Soups On!

As chilly weather starts sneaking in, our taste turns to more comforting dishes, and on a brisk day what could be more soothing than a bowl of hot soup?

In the long, narrow gallery space formerly occupied by Pier 221 on North Water Street in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward, Soups On!  is one of those odd specialty eateries that is absolutely mandatory in order to create a world-class culinary atmosphere in a metro area.

People who work downtown have a unique place to jump in and out of quickly for a healthy lunch with an attractive, cozy wood-accented interior overlooking the Milwaukee river. Artworks for sale adorn the walls, and upon entering it is hard to distinguish the place from the many art galleries in this part of town.

Four different homemade soups are featured each day out of what appear to be at least 133 soups listed on the menu.

Some daring creations offered here are Triple Melon, Perky Squash, Hearty Reuben and African Vegetable. We recognized a few soups on the menu that are rather out of the ordinary, such as White Chili (made with chicken and white beans) and Mulligatawny Soup (see recipe below).

A vegetarian and a vegan soup were offered the day we had lunch, along with two selections that were made with meat. The soups we had were hot, hearty and delicious, accented with optional fresh ingredients such as sliced green onion and chopped raw escarole. Boisterous sandwiches, like corned beef on an everything bagel and ham and Swiss on pumpernickel, are available for $3.50. Our two soups, two sodas, two sandwiches and a bag of chips cost $22.

For a unique, cozy and quick option for lunch downtown, the soup’s on at Soups On!

Soups On!
221 N. Water Sreet, Milwaukee
(414) 283-9244

Mulligatawny Stew (British-style, Indian chicken soup) – recipe serves four.

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup cooked chicken, diced
¼ cup onion, finely chopped
1 ½ teaspoon curry powder
2 tablespoon oil
1 tart apple, peeled & finely chopped
¼ cup carrot, finely chopped
¼ cup (1 rib) celery, finely chopped
2 Serrano/green chilis, finely chopped
3 tablespoons flour
4 cups chicken broth
1, 16-oz. can tomatoes, crushed, liquid retained
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon sugar
2 whole cloves
¼ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon ground, black pepper

PREPARATION:

In a large saucepan on medium-high heat, cook the onion and curry powder in oil until the onion is tender. Stir in the apple, carrot, celery and green pepper. Simmer on medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are crisp-tender (about 5 minutes). Sprinkle the flour over the veggie mixture, stirring well. Slowly stir in the broth, tomatoes (and their liquid), parsley, lemon juice, sugar, cloves, salt and black pepper. Bring to a boil. Add the chicken then and simmer on low heat, stirring occasionally, for at least 30 minutes.

Check for seasoning and remove the cloves before serving.