Editor’s Note: This article is part of our Summer Series, where Food On Demand explores a different topic each month. July’s focus is beverages.
Restaurant beverages have expanded well beyond the soda fountain.
Brands are creating dirty soda programs, expanding specialty coffee, curating mocktail menus and offering customizable beverages to increase check sizes and give customers another reason to visit.
Dirty sodas, which typically combine soft drinks with flavored syrups, cream and other mix-ins, have exploded in popularity over the past several years, fueled in part by social media virality and pop culture influence. TikTok’s #MomTok community and Hulu’s reality series, “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” helped introduce the trend to a broader audience, while franchise chains like Swig continue expanding across the country.
Swig has emerged as one of the largest players in the dirty soda segment.
Consumer data shows the growth. Yelp’s 2026 Fastest Growing Brands Report found searches for dirty sodas increased 675 percent in 2025. Brands like 7 Brew, Sonic Drive-In and Taco Bell expanded customizable soda and energy drink offerings. The report also found personalization marked the biggest driver of restaurant growth.
Dog Haus invests in beverages
Dog Haus is one of the latest restaurant brands to invest in beverages through a new partnership with Keurig Dr Pepper.
The gourmet hot dog and burger chain is rolling out dirty sodas, coffee, mocktails, glass-bottle beverages and expanded cocktail offerings across its 50-plus locations. The partnership includes Keurig Dr Pepper brands such as Dr Pepper, 7UP, Sunkist, Hawaiian Punch, A&W Root Beer, RC Cola and more. It also marks the first restaurant concept to exclusively serve Dr Pepper’s full beverage portfolio.
Dog Haus CEO Michael Montagano said the goal is to make beverages another draw for customers, similar to how the brand has long approached its craft beer program.
“Beverages have always been a meaningful part of our business, but primarily on the beer side of things,” said Montagano, referencing the brand’s 24 beers on tap. “As we kind of thought through how to extend that same culture and tap experience that our customers enjoy to non-alcoholic beverages, we started thinking about how to elevate our soda program to a level that’s unique and differentiated and pairs well with our menu.”
Montagano said customers are looking for drinks that offer more than a standard fountain soda.
Michael Montagano, CEO of Dog Haus
“It’s not good enough to just maybe have a Dr Pepper; they want a dirty Dr Pepper, which has coconut cream and lime and is fun and different,” he said. “I think a lot of this is being driven by that Gen Z demographic that’s looking for really that special experience.”
Dog Haus also viewed the Keurig Dr Pepper partnership as an opportunity to strengthen its coffee program, particularly as its breakfast burritos have fueled morning traffic and now account for roughly 25 percent of morning sales.
Beverages boost off-prem sales
When it comes to delivery, drinks have historically been an afterthought in the industry. Dog Haus sees an opportunity to make beverages part of the overall off-prem experience, which makes up about 35 percent of sales.
“We’re rolling out glass nostalgic bottles for Dr Pepper, 7UP, Squirt, Sunkist— all opportunities for customers to have something fun and different as they enjoy it,” Montagano said. “Of course, our dirty soda program delivers extraordinarily well, so it’s not just a Dr Pepper, but it’s an inventive Dr Pepper the Dog Haus way.”
Montagano pointed to the ongoing FIFA Club World Cup as an example, saying Dog Haus has seen full bars alongside record delivery demand as customers order food for watch parties at home.
“These more inventive offerings that you don’t always carry in your fridge pair really nicely with your cuisine or your catering order, elevating that experience even further,” he said.
Looking ahead, Dog Haus plans to develop menu items incorporating Dr Pepper into entrees and desserts.
