Midtown Lunch

Aw yeah, it’s cold out. It’s almost universally easier to bundle up and stay warm when it’s cold than to stay cool when it’s hot. Layers, balaclavas, $95 heated touchscreen-compatible loss-proof gloves (pick any two aspects) and the single best food this side of phaal curry to warm you up from the inside out: soup. We did some good stuff with pizza science, but with a few of ML’s top soup specialists (and we want your suggestions to add to that list!) it’s time to break soup down and find the best in Midtown.

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I won’t make any illusion to my preference for soup as the single optimal food item that can be created by mortal hands. For me, soup season is every season, even during heat waves. We have no shortage of soup in Midtown, mostly in the form of Hale & Hearty, a chain which may not necessarily be the root of all soupiness but is probably the most visible single example. Overpriced their soups at times may be, their gazpacho is still cold and the soup is at least not complete dreck. With their opening of a new location on 40th between 7th and 8th, and with new celebrity chef created soups on the menu, could this be something different?
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I walked by this storefront-in-progress in the middle of Friday’s heat wave and burst out laughing. I mean … I couldn’t imagine anything I wanted less at that exact moment. We on this blog are not huge fans of Hale & Hearty (I fell for a completely underwhelming “Thai” chicken soup some months ago), but if you are, a new shop is under construction on 40th street between 7th and 8th avenues.

This week, I got sucked in by Hale & Hearty’s advertising. They started serving Thai chicken soup, and in theory it sounded pretty good. They described it as “hot, spicy, smooth and sweet – it’s a just like a vacation on the beaches of Thailand.” I love Thai food … I love chicken soup … maybe, just maybe Hale & Hearty could pull off this combination?!  (I’m sure most of you know where this is going.)

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