Galco's Old World Grocery
Soft drinks shop · Highland Park
5702 York Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90042
Highlights
Huge selection of sodas, beers, candies, and deli sandwiches
Huge selection of sodas, beers, candies, and deli sandwiches
"Since 1897, Galco's has been a main fixture in Highland Park. Come here and try not to be overwhelmed by a selection of over 700 different soda pops. If you can't find one you like, there's even a soda mixing station, so craft away your perfect blend. Galco's also has a really wide selection of craft beer if soda is not your thing and while you're at it, grab some old time candy bars. You can also grab a bite here from the deli in the back. Step back in time and feel like a kid again." - Friend of a Friend
"A Highland Park pie stand run by pastry chef Jashmine Corpuz blends Filipino heritage and travel-inspired flavors such as ube blueberry, lemon makrut meringue, and strawberry guava lime; Corpuz says, "Isn’t that the concept of what being Filipino is? If you look at our history, it’s an amalgamation of a lot of different cultures coming together." A 2005 graduate of Le Cordon Bleu in Pasadena (as a savory chef), she began her pastry career at Cafe Pinot under then-executive chef Kevin Meehan (who now runs the Michelin-starred Kali in Larchmont) and later worked as a pastry chef at Drago Centro, the Jonathan Club, and Redbird until 2016. After her father’s death she stepped back from fine dining and started baking Thanksgiving pies as a tribute to him—his favorite was a simple apple pie—and transitioned from supplying local cafés and making custom cakes to focusing solely on pies; "People always connect to it," she says. Her crust "only uses butter, salt, flour, and water, yielding a flaky but sturdy crust," and fillings reflect Los Angeles’s melting-pot ingenuity and personal inspirations—a trip to India, a resonant family meal, her auntie’s guava tree. Signature slices include a camote cue (her take on sweet potato pie with a simple brown sugar and sweet potato filling topped with a crackly brown sugar brulee), a bourbon s’mores that cuts sweetness with smoky bourbon, pumpkin spice latte and rosemary apple brown butter crumble nods to desserts she plated at Ink and Drago, and a "Franken-pie" that offers a slice of six different pie flavors in a whole shareable dessert. She sources most ingredients from local farmers markets or specialty Filipino importers and prefers a classic presentation because pies are meant to connect friends and families. At the beginning of 2024 she took over Villa’s Tacos’ old spot on York Boulevard and began vending on Fridays (6 p.m.–9 p.m.) and at specialty markets on Saturdays; though interacting with new people initially brought back anxiety-filled memories of making tableside desserts, "I do rely on the return customers, and I love reconnecting with them and asking how they’ve been," she says. Street vending gave her freedom and gradual growth through direct sales and cultural markets like Joah and Tienda; she is currently obtaining a MEHKO permit to legally sell pies out of her home and eventually wants to open a brick-and-mortar bakery in Northeast LA. "I pull from beautiful memories that I’ve experienced throughout my life," she says. "What lights me up is if I have this idea, I can put it into a pie." "The pies are just a way to share food and be around people, and that’s what’s really important," she says." - Lila Victor
"Have you been to Galco’s lately, the staple soda shop in Highland Park? Pasadena Weekly has, checking in with owner John Nese to see what’s going on at one of America’s most important cultural (soda) institutions." - Farley Elliott
"There’s even a veritable street food war between vegan pop-ups happening weekly along York Boulevard these days, though some classic restaurants and shops like Huarache Azteca and Galco’s also continue to thrive." - Farley Elliott
"In the age of globalization, when the long tentacles of Pepsi and Coca-Cola have touched even the most remote places in the world, Galco’s Soda Pop Stop is a unique place. It is a throwback to the age when every county had its own small soda manufacturer and every town its own beer brewery. This shop carries an immense variety of soda brands from all corners of the U.S., and as far away as Romania. Its catalog includes obscure, almost forgotten, old brands and imports available in only a few spots on the planet. Find flavors as strange as rose water and cucumber soda. The true treasure of this place is its owner, John F. Nese, a man who may be the world’s preeminent expert on matters of soda flavors. He can authoritatively explain why glass bottles are better than plastic ones and why Kosher for Passover Coca-Cola are superior to the normal variety. He stands always ready to suggest a new variety or flavor. Galco’s Soda Pop Stop offers online purchases with limited international delivery. None" - albinoflea, mbison, chasepopt, Avoiding Regret, icatsstaci, m mbison, davinwhite, k kelleytravels, Annetta Black, kelleytravels, Lampshade1660, stanestane
