The Mezzanine

I was going to attempt to write a bit about the differences between ordering soft drinks in Australia and the US... but it's a total minefield, and depends which part of the US you come from, and what drinks you like to order and... well, here's the best I can do.

I'll sum up this way instead - go and have a look at the drinks section of the supermarket. Some of the drinks will be familiar, some won't.
Then, when you want to order a drink at a restaurant, you will know what brands you can fall back on if you need to describe the type of drink you're trying to end up with.

The one that's caused me headaches is ordering lemony drinks. When I order 'lemon squash', that means a yellow, fizzy, very lemony drink, frequently 'Solo' here. 'Lemonade' would mean a clear, fizzy, slightly lemony drink such as 'Sprite' or '7-Up' (also, I believe some US speakers use '7-Up' as a generic term?).