Why isn’t milk a popular drink option in restaurants, at sports events, and at other places where beverages are served? Coffee bars and shops are ubiquitous, and juice bars exist for those seeking healthier options. Beer, wine, and other alcoholic beverages (as well as mocktails) can be enjoyed at restaurants and bars. but a cold glass of milk is seldom featured as a drink option. “Milk mustache” ads once promoted drinking milk, but I haven’t seen one in years.
A hundred years ago, the U.S. was in the middle of the prohibition era, and people were looking for other drink options. According to a short article in the September, 1925 issue of Farm Journal, there was a “milk bar” in New York City’s Grand Central Station:
Did commuters in their business suits and dresses grab a quick glass of milk on their way to and from work? Maybe families visiting the city’s museums had some milk before catching the train home. And, maybe stylish people downtown for a day of shopping balanced a glass of milk while toting bags filled with the latest fashions.
In order to learn more about this counter selling milk in Grand Central Station, I searched for additional information, but had little luck – though I discovered that there now is a chain of bakeries called Milk Bar (including the company’s flagship bakery in New York City) that are not known for their milk, but rather for “compost cookies” and other sweets.
I want to believe that the original milk bar in Grand Central Station was a huge success, but the fact that I can find nothing to corroborate the Farm Journal article makes me think that it may not have lasted long.
Still, in our current era, when poor nutrition is endemic, maybe there is a need to once again have actual milk bars where milk is promoted as a popular drink of choice.
I’d heard of milk bars, but didn’t know much about them, and never had actually seen one. I did run across this very interesting article about Australian milk bars, which were more like our corner stores. They certainly made sense in those early years when not every home had dependable refrigeration, and stopping for a gallon of milk on the way home from work wasn’t possible.
As for milk itself, I love it, and drink a good bit every day, especially in summer. Paired with water, it’s great for hydration, since it has both sodium and potassium naturally present. Most articles supporting it as a hydration tool note that it’s best used after heavy exercise, or for those doing manual labor outside (me!) because of the extra calories.
Thanks for sharing the link to the article about Australian milk bars. It was fun to read about them, though it’s a little sad that they are vanishing as times change and there is less need for these small stores. You nicely summarized some of the many reasons that milk is a good summer drink.
I have never heard of a milk bar before. I love a cold glass of milk, but due to Bruce’s problems with cow dairy, we don’t buy cow milk. I’ll buy a quart while he is away.
As you noted, milk is problematic for some people. It’s got to be challenging sometimes.
It is!
Compost cookies sound appetizing! 🤣
🙂 I think that they often contain chocolate, small pieces of pretzels, oatmeal, coffee, and a little of “everything, but the kitchen sink.”
Hmm. I guess milk isn’t a popular drink. I certainly don’t like it much, and it certainly needs to be ice-cold to be palatable to me. It’s on offer here in coffee bars and family restaurants I think. And as a babyccino – warm frothed milk, for little ones while their carer enjoys a coffee!
I only recently heard of babyccinos. My granddaughter really likes them.
They’re a bit of fun. Someone had a good idea!
You are right, I never really notice milk on the menu. I grew up on dairy products, and we sold milk and milkshakes at my Dad’s luncheonette. I think milk got a bad rap in the ’80s and ’90s.
Since I lived on a dairy farm when I was a child, I also grew up on dairy products.
I have never heard of a milk bar and found this article fascinating, Sheryl. Cow’s milk is an irritant for many people these days, but there are plenty of other types of milk for a current-day milk bar. Interesting thinking about it and I enjoyed your pondering thoughts, Sheryl.
You’re absolutely right. A milk bar could offer lots of fun options. There are so many types of milk these days including almond, oat, soy, rice, cashew, and coconut milk – as well as various types of animal-based milks (cow, goat, sheep, lactose-free, ultra-filtered, flavored). I even saw camel milk at a store recently.
I thought I’d seen all the various new milk types, Sheryl, but I have never seen camel milk. Wow!
Delightful! I didn’t know there had been a milk bar in Manhattan!
I didn’t either until I read the short article in the old Farm Journal magazine.
I think you might have been right about it not lasting long. The newspaper archives had a few mentions of milk bars, but only in conjunction with the declared “Milk Week” in the area of New York and New Jersey where dairy farming was big. There were milk bars in other countries, notably Poland and Australia. Supposedly, after the US milk bars were introduced, Britain began establishing them. Still, it was a fascinating topic, though I cannot picture people waiting in line for a glass of milk or buttermilk. Apparently, though, it did spread the idea of milk-based products like ice cream, milk shakes and malts and the ubiquitous “Malt Shop” was born.
Until you mentioned it, I hadn’t thought about how many types of stores sell milk-based products. It seems like there are ice cream shops on almost every other corner in some tourist areas.
I am still surprised that if there was such a popular place at GCS, that there is no other information about it.
I’m also a little surprised. I would have guessed the the New York Times might have mentioned it – even it it was particularly popular.
In Australia, during the 50s to 70s the term for an establishment that sold milkshakes, flavoured milk, etc., was called a Milk-Bar. I loved going to the corner Milk-Bar. They also sold items such as bread and biscuits. One of my house jobs was going to the Milk-Bar to buy fresh bread every day after school. And if we’d run out of the daily delivered milk – that would be on the list too.
The traditional Australian milk bars sound like they were nice, convenient stores.
Very interesting – one’s century’s perfect food is the next health debate. Milk has had an interesting historical ride!
How true. It is fascinating how things change over time. You describe it very succinctly when you wrote that “milk has had an interesting historical ride.”
Well, the idea of it is not too appealing, so I’m not surprised it did not catch on!
It was during prohibition; perhaps it was so people could doctor their milk with a little illegal hooch. We know there were still ways to obtain it. It reminds me of a family member who would put vanilla extract in milk, add sugar, and voilà, a palatable drink made from milk that would also produce a sense of relaxation. Perhaps it made a more pleasant ride for the commute home!
🙂 Makes sense. People were very creative during prohibition.
I think you’ve got it Suz! Everyone might have known they were getting a bit of brandy in their milk!
LOL
It can be challenging for restaurants and other food establishments to figure out what potential customers might want to buy.
It probably sounded good to some executive- we can’t have alcohol bars, I bet folks would love to belly up to a tall glass of cold milk. Obviously no consumer research.
Now, if they added chocolate…
Chocolate would be a good addition.
Reminded me of after I had my tonsils out and while we were waiting at the drug store for my Rx, I wanted something to drink, but could not have anything fizzy. They offered me a drink that was a number (let’s just say 0800) which turned out to be a chocolate milk.
Chocolate milk sounds somewhat better than what I remember the nurses trying to feed me after I got my tonsils out. My mother had promised ice cream, but the nurses wanted me to eat soft boiled eggs. I was not happy.
No complaints from you I’m sure!
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the booze bars were replaced with “milk bars” ?
The food and beverage industry has changed a lot of the past hundred years. It’s fun to think about ways it might evolve in the future to create better and healthier options.