In a world that feels so divided, perhaps the one thing we can all still agree on is the nurturing feeling we get when we sit down and delight in a bowl of soup.
Whether brothy or creamy, chunky or smooth, with noodles or without, something changes in our brain chemistry when we eat soup. It helps our body to relax and feel satiated, both mentally and physically, much like a big, long bear hug from your favorite person.
Soup is nostalgic. We associate soup with home cooking and the comfort of home. It can bring back childhood memories of being served tomato soup and grilled cheese for lunch or chicken soup when we were sick.
Soup teaches us to reduce our food waste by giving us an easy way to use every part of an animal or vegetable we have on hand. The ultimate convenience food, soup is a one-pot meal that can be ready and on the table in less than 30 minutes.
Soup is economical. It allows us to feed a lot of people for not a lot of money. You remember the story of stone soup? Two tricksters come to town and convince the entire population that they can feed all of them with just one pot of stone soup. Then they tell them that their stone soup would be delicious if they just had one more ingredient, as one by one the townsfolk stepped forward and offered those ingredients. In the end, by sharing what they each had and working together, an entire town was fed with just a stone and a pot of water over a fire.
Soup is a comfort food dish found in every cuisine across the globe. Looking to expand your own palate? Try starting with a bowl of soup from a new country or cuisine you are curious about.
Even on a national level, soup could lead to greater understanding. Kansas City is known for our steak soup; in New England they claim clam chowder; and in Louisiana they are ga-ga for gumbo. Tasting each of these soups tells us much about what grows in each of these places, what kind of spices are used, and about the people enjoying that soup.
As a tool for both national and international diplomacy and peace, perhaps in time we would realize we aren’t so different from each other, and that all soup is good soup, one bowl at a time.
Bella Napoli | Minestrone
6229 Brookside Blvd., Kansas City, MO
Bella Napoli wears many hats in Brookside. It is a beloved Italian market, deli, wine bar, and full-service Italian restaurant operating as a scratch kitchen with a casual neighborhood café feel. Get those veggies in and start with a bowl of their vegan minestrone soup. Featuring a bright red, tomato-based vegetable broth with a mild kick of spice, the soup comes studded with bits of carrots, potatoes, onions, and celery floating in it along with creamy, whole cannellini beans. It’s the perfect way to start your Italian meal.
GG’s Barbacoa Café | Pozole Pork Soup
1032 Minnesota Ave., Kansas City, KS
Offering service with a smile, GG’s Barbacoa Café in Kansas City, Kansas, is known for their Mexican breakfast and brunch dishes, which makes it the perfect spot to land for a hot bowl of traditional Mexican red pozole soup, a dish that for some is the ultimate hangover cure. Soft hominy and tender pork simmer in a mild red chili sauce served in a bowl garnished with a generous amount of crunchy fresh toppings, including onions, cilantro, radishes, cabbage, avocado, and a squirt of lime juice.
Caffeteria | Lemon Artichoke Soup
25 On the Mall, Prairie Village, KS
Located in the Prairie Village Shops, Caffeteria always has at least four house-made soups for sale either by the cup or bowl, pint, or quart. Recently, the chef and owner, Jo Marie Scaglia, has had grab-and-go cases filled with chicken noodle soup, red pepper bisque, chicken tortilla soup, Italian sausage soup, and a vegetable and lemon artichoke soup that has a sunny hit of citrus paired with soft and silky chopped artichoke hearts.
The Spot at The Prospect | Spicy Coconut Carrot Soup
2000 Vine St., Kansas City, MO
The Spot is found inside the stunning 1,200-square-foot city waterworks building. Located near 18th & Vine, The Spot features a café and coffee shop serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner, with Vine Street Brewing pouring beers next door. The food served in the cafe is prepared by students of The Prospect, the chef Shanita McAfee-Bryant’s 16-week culinary training program that always offers a rotating soup of the day. If you see it on the menu, get the sweet and creamy coconut carrot soup topped with crispy shallots and chili oil.
Broken Rice Restaurant (Com Tam Viet) | Pho Thai
6597 N. Oak Trafficway, Gladstone, MO
In Gladstone, you’ll find an oasis of Vietnamese culture in the Little Saigon Plaza shopping center, including Broken Rice Restaurant, named after a thrifty and filling Vietnamese dish that pairs soup and cooked broken rice. The restaurant is known for their soup and aromatic bowls of pho. Order the Pho Thai, also known as rare beef noodle soup, and get a generous bowl of star anise-spiked beef broth filled with noodles and topped with thin slices of eye-of-round beef. It comes with a plate of fresh bean sprouts, cilantro, basil, mint, and sliced jalapeños to flavor your pho.
Bo Lings Chinese Restaurant | Sizzling Rice Soup with Chicken for Two
Multiple Locations
If you are looking for something close to liquid penicillin, something that will instantly make you feel better upon eating it, share this brothy chicken and rice soup from Bo Lings Chinese Restaurant with a friend. It is just what the doctor ordered. Made with flavorful chicken broth, the soup has sliced onions, mushrooms, snow peas and thin slices of tender chicken breast all served in a giant, steaming bowl. A handful of crispy fried rice floats on top for added texture and crunch.
TeeTasty African Restaurant & Bar | Vegan Egusi Soup
3711 SW Trafficway, Kansas City, MO
This newish little spot from Oliwatobi Temitope Adeleke, a.k.a. Chef T, has opened right on Southwest Trafficway with parking in the back, serving West African Nigerian dishes. For those new to the cuisine, start with TeeTasty’s vegan egusi soup made with a unique blend of ground melon seeds, peppers, palm oil and pumpkin leaves. Pair it with your choice of swallow (or fufu, a dough typically made from pounded cassava or yams, that you dip into your soup and traditionally swallow in one bite) or white rice. She also makes a meaty version for those looking for the beef.
Waldo Thai | Tom Kha Gai
8431 Wornall Rd., Kansas City, MO
With all Thai cuisine, the delight is in the balance of salt, funk, sweet, and heat in every dish, which perfectly sums up the reason why so many people love Tom Kha Gai soup, and no one does it better than the chef Pam Liberda and her team at Waldo Thai. The creamy sweetness from the coconut milk in the soup is infused with the flavors from the galangal, lemongrass, makrut lime leaf, Thai chili, and lime, creating a delicious base for the chicken, mushroom, cilantro, and scallion elements.
Acre | Smoked Potato Soup
6325 Lewis St., Parkville, MO
The chef and owner of Acre, Andrew Longres, makes a potato soup that leans into the deep smoky flavors of the fire used to cook the dry-aged steaks he serves at his restaurant in Parkville. His smoked potato soup includes fluffy potatoes, crispy hominy, chives, and bacon lardons whipped with crème fraiche and Hooks aged white cheddar cheese, offering guests all the flavors of a loaded baked potato in a single bowl.
Chingu | Kimchi Jjigae
4117 Pennsylvania Ave., Kansas City, MO
Chingu has added the Korean flavor and special spice that chef and owner Keeyoung Kim has brought to the food scene in Westport, and a staple soup like kimchi jjigae might be the thing to represent that heat. This comfort-food dish in Korea features the spicy one-two punch of gochugaru, or Korean chili pepper, coupled with the fermented cabbage condiment known as kimchi. It comes in two variations, pork belly or mushroom, and both come with tofu made from Central Soy Foods in Lawrence, Kansas. The dish is served with rice and banchan on the side to enjoy.