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Trying Every Flavor from the Gourmet Soup Kitchen

I recently discovered The Gourmet Soup Kitchen, a purveyor of delicious, healthy soups in Los Angeles. I am on a mission to try every flavor they offer. I will post as I sample them, so keep checking back for new reviews.

Corn Chowder

My first flavor, and one that I'll never forget. The corn chowder tastes a little sweet, and is rich and thick. Little chunks of potato give it a hearty feel. Like all of their soups, the salt is very light so you taste their fresh vegetables, not the salt.

Provencal Minestrone

For my second soup I tried their take on minestrone. Corn chowder was no fluke, this was great too. A variety of fresh vegetables, dominated by tomato, onions, carrots, and celery. Hints of beans and pasta round out this delicious melting pot. Like the chowder, there is barely a hint of salt. This is great for the true flavor to come through, and great for your health.

Roasted Tomato & Basil

I had this with a grilled cheese sandwich. The finely blended vegetables made for a smooth, tasty accompaniment. This one has a touch of milk, but it is not overpowering. Like with their other soups, the vegetables are the stars.

Mulligatawny

This was my first spicy offering from GSC. It is a potato vegetable soup with surprise apple chunks and garbanzo beans. I've been intrigued since hearing of it on Seinfeld's famous Soup Nazi episode. It was a little spicier than I'm used to, but the flavors worked well together.

African Peanut

Word of warning: this African Peanut soup has a strong, house-permeating aroma when microwaved, so be forewarned if there are other people around who might not appreciate it!

The soup itself is a rich, chunky mixture of yams, string beans, and a creamy tomato, among numerous other vegetables. It is quite spicy. The peanut flavor isn't too strong.

Sweet Pea

This is a smooth, blended pea soup. The flavor of peas is the prominent taste here, as expected. While it tastes high-quality and fresh, like all of their soups, it turns out that peas are not my favorite, so I won't be getting this again.

Carrot Ginger

This is a very mild soup. A light carrot flavor dominates, with a hint of ginger. There is almost no smell while heating this, so it is perfect for shared spaces.

Harvest Pumpkin

This is another mild soup, slightly more flavor than Carrot Ginger. Pumpkin is mostly what you taste, the other ingredients are very subtle. This was good but not overpowering. Unlike most pumpkin items these days, pumpkin was allowed to shine. This is not a 'pumpkin spice' dish.

Golden Lentil

This is another aromatic soup, beware when heating in a shared setting. It has a strong taste, with many of the individual vegetables shining through. Among all these great soups this ranks somewhere in the middle.

Dharamsala Green

This looks too healthy to be this good. It is a mild soup with a mixture of healthy green vegetables. It has a pleasant, rich flavor. Very enjoyable, I will be trying this again when this journey is over.

Cuban Black Bean

This soup has lots of, wait for it, black beans, in a gray soup blend of beans and several other vegetables and spices. It is slightly spicy, but not too much. This is in the top quartile of the soups I've tried so far.

Himalayan Lentil

This is a somewhat spicy vegetable soup. The broth is a bright yellow. The quinoa provides a little crunch. There are nice chunks of yams to give it some heft. The overall combination is quite good, filling and flavorful. This is one of my favorites so far.

Country Vegetable

This is a mild soup dominated by chunks of celery, carrots, and cauliflower. The broth is clear and mild. Like most of their soups, this is only lightly salted. You can taste the vegetables not the spices. I added a few plantain croutons to mine.

French Onion

Onions, onions, onions! If you are used to a restaurant style french onion with a layer of cheese on top, this isn't for you, unless you want to add your own. This is a dark brown broth, sweet and tasty, swimming with a tremendous amount of onion strips. Cut to a good length to not hang off your soup spoon like spaghetti, the soup is tasty and filling. Make sure you like onions though — that's the only solid ingredient of any significant quantity.

Indian Yellow Curry

The curry soup is a spicy, thick vegetable soup. It has a nice medium spiciness, less than you might think from the twenty or so spices in some curry dishes. It is hearty and filling, good for a winter day or any day you're hungry.

Mediterranean Chickpea

This soup has a mild chickpea base, some whole and some chopped. A light flavor is provided by tomatoes, carrots, and spices. Mediterranean Chickpea was great on a cold, rainy day.

Moroccan Spiced Vegetable & Chickpea

Chunks of veggies are the core of this mild soup. Carrots and yams give some bite. It has a similar flavor to Mediterranean Chickpea which I tried recently. This soup is quite good.

Old World Lentil

Another delicious choice! Details coming soon.

Check Back Soon For More Flavor Reviews:

  1. Gazpacho
  2. Kathmandu Lentil
  3. Mango Picchu - Spiced Mango With Quinoa
  4. Mushroom Barley
  5. Nepal Tomato Bisque

Top Soups

In order, best first
  1. Corn Chowder
  2. Provencal Minestrone
  3. Himalayan Lentil
  4. Dharamsala Green
  5. Cuban Black Bean
  6. Moroccan Spiced Vegetable & Chickpea
  7. Country Vegetable
  8. Indian Yellow Curry
Last modified on 2 May 2023 by AO

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