Try out these five sure-fire winter chill-killers.
1. Pho Gai at Que Ling (248 Boulton, at Gerrard E, 416-778-4038)
Don’t let the modest looks of this east-side Vietnamese soup kitchen put you off. Though the card is short, it contains several inexpensive meal-n-one combos, most notably this massive collision of super-moist chicken and slurpable rice noodles in perfectly spiced broth dressed with a veritable herb garden’s worth of aromatic greens ($4.25 small/$5.25 large).
Wednesday to Monday 9 am to 7 pm. Closed Tuesday.
2. Tomato soup at E.L. Ruddy (1371 Dundas W, at Rusholme, 647-351-0423)
After the first velvety spoonful, you’ll swear that this quirky west-side café’s ridiculously rich tomato soup was loaded with dairy, but you’d be wrong. Instead, owner/chef Helena Kosikova’s entirely vegan puree gets all of its luxurious creaminess from both yam and sweet potatoes as well as roasted garlic and subcontinental crushed cashew ($6 with house-baked whole wheat toast).
Wednesday to Sunday 9 am to 8 pm. Closed Monday, Tuesday.
3. Chowder at Porchetta (825 Dundas W, at Palmerston, 647-352-6611, porchettaco.com)
When owner/chef Nick auf der Maur is done slicing and dicing the multi-layered mutant pork roast that give his tiny take-away its name into some of the best sandwiches in town, he turns the trimmings into the basis of tomorrow’s soup du jour, the best of the lot an outrageously luxe porchetta chowder thickened with navy beans and finished with wilted rapini and a last-second swirl of truffled aioli ($3.95/$4.95).
Tuesday to Saturday 11 am to 9 pm, Sunday 11 am to 4 pm. Closed Monday.
4. Lentil soup at Akram’s (191 Baldwin, at Kensington, 647-351-3116, akramsshoppe.com)
No styrofoam cup or plastic cutlery for Akram and Hiyam Dow. Instead, the long-time owners of the Kensington Market food shop slash cafeteria serve their soul-warming Lebanese lentil soup in a real china bowl with an actual spoon ($2/$3.75). And it’s vegan, to boot!
Monday to Saturday 11:30 am to 11 pm, Sunday 1 to 11 pm.
5. Tripe soup at the Prague (638 Queen W, at Palmerston, 416-504-5787, theprague.ca)
There’s nothing like a garlicky Czeck potage made from the lining of a cow’s stomach ($3.80 bowl/$6.45 litre) to sooth an upset tummy, especially when its accompanied by a side of olde worlde dumplings ($3.95), lashings from a bottle of red horseradish ($2.30) and a slice of chocolate honey cake ($2.50) for dessert.
Monday to Friday 7:30 am to 7 pm, Saturday 7:30 am to 6 pm, Sunday 10 am to 5 pm.
