Your Favorite Local Comfort Foods (Soup FTW!)

It’s sunny today, but last weekend’s storms and this week’s cool temperatures have reminded us that it is still our version of winter here in SoCal.  Then the first tingle of a sore throat reminded us that it’s also still cold and flu season.  And then both of those together – winter sick days – made us think immediately of comfort food.

So we asked some friends and neighbors about their favorite local comfort foods – the culinary security blankets that help you feel better when you’re under the weather.  To probably no one’s surprise, soup – in all its wonderful international variations – was by far the number one comfort food of choice.  And there are a great many local options:

Patricia Carroll – St. Andrews Square:
” Greek Lemon soup from Le Petite Greek on Larchmont and the chicken soup from Le Pain Quotidian on Larchmont.”

Dan Kegel – West Adams Heights:
“Hot and sour soup at Full House in Chinatown…and maybe lemon tea at Ignatius Cafe.”

Francisco Abrego:
“Albondiga soup at any Mexican restaurant…”

Myrna Dwyer – Sycamore Square:
“The “Original Dumpling Soup” at All Family Restaurant (on Crenshaw, just south of Olympic). Boiling hot and it will CURE you.”

Kimberly King-Burns:
“Simply Wholesome’s Carribbean island plate and a guava smoothie.”

Katie Malich:
“Wor won ton soup with fresh ginger in it, accompanied by a tea pot of hot water with fresh ginger slices in it. Hot and sour soup if it’s made with ground pepper in it. Matzo ball soup or chicken in the pot.”

Anne Lombard – Fremont Place:
“Matzo ball soup from Canter’s Deli or Bristol Farms.”

Jo Ann Lesser – Miracle Mile North:
“Definitely chicken soup! Home made.”

Lydia Olivier – Miracle Mile:
“Miso soup.”

Simone Schmitz (former Melrose area resident):
“Doughboys! After school special. The best tomato soup I ever had.”

Finally, there are my own personal favorites: the sweet, spicy and aromatic Tom Kha soup at Nakkara on Beverly, or a big steaming bowl of Vietnamese pho or Japanese tonkatsu ramen (LA Ramen Bar has a nice one).  And if I’m too sick to venture out, a packet of Trader Joe’s True Thai Tom Yam Soup, stashed in the freezer for just such occasions, can serve as a distant second.

Of course, the wonderful thing about comfort foods is that you don’t have to be sick to enjoy them.  And a cool winter day like today is always perfect for your favorite soup – it is, indeed, “good food.”

Do you have a local favorite comfort food?  Post in the comments below – we’d love to know about it!