A little restaurant that resembles a bustling New York City café on the West side with its black roped poles and the blue awning out front boasts both good food and a laid back atmosphere.
Located a block down from the Goodwill, Stone Soup Cafe provides its famished patrons satisfaction. The inside is very quaint, aside from the fake plants which are distributed in random areas. There are paintings by Whitney Hopter Graphics on the walls, many of them of living fruit and vegetables (and by living I actually mean living: they have legs and arms and appear to be spraying each other with water bottles). A little stand draped with a flowery fabric reflects that it is indeed a small-town restaurant. The elderly drop by for a cup o’ Joe and they laugh and chat as they order their sandwiches.
There are multiple menus: a generic white board off to the side shows the basics like the types of sandwiches, the drinks, and the prices. A more elaborate, original menu written and colored on a blackboard hangs to the side of the cashier, which, if exercised the right way, would be a more aesthetically pleasing sight to see for hungry clientele.
The restaurant is set up so you order at the counter and then enjoy your meal at a table in the front. The cashiers are friendly and attentive, and the help is just as efficient as they are pleasant. Food was very prompt and arrived within ten minutes of ordering.
Although it is called the Stone Soup Cafe, the only soup that appears to be on the menu is the soup of the day. Needless to say, their name is deceiving. The sandwiches, however, are pretty appetizing. With soft bread, a selection of colorful vegetables, lunch meats and a variety of cheeses, the sandwich is just as attractive as it is delicious and for an affordable price. There are some side dishes that go along with the deluxe sandwiches which include cole slaw, potato salad, pasta salad, or chips. The presentation of the food is not exactly up to par with that of a five star bistro, but putting more emphasis on cooking than their aesthetics is a sign of an eatery with its heart in the right place.
The appeal of this restaurant is not just because of its good eats, but also because of the derivation of its name as Stone Soup Cafe. The legend of Stone Soup reads that there were three starving soldiers returning from the Hundred Years War in France. Failing to find any benevolent people to give them food, they ended up tricking the peasants by gathering a huge cauldron, boiling water with stones in it, and claiming to make “stone soup”. The peasants subsequently began joining in. They began adding ingredients to the soup such as herbs, meat and vegetables. Everyone then enjoyed the best meal they had all had in years, and decided it would be impossible to go hungry again now that they knew that you could make soup from stones. The restaurant even has a copy of the story available for those who wish to read it.
While the name may be slightly deceiving, Stone Soup Cafe has flavorful food that can keep a customer sufficiently pleased. Welcome to “Stone Soup.” You’ll never go hungry.
