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Dirty sodas, fry sauce and Jell-O: local flavors spotlighted in St. George segment
Summary
In a recorded segment, Ryan Day of St. George Eats described Utah culinary staples — including "dirty sodas," fry sauce and regional pies — highlighting business names and local variants to try.
In a recorded segment, Ryan Day, a local foodie with St. George Eats, highlighted several Utah culinary traditions — especially "dirty sodas" and fry sauce — and named local shops that sell regional variations.
The segment opened with a discussion of "dirty sodas," a Utah soda trend that mixes syrups, creams and other flavorings into fountain soda. "They mix syrups, creams, and candies, whatever you want right there in your soda," Ryan Day said, explaining the basic idea behind the drinks. When asked who started the trend, the host asked, "Who created them, and can I shake their hand after?" Day said Nicole Tanner was the first to open one of the dirty-soda shops in St. George.
Day described the drink's rumored original flavor as a fountain Dr Pepper with cream. "I don't think we know the exact original, but rumor has it that it's just some Dr Pepper with some yummy cream," he said. He also cited a favorite flavor name from local menus, calling out the "Beauty School Dropout" as an example of a named combination sold in the region.
The segment then turned to fry sauce, which Day traced to Arctic Circle and its founder, whom he named as Don Carlos Edwards. He said the condiment — typically a blend based on ketchup and mayonnaise with restaurant variations — dates to the late 1940s or 1950s. "Back in, the late 1940s or 1950s, he started to serve a concoction of ketchup and mayonnaise with the fries," Day said, adding that nearly every fast-food restaurant in Utah now offers its own version.
Day also listed other regional favorites, naming cookies, funeral potatoes, various pies and Jell-O among items Utah is known for. He mentioned that many restaurants and shops put their own spin on classic items and suggested trying different versions at multiple local businesses. The host and guest concluded by naming several local shops to visit, including Sippin', Pop Shop, Sodalicious, Fizzing Fries, Sip It and Swig.
The segment is a conversational overview rather than an investigative or historical report: Day relayed local lore (for example, the rumored original dirty-soda flavor) and identified businesses and individuals by name. He gave approximate dates for fry sauce origins and attributed the origin story to Arctic Circle and Don Carlos Edwards; those details were presented as recollection rather than sourced archival evidence.
