Egg Cream

New York’s iconic corner-candy-store drink, an egg cream has only three ingredients, none of which is eggs or cream. It is chocolate syrup, milk, and seltzer. Construction of an egg cream is an exacting craft. Syrup goes into the glass first. Next, cold milk. Then, the drama: Cold seltzer is spritzed into the glass in a fast and furious jet. After about one second, the fountain handle gets pushed back so an easy stream can flow into the glass as its foamy head rises high. An experienced soda jerk hardly needs to stir because that original, split-second injection of seltzer got the milk and syrup mixing. An egg cream should be drunk almost as quickly as it has been made. The foamy head fades fast and the cool champagne-chocolate tingle dissipates as you gulp it down. At the bottom of the glass you will likely see a streak or two of chocolate, still unblended. Unlike wine, an egg cream does not add to the pleasure of a meal or other foods. It is a snack unto itself, the only appropriate accompaniment being a single long pretzel stick.