A Guide to the Best of Southern California : NOSTALGIA : Sundae Best

Rock candy and frothy phosphates are the menu classics at the Fair Oaks Pharmacy and Soda Fountain in South Pasadena. When owners Michael and Meredith Miller remodeled the pharmacy, they kept its birth date, about 1915, in mind.

In fond remembrance of its heyday as the town’s social center, Fair Oaks now serves ice cream concoctions from an antique soda fountain with marble-topped counters and chrome bar stools. A cabinet is filled with jawbreakers, candy buttons and licorice whips.

In a tribute to old-fashioned service, there’s a small parlor with antique wing chairs where customers can relax while waiting for their prescriptions. Gifts that reflect the era of the original store are also sold.

Fair Oaks Pharmacy and Soda Fountain, 1526 Mission St., South Pasadena; (818) 799-1414 .