Soop

The BEST soup in berkeley. Hands down.
I only wish they had the Manhattan style clam chowder on another day other than Friday.

Oh Soop!
My wife and I get lunch here at least twice, if not more, a month. Chicken soup and delicious corn bread is a must! Don’t forget the honey butter.
Take-​out can be messy though, bewarned.
And the last chicken soup we had (Dec21) was completely flavorless. That’s never happened before though, so I’ll chalk it up to a fluke. Will be back in the future for more.

Soup flavors were very tasty! However, steer clear of ordering Banh Mi sandwiches from here… They hardly put any chicken in our sandwich, so it might as well been «vegetarian»… But back to the soups, definitely come here!

It’s unfortunate that I have to give this place 2 stars because I’ve had some of the best beef stroganoff I have ever had in my life at this place.
That being said, I’ve also had some of the worst I’ve ever had at this place.
Inconsistent is the key word to describe Soop.
You just never know what you’re going to get. I’ve had really good soup one week and then the next time they offer it, it will be made differently and not nearly as well. I’m wondering if it just depends on what cook makes it each particular time.
The other annoying thing here is the staff. The women that serve the soup act like they can’t be bothered. On many occasions I’ve stood there for several minutes just waiting for them to acknowledge me while they either talked on the phone or to each other.
Once you finally get waited on there is no friendliness whatsoever.
I think this place has the potential to be something special if maybe the owners just took
a bit more interest in quality control of their soups and their staffing.

Tasty soups to go.
Have had one or two soups here and have left happy. The last one I tried was the Tunisian lamb stew. It was tasty, full of lentils and nice, tender chunks of lamb. The pint (nearly $ 9) filled me up. given all the goodness in it I don’t think it was TOO bad, but here is definitely a Gourmet Ghetto premium.
Another complaint is that some of the soups on display are over reduced and look all dried up and even burnt. It is pretty unappealing.
Good for a quick take-​out.

Five stars for always having vegan protein packed soups. My go to place for a quick lunch or meal after working out.

Sorry, I have to do a one star review. Came here recently to get some of their bolognese pasta sauce. Cost $ 20 for 4 servings.
It was burned. I cook a lot and the taste of burned pasta sauce is unmistakable. It’s really unacceptable to serve a product like that. I would have sent it back had we been at a restaurant. It was pretty terrible. It would have been just OK had it not been burned.

I love soup and I’m pretty picky about it. I really dislike canned soups and soggy supermarket soups that aren’t homemade and sit in a heater all day. This is why Soop is perfect for me! They make all of their own stocks, use fresh veggies and rotate their flavors every week. If you order chicken noodle (though it is my least favorite of their soups), the put the noodles in separately. That way you aren’t eating disintegrating noodles that have been cooked too long. This attention to detail is what makes their soup so delicious. I have come here for lunch at least once a week for years.
Yes, there are a lot of reviewers that complain about the price. To me, spending $ 5 – 6 is totally reasonable for lunch and a pint is enough to fill me up. Everything is made in house from scratch and they use good ingredients. Totally worth it. Give Soop a try!

Tom Kha soup had no seasoning or spices at all. Just some small pieces of chicken and a bone floating in some bland, watery coconut milk.

It’s overpriced soup, which if it were chock full of veggies and meat it would be worth it. Unfortunately, it’s not. I got the Tom Ka Gai, which was about 97% chicken broth and coconut milk, 2% chicken and 1% mushroom. I could even excuse the price it if the flavor were amazing… but it wasn’t. I also tasted the Albondigas and Chicken Noodle soups and all the soups were just meh in flavor. Read: underseasoned and bland. I wouldn’t have gotten any soup except for the fact that I promised my son that I would get us soup for lunch. Bottom line, great idea, mediocre execution.
By the way, the service is also meh and there is no regular butter for the bread. The one saving grace is the bread, which was very yummy but why do I have the sinking feeling that the bread is from an outside bakery?

