' ice cream sodas are a sip and a spoonful of history, dating back to the mid-1800s. Then, pharmacists made their own carbonated medicinal remedies, often including cocaine and caffeine, for pains. In the early 20th century, laws banning over-the-counter drugs required soda fountains to lose the stimulants. So phosphates went from treatment to treat. "[The soda fountain] was more than a place to get ice cream," says owner Jeff Moreau. "It was where you went for dates, for celebrations with your family." With the introduction of modern-day soda machines, it became hard to find the special draft-arm carbonation system needed for authentic phosphates. But Moreau's restored 1940s soda fountain does the job. It takes time to do it right, though. Soda jerks must pour the syrup, hand-carbonate it, stir it and wait for it to settle before dropping in a scoop of vanilla. So choose your flavor from among the 17 syrups, and taste a time gone by. 6800 Detroit Ave., Cleveland, 216-651-2202, sweetmosestreats.com
Sweet Shots
If the dentist has said it will rot your teeth, it's probably been made into a shot at the Wagon Wheel Pub in Parma Heights. The bar's most popular shot is the Pixie Stick, a blue liquid incarnation (using Pucker Vodkas and other secret ingredients) of the sugary treat you suck out of its paper tube. The Bomb Pop, modeled after the red, white and blue Popsicles, is served in a shot glass layered in three colors, each one a different flavor. The trick is chilling the bottom layers, says bar manager Shelly Skul. "You have to drink it bottom up to get the full flavor," she says. The Wagon Wheel's shot board currently features six sweet shots at $4 each. "People will come in and just go down the list one at a time," Skul says, "especially the ladies." 8761 Snow Road, Parma Heights, 440-884-5200
Slap Shot
If you think Jack Daniel's packs a punch, you haven't ordered the slap shot, the ultimate punishment on the Garage Bar's drink menu: a shot of your choice and a slap across the face. Invented in 2007 as part of the bar's efforts to create a truly innovative shot list, it became popular with guys who enjoyed even rough attention from the female bartenders, and it caught on with members of the Burning River Roller Girls, who are used to thinking of harsh physical contact as sport. A hit with bachelor, bachelorette and birthday parties — and at goodbye happy hours for Cleveland Magazine staffers leaving the company — it's become a rite of passage, an invigorating slap out of a comfort zone. 1859 W. 25th St., Cleveland, 216-696-7772, thegaragebar.net
Specialty Bloody Marys
Market owner John Owen had never even tasted a bloody mary when he set out to create several versions for the Sunday drink menu at his Rocky River restaurant. So he visited New York City's Prune Restaurant, the place many consider to have the best bloody marys in the country, for inspiration. The result is nine inventive takes on the classic drink using local ingredients from West Side Market vendors. Take the BLT bloody mary ($8), for example. It comes with tomato slices, strips of J&J Meat's bacon coated in mayo and a side of toast so you can build a mini sandwich to dunk in the juicy goodness. "People eat with their eyes," Owen says. "If it's a fun-looking drink, they will enjoy it more." 1137 Linda St., Rocky River, 440-799-4292, marketbeer.com
Beer Cocktail
Ohio City's West 25th Street is a tough place for the non-beer-drinker. It's not that bars here don't serve liquor and wine, but in an area anchored by Great Lakes Brewing Co., Bier Markt and now Market Garden Brewery & Distillery, downing anything besides beer just feels wrong, almost embarrassing. But Market Garden meets picky drinkers halfway with its Shoreway Cooler beer cocktail ($8), an approachable combo of house-made honey gin (from owner Sam McNulty's Speakeasy), lillet blanc, simple syrup, lemon juice and a top-off of the brewery's Old-School American Lager. "It's a true take on a shandy," says bar chef Matthew Stipe. "We wanted to add a much more artisinal craft to it." The refreshing, sweet lemon flavor doesn't overpower the lager, which will win over even the most resolute beer resisters. "One of our messages is the versatility of beer," Stipe says. "It's a way a lot of people might not have experienced beer before." 1947 W. 25th St., Cleveland, 216-621-4000, marketgardenbrewery.com
Coffee
Leave the sugar and cream alone. Erie Island Coffee's Island Signature Blend doesn't need it. "You can drink it black, and it still leaves a delicious, dessert feeling in your mouth," says Annalie Glazen, owner and founding partner. The smoky, sweet taste that Glazen equates to cozying up to the fire is no accident. Glazen and the three other founding partners spent four months working with Brecksville-based Caruso's Coffee to hand-select beans that work together to make a perfectly balanced brew: Sumatran (adds creamy cocoa notes), monsoon Malabar (low acidity), Columbian Viennese (dark, campfire taste) and Costa Rican (balances coffee with clean, fruit notes). The founders even selected the farms where the beans come from; the latter is harvested by a farm run by South American women who have escaped unfortunate situations. Caruso's Coffee roasts each type of bean separately to maintain peak flavor and then sends it to Erie Island. If you stop in for a quick sip, don't be surprised if baristas will encourage you to order your brew in a ceramic mug. "It makes our guests stop and enjoy themselves," Glazen says. 2057 E. Fourth St., Cleveland, 216-394-0093; 19292 Detroit Ave., Rocky River, 440-333-3333, erieislandcoffee.com
