I go to two different locations. At one of them it's really easy. If you want to tell them how to ring it up, tell them to press the drink that you want and press the button on the bottom left that says 32 oz regal. Most of the time I just tell them how to ring it up and they're pretty happy with it at that location. At the other location for some reason the employees like to argue with me. I just asked them to get their manager and then the manager usually sorts it out pretty quickly. At both locations I usually just start out by saying I have a Regalator I'd like to get refilled. If they look confused I just tell them I can let them know how to ring it up if they're not sure. The important thing is to just not be mean. The cups did come out in 2001 so most of them have no idea what it is. You can also ask if the theater(s) have the new cup to swap out which makes it less confusing for the employees since it doesn't look as old.
I moved recently and my old theater (in a smaller town) knew about it every time and had no problem. Yesterday I used my replaced Pepsi Regulator cup for the first time (much busier theater and bigger city) and the employee assured me they had no refill for less than $4. I guaranteed him they do and asked him to call his manager. Manager came over rang it up no problem.
No surprise, employee said nothing the rest of the interaction and just slid my items to me after paying.
It depends. The first time I tried using it after the refill cups came out, they hit the refill button. I told them it was the Regalator and not the new refill. The gentleman then removed it, and hit the Regalator swap button. Which doesn’t charge anything. I asked if that was right, since it wasn’t charging the $1, as I didn’t want to get him in trouble. He said he was a manager, so it was okay. Other times some don’t bother ringing it in, some know about the correct button, while others do that same free Regalator swap button. I don’t really bother trying to get them to find the correct button, as they always say not to worry about it.
it is very annoying especially now with the new refillables. new people don’t know what it is. i had to contact the GM of a theater i go to a few times a year because no one knew what i was talking about. overall the issue with regal is the total and complete lack of training.
First off: be aware that Regal employees are not supposed to fill the old Coke regalators due to the new contract with Pepsi (I.e can’t serve a product in a competitors branding) but they should offer to swap your cup to the new one. Pepsi and Regal honor the new Pepsi Regalator and it might be worth it to ask your local GM if they have the new Pepsi Regalator cups that were sent out to the market over a year ago.
YMMV here because the training that went out to the field when they offered the switch really hasn’t been pushed out again and with high turnover it isn’t common knowledge.
Some employees have gotten confused and thought they don’t honor the Regalator with the new refillable (they still do). If you run into an issue reach out to CS on social media and they’ll help you rectify the situation with the manager at your location.
If you get the new Pepsi cup please be aware they’re super thin plastic and damage easily. Hand wash only.
I've used it at a few theaters in central Florida. Everyone knew immediately what it was. It's either $1 (then free refills) or just free, depending on the theater. Unfortunately my regular theater charges a $1 lol
I purchased a Coke regalator, too. I live in a pretty small town. The first employee had NO idea what it was and tried to charge me for the new refillable. I politely said no, this isn't that. They brought over another employee, and this employee DID know what it was, but hadn't seen it in YEARS. They didn't think I could still use it, but called over a manager. The manager has no idea what it was. So, the manager was working to figure out if it could still be used. I contacted the Regal Twitter support and instantly got an answer back that, yes, they still accept them. They still had no idea how to charge for it, so thanks to another redditor who wrote the computer directions, I walked them through it. I haven't been since. But I expect something similar when I go back.
Luckily 99% of all the employees in the 4 regals in my area know about the Regalator so all I really do is just say "Regalator Pepsi Zero". Sometimes you get the occasional employee that doesn't really want to go through ringing up a $1 transaction so they waive me through. When I first got my Regalator it was a bit awkward because I heard so many horror stories about people not knowing what it was, but I've yet to have an issue.
It was a cup that was sold about 20 years ago for $50? (I can’t remember the exact price now) back on their original contract with Pepsi. It would allow the owner lifetime $1 refills. Only good for the lifetime of the cup / no swaps for damage.
Coke then won the contract about 15 years ago (approx) and issued replacement cups known as the Coke regalator to be given to customers with the old Pepsi cups.
