Unlike many 21 year olds, I do not drink alcohol. That said, I do not drink Coke or Sprite everywhere I go, either. This year, we entertainment writers will be providing you with restaurant reviews. We will not neglect the often-forgotten drink menu, all alcohol aside.

You will be surprised what you find on drink menus other than fountain favorites and taps. Americans are not choosy animals when it comes to drinks. Perhaps you have your favorite soft drink and you get it with every meal, accepting the other brand equivalent if the eatery does not have the one you buy at the grocery store.

A delightful meal deserves more than your basic beverage. Sushi demands to be served alongside powder green tea. Do you know how to choose the tea that best complements your Chinese dish? Lassi, masala chai and even lemonade can change your Indian cuisine sampling.

This week I have some suggestions for how to diversify and spice up your beverage choices. Trust me, I am only partially interested in cutting Coca-Cola’s revenue. As for the southern tradition of iced tea, do we not drink enough as it is to warrant a break when dining out?

1. The next time you are at Olive Garden (7206 Kingston Pike), try one of their specialty drinks. They have cream soda and Italian soda in cherry, raspberry, caramel, orange, vanilla and lemon. Forget lemon. Go for vanilla or caramel.

The most interesting drink on the menu is the Sicilian splash. Who could guess it is made with white cranberry juice, orange syrup and Sprite?

2. Try the Dragon Eye Oolong tea at P.F. Chang’s (6741 Kingston Pike). It will add to the richness of your experience with any dish the restaurant has to offer. It seems especially suited to the Cantonese Roasted Duck and Orange Peel Chicken. This tea is healthy too. It is perfect for a business lunch because it will off-set the sleepy feeling you get after eating a big meal and will recharge you for the rest of the work day.

3. Sitar Indian Cuisine (6004 Kingston Pike) has a tasty Punjab beverage called lassi. This frothy, milky, sweet treat might be called drinking yogurt. Mango is king when it comes to fruit lassi. Lassi goes best with the intense flavors of Indian curry and the dry taste of tandoori meats and Indian breads.

4. Kaya Korean Restaurant (149 Montvue Road) serves a ginger tea that freshens up any of their sizzling spicy dishes, especially the stone-bowl entrees. This tea is flavor-packed, not taking a backseat to meats or other entrees.

5. Chili’s not only has blackberry tea, but it has an “electric blue blast” freezer that cools down those noisy fajitas.

6. Old City Java (109 S Central St.) has a hot white chocolate that combines white chocolate syrup and steamed milk to keep your brain bright with activity long enough to write a research paper. Who could resist their macadamia nut milkshake?

7. Panera Bread has an I.C. mocha almond drink that also makes good use of nutty flavor. Panera’s iced green tea is worth a taste as well, as it is flavored with passion fruit and papaya. These flavors give you only a hint, but they are responsible for the unique taste.

8. Soccer Taco (6701 Kingston Pike) has several exotic treats in the non-alcoholic realm, including horchata, a drink made with ground rice. Ask about their Mexican softdrinks.

Our habits allow us to get taken advantage of. No matter how fast the waiter appears, do not feel it necessary to choose your drink with no knowledge of what is offered. I often find that as soon as I am seated, before seeing anything but the cover of the menu on the table, I am asked, “What can I get you to drink?”

This is not an easy question with an automatic response. It is as important as the dish. The answer is, “Let me look at the menu.”

If the restaurant’s juices, teas or specialty drinks require you to ask the server (this is a flaw in the menu.), ask the server. Show no mercy. You are paying them. They made the menu; they reap the consequent trips to and from your table.

I cannot rate a restaurant without considering the pros and cons of its drinks. A large non-alcoholic drink menu can be the extra gem that makes an establishment customer-friendly. Five fountain drinks, water and sweet tea are not enough. Never. A satisfying, out-of-the-ordinary beverage can make a good restaurant into your favorite without you knowing it.