itβs crazy to me how ice water is a uniquely american phenomenon. itβs the greatest drink in the entire world. how have other countries not hopped on board? genuinely donβt understand how sparkling water is ubiquitous in a way that simple ice water isnβt. whenever i ask for ice water outside the u.s., they put 2 ice cubes in a glass, and iβm always too ashamed of being american to ask for more. but itβs our single healthy habit! luckily i am always prepared (half gallon insulated water bottle that i fill with ice myself and then fill with water and always carry around with me) but it really is baffling every time i travel.
@deputychairman said:
Many small ice cubes are better than one big ice cube if your goal is for the water to be really cold (and if you don't mind that the ice melts faster). More total surface area on the ice-> faster transfer of heat. Big chunks of ice melt slower but also cool the drink slower.
In the US when you order ice water at a restaurant... well first of all of course it'll be a much larger cup. Then that cup will be filled almost to the top with ice cubes, like 50% of the volume of the cup will be ice. Those ice cubes will be pretty small, with a lot of little crushed pieces, just because that's what you get from the kind of ice machines that most US restaurants have. This makes for a glass of water that is hovering right around the freezing point right away.
Some people in the US even complain that restaurants put too much ice in drinks, because if you order a glass of Coke it's technically about half a glass of Coke and half a glass of frozen water, and soda drinkers sometimes feel like that's unfair. But if you like cold water, it's great.
Here's a photo of an actual glass of water in an American restaurant. This is probably a 20 or 24 fluid ounce cup.