Terrible soup, worse service.
I tried Soop today and had an awful experience. After waiting several minutes as two employees shuffled around doing nothing, I ordered the Tom Kha Gai soup, their daily special. It was dreadful. It was watery and totally flavorless, lacking any richness from the coconut milk. It had neither the tanginess nor the hint of sweetness one would want in Tom Kha Gai. It was completely soulless. Plus it had almost no chicken in it, merely a few scraps at the bottom. I took two bites and threw it out (and I was starving at the time). I told the 18 or 19 year old cashier that it was horrible. She looked at my incredulously and told me to go somewhere else then.
Again, terrible soup… worse customer service.
With so many good choices in that area, avoid Soop.
Matthew

Time: 12:37pm
Purpose: I wanted cheeseboard pizza but friends says that eat pizza all the time no matter how different it may seems it’s still pizza. I lost the argument here so we end up at soop.
Ambiance: It’s a small place share with 5 other food venue businesses. Feels like walking into one of those side street mall food court. Impossible to find a table one table out front or inside next to sushi place. There was 7 5of us how are we gonna feel comfortable chatting there with the counter facing us.
Staff: 2 guys 1 girl ask if we’re ready we responded yes and she walks away and return at least 3 minutes, why ask if we are? Ask if they take credit or debit and was told how much? Have a feeling this place is judging on people how they look if you’re okay more chunks of chicken if not you get more celery stalks.
Cleanliness: Not the best venue in the epicurious gardens as I can see lots of overflowing soup sitting on the stove and produce not of the ground that’s a violation right there has to be at least a foot of the ground.
Eats: I had the chicken tortilla $ 6 pint size two of my friends pick Peruvian chicken soup and new England clam chowder. Both of their soups they like with the exception of me soggy tortilla chips.
Products: Mostly a soup joint but has other specials daily, homemade croutons by the bag 3oz size, Mary’s organic air-​chilled chicken and Niman Ranch, and their famous skillet cornbread.
Punch Line: Great soup for cold days, homemade croutons, mixed soup for those who wants to be bold to try it out. Order from an iPad link to POS system.
Final Thoughts: Located conviently across from the cheeseboard and other businesses around it’s okay to try once in a while. I would still prefer this place to SF soup company as I know the in and out of that business my niece works there during her high school days. It’s pricey but its a whole lot healthier IMHO.

Soop is a pretty tough business model reliant on cold weather customers, sick people, dieters, and the small percent of folks that crave soup and only soup for lunch. This whole place is dedicated to serving nothing but soup with the option of a slice of crusty levain or a slab of cornbread with honey butter. That’s their whole dog and pony show. On one hand, I am glad a place like this exists in such a convenient location for me. On the other hand, I wish the soups were just a little better than they are. When I was very sick for almost two months and could only consume liquids, I was grateful that Soop provided some variety in my otherwise dull menu.
Over the course of my illness, I tried the Thai red lentil, both of their clam chowders, avgolemono, chicken tortilla soup, chicken noodle, green soup, one with mushrooms and barley, and a couple others. I usually prefer my soup on the heartier side, loaded with chunks of various ingredients, but because I was sick, the simplicity of the consistencies was appealing. Though they claim that they are into cooking slowly, the depth of flavor just wasn’t there across the board but I do give them props for not over salting. Definitely superior to pre-​made soups in available grocery stores, above and beyond any canned soup but they truly can’t beat homemade.
Sure, the prices are a tad inflated but in this neighborhood, it’s to be expected. Let’s be real, they are using fresh and seasonal produce and you don’t feel like you’re being bogged down by fattening ingredients when consuming their soups so it’s worth it in that regard. I can’t say I would come here regularly but I’d return if I was feeling under the weather and too lazy to cook.

Solid, reasonably-​priced and quick food option in North Berkeley. My favorite soups are the chicken tortilla and chicken noodle soup. I don’t make chicken noodle soup for myself when I’m sick, but the chicken noodle soup at Soop always made me feel better. All of their soups tend to be light so you feel like you’re eating a pretty healthy meal.
It’s pretty much a takeaway/​to-​go spot, though there are a few small tables inside the Epicurious Garden and more outside in the back.
The soup comes with a piece of bread — I wouldn’t buy the cornbread as I think it’s just okay.

Soop is in a great location. Among other fancy eateries, Soop is in a mini food court in gourmet ghetto. It is great venue if you’d like to grab a quick bite, since there isn’t much seating. There are a couple tables in the front however it is not big enough for a food court. I got the tortilla soup (one of favorite kind of soup). The soup or should I say soop is very light, chicken chunks was very fresh. You can tell that it was freshly chopped and was not brewing in the both for endless hours.
What disappoint me the most as for such a gourmet layout and price (it was a little pricy for small pint of soup!) there wasn’t the option of adding cilantro or cheese. The gentlemen gave me a bag of tortilla chips that were a bit stale. I paid a total of 7 dollars for a pint a soup. I was able to finish since it was very light. I am glad a tried this out, but won’t be coming back since it wasn’t out of the water.

