Soup-Fest 2016

I was lucky enough to be chosen as a Unilocal judge for this event. Free soup tastings? Sign me up!
It was wonderful seeing how many restaurants went all out for this event. Some favorites included J&L Boulevard Barbecue’s Brunswick Stew and the Roaming Buffalo Chicken Wing Soup. Orazio’s stole the show with their «S
weet Crab Chowder w/​Sherry, Corn & Fresh Dill» presentation. Simply amazing. I have never visited the restaurant before, but the soup makes me regret this decision!
Sadly, the event was severely compromised due to poor set-​up and ticket overselling. Despite only using half of the upstairs space, an exorbitant amount of tickets were sold. To say that the place was «crowded» would be the biggest understatement of all time. I have no issue with crowds and regularly find myself in situations involving large amounts of people. This was above and beyond any of those experiences. You couldn’t move without bumping into someone, tripping over a stroller, or getting decked by someone taller than you. Now for the kicker: all of these people were carrying cups of steaming hot soup. Not a good combination.
The lines for the soup stands were so long that they extended across and through the walking area, meaning that, in order to move from stand to stand, you had to cut through lines of stationary people. I probably apologized more that day than I did during the entirety of 2015.
On top of all of this, the program, booth numbering, and map for the event was a complete joke. The program was not organized alphabetically or numerically, so it was painful to figure out where specific restaurants were located. The map was hand-​drawn on a piece of poster-​board and hung on the wall when people walked in. Due to the crowds, it was almost impossible to fight your way back to the map to figure out where a specific booth was. Booth numbers were often covered up by signs or removed completely.
I really hope that the event is reconfigured next year to allow everyone to enjoy the restaurants in a safer, happier, healthier way. It was a complete disservice to the restaurants who poured their heart and soul into a soup bowl.

Who doesn’t love soup?
I’m vegetarian but was able to find plenty of vegetarian soups. Go Veggies was there as well as several other vendors with vegetarian options.
The event was reasonably priced and benefited several charities. Entry tickets were $ 5 at the door (cheaper online) and you purchase soups with ‘soup bucks’. I split a 20 ticket sheet ($ 20) with my friend and we were both full by the end.
The room was packed and the lines were long.

Sorry, but the last time I go to this event. I went to the very first one years ago at the Millennium hotel near the Galleria. It was crowded, slightly unorganized, but enjoyable and I thought it would improve with time.
When it was moved to the Convention Center I thought things would get better. I was wrong. And as each year goes by it gets no better. Now it’s even more crowded and more unorganized and less enjoyable. The list of disappointments would go on too long so in a nut shell; hot, loud (mostly from the stage), lack of seating, long lines, terrible bar access, pricey…
Off my list of things to do. Would rather enjoy a nice afternoon at a fav restaurant.
p. s. This is NOT a slam on the vendors, just the event. I found most of the soups quite good.

This is my third year going to Soup Fest. Why I come back:
1. They always do well with picking a variety of soup vendors.
2. They get a few stands that accommodate special diets (gluten free, vegan), and even denote these ahead of time on the menu.
3. The prices are fair. For $ 2 – 3 a sample you get a good amount of soup. Some people think this is expensive but one sample is enough for two people to have a few bites, so go with someone and split the cost.
4. They keep the place clean and empty the garbages regularly.
What they could improve on:
1. Put the menu in order either by number or alphabetically by name.
2. Ask the vendors to post their soups in a highly visible place, and ask ALL to post their prices (most did)
3. Setup lines
4. Consider setting up a small aisle behind stands so the soup carts can access. With the amount of people, transporting anything was difficult for those folks.
What I would like to see in upcoming years:
1. Soup-​related vendors that don’t carry soup, such as locally made breads, herbs/​spices/​soup mixes to take home, or a place with side salads.
2. Consider adjusting the layout, the center aisle was insanely packed yet the last aisle had no soup vendors so it was empty. They could’ve expanded the center aisle more to accommodate the long lines.
Looking forward to coming again next year!