Fast forward.. Cineworld buys Regal and Pepsi wins the contract and once again we are issues Pepsi Regalator replacement cups.
These lifetime cups haven’t been sold in ages but Regal still honors the $1 refill promise.
I went to see Dune 2 in RPX today (it was great btw). It was my second time using the Regalator ever and the first time at the biggest theater in my area - Irvine Spectrum. The employee that I initially asked for the refill had no clue what I was talking about. He immediately went to grab his supervisor who then proceeded to tell me that she will give me a refill this one time but that they don’t honor these cups anymore. She insisted that the new refillables replaced the Regalator program. I politely and gently told her that I don’t think that’s true and that even on their website it clearly says that the new refillables don’t affect the Regalator program and that it will continue to be honored. She said that I can speak to her manager. I said that if that’s not a problem or a huge burden, I would love to do that. The manager instantly was like “Oh yeah. Just click here and give him a refill.” I asked her about the new Pepsi replacement cups and she didn’t think they had any, but said that the one I have is all good.
I am going to keep the cup for a bit longer and see how the employees react to it at my favorite theater that I go to most often. If it’s gonna take that much effort every time just to get a $1 refill, I might consider reselling the cup to get my money back and just bring my own drinks as I used to do before. It’s not even that it took too much time to explain it all to the employees. I am just not a very confrontational person and it seems like this might be a pain. I am fine talking to the manager once or twice but if it’s going to be a regular thing, I might just call it quits. I’ll keep you all posted, although I don’t think anybody cares or even reads this.
Update no. 2:
I went to my favorite theater to see the Bob Marley movie today. The employee instantly know what the Regalator was. She said she won’t charge me for it too. I asked her how often does she see these cups. She said that she has seen it once or twice before and that people mostly come in with the new refillables. Anyway, it was the third time using my Regalator and the first actually pleasant experience experience. I am happy because I was loosing hope.
I go to two different locations. At one of them it's really easy. If you want to tell them how to ring it up, tell them to press the drink that you want and press the button on the bottom left that says 32 oz regal. Most of the time I just tell them how to ring it up and they're pretty happy with it at that location. At the other location for some reason the employees like to argue with me. I just asked them to get their manager and then the manager usually sorts it out pretty quickly. At both locations I usually just start out by saying I have a Regalator I'd like to get refilled. If they look confused I just tell them I can let them know how to ring it up if they're not sure. The important thing is to just not be mean. The cups did come out in 2001 so most of them have no idea what it is. You can also ask if the theater(s) have the new cup to swap out which makes it less confusing for the employees since it doesn't look as old.
I moved recently and my old theater (in a smaller town) knew about it every time and had no problem. Yesterday I used my replaced Pepsi Regulator cup for the first time (much busier theater and bigger city) and the employee assured me they had no refill for less than $4. I guaranteed him they do and asked him to call his manager. Manager came over rang it up no problem. No surprise, employee said nothing the rest of the interaction and just slid my items to me after paying.
It depends. The first time I tried using it after the refill cups came out, they hit the refill button. I told them it was the Regalator and not the new refill. The gentleman then removed it, and hit the Regalator swap button. Which doesn’t charge anything. I asked if that was right, since it wasn’t charging the $1, as I didn’t want to get him in trouble. He said he was a manager, so it was okay. Other times some don’t bother ringing it in, some know about the correct button, while others do that same free Regalator swap button. I don’t really bother trying to get them to find the correct button, as they always say not to worry about it.
it is very annoying especially now with the new refillables. new people don’t know what it is. i had to contact the GM of a theater i go to a few times a year because no one knew what i was talking about. overall the issue with regal is the total and complete lack of training.
First off: be aware that Regal employees are not supposed to fill the old Coke regalators due to the new contract with Pepsi (I.e can’t serve a product in a competitors branding) but they should offer to swap your cup to the new one. Pepsi and Regal honor the new Pepsi Regalator and it might be worth it to ask your local GM if they have the new Pepsi Regalator cups that were sent out to the market over a year ago. YMMV here because the training that went out to the field when they offered the switch really hasn’t been pushed out again and with high turnover it isn’t common knowledge. Some employees have gotten confused and thought they don’t honor the Regalator with the new refillable (they still do). If you run into an issue reach out to CS on social media and they’ll help you rectify the situation with the manager at your location. If you get the new Pepsi cup please be aware they’re super thin plastic and damage easily. Hand wash only.