I was pretty disappointed in Soop’s soup. Honestly, just typing «Soop’s soup» brought me more joy than any of the food I tried from this place.
My biggest issue was that I felt that all the soups I tried from here were thin and bland. I’m pretty sure those two criticisms are related. I don’t mind having to doctor a can of soup to get it where I want it, but I expect a place that deals primarily in soup to deliver me a product that doesn’t require more work on my end.
I like the location and the service was friendly, but at a location that is barely a step above a take-​out window that doesn’t get you many bonus points. It’s really too bad this place isn’t better, because I fucking love soup.

Great soup, a little bit overpriced, but this is the Gourmet Ghetto after all. My favorite is probably the tortilla soup, but as a lover of tortilla soup in general, I do have a serious qualm: Insufficient garnishes.
You get no more than a few shreds of cheese (see pic) for your tortilla soup, it comes in a tiny little plastic container and only takes quarter inch at the bottom (criminal). You get a small slice of avocado and a this round of lime that you cannot squeeze since it is not a wedge (huh?). Finally, they give you chips, not fried/​baked tortilla slices.
I always ask them to double me up on garnishes, but honestly it’s still not enough. Maybe I will ask them to triple it next time. Hoping that management will take notice of this review!

This soup place is based in the upscale food court called Gourmet Ghetto. It has a variety of vegan/​vegetarian and non-​vegetarian soups, with weekly rotating soups and pasta sauces. I have come here twice, thanks to a wonderful Munch on Me deal ($ 2.50 for a pint).
The first time, I got the pancetta pasta sauce (called Aranciata or something like that). Although trying a sample of it and the other soups (Green, Tomato, etc.) I went against my better judgement, went with my carb craving stomach, and got a pint of pasta and pasta sauce. I forced myself to eat the whole thing, but it wasn’t pleasant. The flavor of the pasta was just… wrong. I dunno, it tasted funny, maybe the pancetta or something. This was not very pleasant. I had to microwave it twice too.
Second time, I came specifically on Tuesday (today) just to get their Tuesday special: Thai Chicken (Tom Kha Gai). Trying it, it tasted wonderfully sweet (coconut milk), but all it had was much much milky-​colored liquid and bits of chicken. I didn’t want substanceless soup! So I got it mixed with the Thai Red lentil, which had a lot of nice veggie substance. And asked for green onion on top. This mix was much more substantial and worth the money. This tasted good. Approval, but it definitely doesn’t replace a real Tom Kha Gai or coconut curry from a real Thai place (complete with bell peppers, onions, carrots, bamboo shoots, or whatever else they feel like throwing in there). I brought my own rice to eat it with. The lentils themselves bring enough thickness to not require rice, but I love carbs so I couldn’t not eat them together. Also, a pint of this soup plus rice = two meals.
Plus points for giving sourdough bread slices with your order, using compostable containers and utensils, and letting you have samples before ordering.
Overall, decent soup. I’d say not worth the full price, but interesting flavors and such. DON’T waste money on the pancetta pasta.
Also, seating in there is cramped.

Soop is easily visible on the left as one enters the Epicurious Garden. on display are 6ish soup ready to scooped and drank/​eaten. soup offerings changes weekly samples freely dispensed.
eats:thai red lentil with coconut soup (5.75)
–sample was very flavorful, strong coconut taste
–bowl at home had mostly lentil ruffrage, watery coconut taste
–fresh ingredients no doubt
–passed on bread, am a fair weather bread eater.
drips:
–got deal on munch
–soups’ taste very subjective
–thai lentil quality very high but it wasn’t what i really liked.
–rating, objective: 4 stars, subjective, 3 stars
–service extremely helpful, courteous

Tucked inside the Epicurious Garden in the Gourmet Ghetto, Soop, a soup and sandwich joint, can easily be overlooked. If I hadn’t bought a Banh Mi deal for this place a while back, who knows when I would have stumbled in this place?
Pulled Pork Banh Mi — A tad too spicy for me to really enjoy. Im not gonna deny it, my tongue is weak when it comes to withstanding heat. The sandwich could definitely have had more meat as well.
Soups — I sampled Thai Red Lentil with Coconut and Thai Chicken with Ginger and Coconut and they were both super flavorful. Unfortunately, the soups are definitely not budget-​friendly. At $ 5.75 a print and $ 11 a quart, I doubt I’d ever be willing to pay their full price for soup.
I hope somewhere hooks me up with a soup coupon because I’d really like a bowl, but just not willing to pay full price for it. I’m down to being treated too. Just throwin that out there.