During the thick of summer, when the air turns soupy, chilled soups are the perfect way to cool down on a hot day. Here are five places to get chilled soups around metro Atlanta:
Babette’s Cafe. This Poncey-Highland mainstay draws on several cuisines for its Eurocentric menu. Repping for Spain is a traditional gazpacho, which makes its debut at the restaurant around June each year, and usually is offered through the end of August.
Sous chef Jen Murphy gathers a mélange of fresh vegetables and herbs, including cucumbers, red peppers, celery, stewed plum tomatoes, chives and jalapeno peppers, blitzing each in the food processor before adding the next ingredient. Then, she adds some tomato juice and a dusting of mint and basil, and garnishes the soup with homemade creme freche “to give it a salty finish.”
573 N. Highland Ave. NE, Atlanta. 404-523-9121, babettescafe.com
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Jang su Jang. If you’re looking for a heartier chilled soup, the traditional Korean dish mul naengmyeon will fill you up while cooling you down.
General Manager Stephen Cho said there are different versions of the dish, but Jang su Jang’s includes noodles made with arrowroot, and uses cold bone broth as its base.
Toppings include sliced cucumber, radish, Korean pear and brisket. Vinegar and spicy mustard are on the table, in case diners want some extra spice or acidity.
3645 Satellite Blvd., Duluth. 678-475-9170, jangsujangatlanta.com
MetroFresh. Both locations offer a rotating list of more than 25 chilled vegetable and fruit soups during the summer months, serving two kinds each day.
One of the most popular options is the blueberry coconut lavender, which “is a little bit unusual, but people go crazy for it,” Executive Chef Bryan Kraatz said.
Frozen wild blueberries are mixed with full-fat coconut milk, a squeeze of honey and about a teaspoon and a half of dried French lavender flowers.
The combination is a hit, and the immersion blender leaves some small chunks of blueberries and gives the soup a consistency “a little thicker than a smoothie,” Kraatz said.
931 Monroe Drive, Atlanta. 404-724-0151; and 1360 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta. 404-500-2685. metrofreshatl.com
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Petite Violette. Vichyssoise, a chilled French soup, is offered as a special every summer at Petite Violette, though the restaurant gets requests for it year-round.
“It’s one of those dishes that, maybe not a huge percentage of people love, but those who love it really want it and beg you for it,” said head chef and co-owner Anthony Gropp.
Making vichyssoise is a two-step process: The base is made first, with potatoes, leeks, vegetables, garlic, herbs and chicken stock. Once cooked, it’s blended almost to a puree, cooled, and then is mixed with cream and seasonings. Petite Violette makes its version with bacon, though the ingredient can be omitted for vegetarians.
You can find vichyssoise on Petite Violette’s menu this year from July 21 to Aug. 4.
2948 Clairmont Road NE, Atlanta. 404-634-6268, petitevioletterestaurant.com
Credit: ADRIENNE HARRIS
Credit: ADRIENNE HARRIS
Souper Jenny. A rotating list of chilled fruit and vegetable soups is offered here, and changes frequently during the summer months.
“It’s very seasonal, and can change every day, depending on what we’re growing or what we source,” owner Jenny Levison said.
Popular soups include fresh chilled corn, yellow tomato and roasted grape gazpacho, though the variety Levison is loving right now is a chilled cucumber peach soup. Ingredients include fresh peaches and pineapple, peeled European cucumbers, jalapeno peppers, salt and pepper and a little bit of pineapple juice, to provide more liquid. If you like things a little herby, there’s the option to add cilantro and basil.
Locations in Roswell, Brookhaven, Buckhead, west Midtown and Decatur. souperjennyatl.com
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