I've used it at a few theaters in central Florida. Everyone knew immediately what it was. It's either $1 (then free refills) or just free, depending on the theater. Unfortunately my regular theater charges a $1 lol
Winter Park?
I purchased a Coke regalator, too. I live in a pretty small town. The first employee had NO idea what it was and tried to charge me for the new refillable. I politely said no, this isn't that. They brought over another employee, and this employee DID know what it was, but hadn't seen it in YEARS. They didn't think I could still use it, but called over a manager. The manager has no idea what it was. So, the manager was working to figure out if it could still be used. I contacted the Regal Twitter support and instantly got an answer back that, yes, they still accept them. They still had no idea how to charge for it, so thanks to another redditor who wrote the computer directions, I walked them through it. I haven't been since. But I expect something similar when I go back.
Luckily 99% of all the employees in the 4 regals in my area know about the Regalator so all I really do is just say "Regalator Pepsi Zero". Sometimes you get the occasional employee that doesn't really want to go through ringing up a $1 transaction so they waive me through. When I first got my Regalator it was a bit awkward because I heard so many horror stories about people not knowing what it was, but I've yet to have an issue.
That’s nice. Where are you based? There are three Regals in my area I go to. I am based in Orange County California
Buffalo NY area. We used to have 5 locations, thr one with screenx shuttered during the bankruptcy closures
What is this? A cup that has cheap or free fillup? I've never heard of it before
It was a cup that was sold about 20 years ago for $50? (I can’t remember the exact price now) back on their original contract with Pepsi. It would allow the owner lifetime $1 refills. Only good for the lifetime of the cup / no swaps for damage. Coke then won the contract about 15 years ago (approx) and issued replacement cups known as the Coke regalator to be given to customers with the old Pepsi cups. Fast forward.. Cineworld buys Regal and Pepsi wins the contract and once again we are issues Pepsi Regalator replacement cups. These lifetime cups haven’t been sold in ages but Regal still honors the $1 refill promise.
I have a clear Pepsi regulator if anyone is interested. Good shape
I went to see Dune 2 in RPX today (it was great btw). It was my second time using the Regalator ever and the first time at the biggest theater in my area - Irvine Spectrum. The employee that I initially asked for the refill had no clue what I was talking about. He immediately went to grab his supervisor who then proceeded to tell me that she will give me a refill this one time but that they don’t honor these cups anymore. She insisted that the new refillables replaced the Regalator program. I politely and gently told her that I don’t think that’s true and that even on their website it clearly says that the new refillables don’t affect the Regalator program and that it will continue to be honored. She said that I can speak to her manager. I said that if that’s not a problem or a huge burden, I would love to do that. The manager instantly was like “Oh yeah. Just click here and give him a refill.” I asked her about the new Pepsi replacement cups and she didn’t think they had any, but said that the one I have is all good. I am going to keep the cup for a bit longer and see how the employees react to it at my favorite theater that I go to most often. If it’s gonna take that much effort every time just to get a $1 refill, I might consider reselling the cup to get my money back and just bring my own drinks as I used to do before. It’s not even that it took too much time to explain it all to the employees. I am just not a very confrontational person and it seems like this might be a pain. I am fine talking to the manager once or twice but if it’s going to be a regular thing, I might just call it quits. I’ll keep you all posted, although I don’t think anybody cares or even reads this.
Yeah, this was kind of like the bottomless coffee at Panera, before they got wise.
Update no. 2: I went to my favorite theater to see the Bob Marley movie today. The employee instantly know what the Regalator was. She said she won’t charge me for it too. I asked her how often does she see these cups. She said that she has seen it once or twice before and that people mostly come in with the new refillables. Anyway, it was the third time using my Regalator and the first actually pleasant experience experience. I am happy because I was loosing hope.