With Soup King
Jamaicans are known for quite a few traditions when it comes to food. Bun and cheese at Easter, mannish water (goat head soup) for nine night, rice and peas for Sunday dinner, and Saturday is soup day.
According to Adrian Wilson, manager of Soup King, “growing up, it was the norm to get soup for dinner on a Saturday. It is just part of our culture and the idea for our business came about partly because of this.” Soup King’s Soup Satdez menu has put a spin on the tradition by giving customers a wide range of soups, including chicken, goat head, pumpkin, beef, red peas with pigtail, red peas with beef and the best seller, Soup King’s special seafood fiesta.
The seafood fiesta takes just as long to prepare as any other soup. The main shellfish are shrimp, conch and janga (or crayfish). The conch has to be boiled for a while before it becomes tender, and the other shellfish are added as the cooking process is just about complete.
On Saturday mornings, the mouth-watering smell of seasoned soup mixes immediately take over the noses of persons who enter the plaza on Lyndhurst Road in St Andrew.
TRADITIONAL SOUP
Soup King has also tapped into the party scene by encouraging promoters to have a traditional soup cart inside events, especially for those who do not allow re-entry. It is the norm for patrons to link a ‘soup man’ outside an event before or after drinking alcohol.
The chef, Fabian ‘Soupie’ Salmon, along with the assistant, Rushane Francis, were just about done with food prep when THE STAR arrived at the kitchen last Saturday. Soupie was just about to add spinners (dumplings). He also added ingredients like coco, yam and carrot.
“‘Tis the season for soup, and for the month of December, we will be having a Christmas special. Customers who spend more than $1,500 or more will get a free medium soup of their choice,” Wilson said. The team has hopes to expand in the coming months, as well as get involved in charitable outreach ideas, including giving soup to the homeless. For every container of soup that’s sold, part of the profit will go towards the ‘Buss a Gas’ campaign for preparation and purchases needed to make soup to give to persons who are in need.