Frédéric Bouché
La Kitchenette’s French onion soup, alluring under its cap of melted fromage.
Soup can be many things — a comfort or a remedy. It can serve as a first course, or it can be an entire meal. Likely prepared since the Stone Age, soup is ubiquitous across virtually all cultures, and in the past 20,000 years, humans have come up with some triumphant and time-honored recipes. Yet somehow, soup can still be trendy — the 1980s brought us the the cabbage soup fad diet, and now The New York Times says “souping is the new juicing.” For these reasons and more, we thought it timely to take stock of the local offerings.
While the best chicken soup probably comes from your mom’s kitchen, some of the most satisfying versions in Madison are international versions of the American classic. Coconut chicken soup from Rising Sons Deli, the cozy Thai spot with locations on State Street and on North High Point Road, is as comforting as it is complex, slightly spicy and packed full of vegetables and thin egg noodles. SoHo Gourmet Cuisines in Fitchburg serves a heavenly Chinese-style chicken and mushroom congee, a stick-to-your-ribs rice porridge (which totally counts as soup) flavored with ginger, cilantro and green onion. Tom kha soup with chicken from Ha Long Bay, 1353 Williamson St., is one of the best dishes in Madison, period. Another coconut-based broth accented with lemongrass, galangal and spicy chiles, get it with or without noodles; and if you’re not feeling chicken, it’s equally great with shrimp or tofu.
Speaking of a noodle fix, there’s almost nothing better than a steaming bowl from downtown’s Morris Ramen. It’s a bit higher-end than other local ramen shops, but the extraordinarily rich broths here are slow-simmered for hours and the noodles are noticeably fresh. Lovers of pho, the classic Vietnamese clear-broth noodle soup, swear by Saigon Noodles, 6754 Odana Rd. The restaurant is known for enormous portions and offers several varieties of pho, including a deluxe version with steak, beef meatballs, tripe (stomach) and soft tendon.
The spiciest bowl in town just might be the kimchi soup at Sol’s on the Square, the wonderful (but sometimes overlooked) Korean restaurant just off the square on East Mifflin Street. Bright red and intensely warming, this amazing dish comes with thinly sliced fatty pork and big chunks of tofu. On the side, diners get extra kimchi, gamjajorim, (Korean potato salad) and steamed white rice. The famous Ramblin’ Vegan Chili from the Weary Traveler Freehouse offers a more toned-down, but still satisfying, level of spice, balanced by big chunks of tomato. It comes with vegan cornbread, and you can add bacon and beef tenderloin tips if you’re feeling meaty.
You might not expect to find a great bowl of soup at a pizza joint, but the roasted red pepper and tomato soup from Roman Candle Pizzeria is legendary. It starts with a basic mirepoix (onions, carrots and celery) and fresh vegetables, but the real secret is heaps of butter and cream.
Likewise, Underground Butcher may be better known for its artisanal meats, but the boutique retail shop on Willy Street has recently started offering soups on certain days. On weekends, they’ve done a spicy chili made with Underground’s house-smoked brisket as well as a hearty pozole, a Mexican soup made from hominy, chiles and pork. More recently, Underground Butcher has been hosting a noodle soup pop-up on Monday nights, featuring fresh housemade noodles. Check Underground’s social media pages for updates, but don’t worry if the hot stuff sells out — chilled soup is available in the case for customers to take home.
Morris Ramen
Miso ramen from Morris Ramen.
According to legend, French onion soup was invented in the 1700s by King Louis XV when the monarch was stuck at his hunting lodge with only butter, champagne and onions in the pantry. While the veracity of that story is debatable, the sources of Madison’s best French onion soup are not. Tiny La Kitchenette makes some of the richest onion broth around. Its soupe à l’oignon is topped with springy croutons and perfectly melted cheese.
Also outstanding is the version at Tornado Steakhouse. Available daily during dinner and late-night dining, Tornado’s French onion soup features hearty croutons made from the same incredible dill loaf found on the restaurant’s bread plate. It’s topped with Swiss cheese melted in the broiler and a sprinkle of fresh chives.
Tornado Steakhouse also makes some of the tastiest clam chowder in Madison — a creamy New England-style version served with oyster crackers and available on Friday nights. Another excellent chowder can be found on Fridays at Jordan’s Big 10 Pub, the college-y sports bar on Regent Street.
But perhaps the best-known chowder in Madison is “Captain Bill’s World Famous Clam Chowder,” served at Captain Bill’s in Middleton as well as the Mariner’s Inn and the Nau-Ti-Gal in the town of Westport. Made with Sassy Cow cream and dressed up with bacon and sherry, this classic soup comes in a mug and topped with croutons.
Manhattan-style clam chowder, with a tomato broth base, is more difficult to find, but Gates & Brovi, the seafood-focused spot on Monroe Street, does a tasty hybrid version, using tomatoes and hot sauce to enhance a creamy base.
Described by Greek philosopher Aristophanes as “the sweetest of delicacies,” lentil soup is a staple around the world. Dal, a spiced lentil soup made with such spices as cumin, turmeric and coriander, comes from countries as diverse as India and Egypt. In Madison one of the best versions is at the Nepalese restaurant Himal Chuli, where several different lentils and small white beans melt into a mild broth. The Nile, the Middle Eastern and Mediterranean restaurant on Odana Road, does lentil soup two ways — there’s a yellow, Egyptian-style soup with yellow split peas (longtime Madisonians may remember it from Lulu’s, once located on Old University Avenue) and a brown lentil version with spinach, rice and coriander.
