The Soup Spoon

       
        Soup or baby food?

When I was much younger, I was quite unadventurous about food, and would stay away from ordering Western-style blended soups because they reminded me of bottled baby food, which frankly, still puts me off. Thankfully, I've now discovered the joy of chunky and creamy soups. Together with bread, they are delicious and wholesome enough to be a complete meal.

Last Saturday, around lunchtime, I was browsing the shops at the Raffles Xchange when I came across The Soup Spoon. Being ages since I had a comforting, hot bowl of soup, I decided to give The Soup Spoon a try.

       
        Roasted Pumpkin Soup (regular, S$4.80)

Thick and hearty, the soup was sweet and well-seasoned with a blend of spices. It reminded me of ho bak jook, a Korean-style thick gruel made with blended pumpkin and ground sticky rice. Not bad, but I think pumpkin soup is a little too sweet and heavy for my liking. Together with the soft, warm bread roll, this set would actually make a substantial meal. A mini candy bar comes together with the soup order.

With any order of soup, you can SouperValue Upgrade your meal. For an additional S$3.60, you get an entree (half sandwich/wrap/salad) and beverage or snack (iced tea/hot drink/fresh juice/potato chips/apple).

       
        Lemongrass Chicken Wrap, half portion.

I chose the half-portioned lemongrass chicken wrap and ice tea, which is warmly described as being "home-brewed", but was, in reality, watered-down and tasted nowhere homey.

The moment I tasted the coleslaw, I winced. What's this, I asked myself? Have my tastebuds malfunctioned? Unable to believe myself, I tried the coleslaw again. In shock, I realized that the coleslaw was spicy. Overwhelmingly spicy.

Don't get me wrong. I have nothing against chillies in salads, but a spicy coleslaw with hardly any hint of refreshing tanginess just tastes so wrong. The veggies were rather limp too. It was, honestly, quite a painful ordeal.

The wrap had sounded enticing. According to the menu, it comes with "lemongrass chicken, peach, romaine lettuce, and tangy coleslaw". As we already know, the coleslaw is anything but tangy. Accompanied by a single wedge of canned peach, the lettuce was a pathetic, lifeless leaf. The fragrance of lemongrass was barely detectable in the arid and salty chicken. I loathe to waste food, and usually try to finish my food even when it isn't that good. But try as I might, I simply couldn't make myself swallow the dry chicken wrap and awful coleslaw.

If all aspects of this meal had been well executed, this meal would have been "souperb" value at S$8.40. I wouldn't mind going back to try the other items on their soup menu, but next time, I think I'll just stick to the soup.

The Soup Spoon
Raffles Xchange, Raffles Place MRT Station
#B1-62
Tel: (65) 6438 7305
Website: http://www.thesoupspoon.com/

cheers!

Comments

[Stephanie]

I hate meals like that!

I can't get Matt to eat pumpkin...or sweet potato, for that matter...for the same reason. He thinks it too sweet.

Me, I love creamy soups. He's not so crazy about it. My favorite by far was a cream of vegetable I had in Ireland, followed by a cream of cashew soup I made for Thanksgiving a year or two ago.

And spicy coleslaw? That's just so...wrong.

[Mama BoK]

I love creamy soups.. but i'm not into pumpkin though.. or squash.. or sweet potatoes.. just creamy mushroom or lobster bisque .. ;)
For that kinda money.. that's pretty good value.. :) for a soup and bagel deal and a coffee where i am.. is already 5bucks .. canadian.. and the soup is nothing special for that matter.

[AugustusGloop]

I had to smile at your soup issues. I love chunky soups too. I still remember drooling over rustic homemade soup by our dinner host and then watching aghast as she chucked the whole lot into a blended and pulverised it. I still lament the memory... =)

[Tym]

I eat off and on at The Soup Spoon at Raffles City. Yeah, stick with the soups or the salads; skip the sandwiches. The chicken stew-ish concoction is quite nice. With monsoon season upon us, it's a good time to soup up! :)

[Fong]

I love pumpkin soup and I usually cook it at home - steamed the pumpkin, scrap and mash the pumpkin. Prepare a pot of stock (vegetable or chicken stock)and add the mashed pumpkin into the stock and cook for another 10 mins. Add a little milk for the creamy taste. Before serving, I like to add some orange zest to spice up the taste.

[tscd]

Ooh, I love making chunky hearty western soups! They are so great on cold days.

[may]

i tried the clam chowder and the recently added russian roulette... both were not bad. :) Great cure for cold and hungry days. The potato wedges' good too.

[tan]

I've tried at The Soup Spoon at Raffles Xchange, the ambience was good and the soup was fantastic too! Highly recommended! ;)