Best Soups in Calgary

When the weather gets cold, snowy, or rainy in Calgary there’s one thing that will warm you to the bone: a nice big bowl of soup. Many of our best restaurants regularly have seasonal soups on the menu, but these reliable standards promise to warm and nourish whenever you’re in need of a steamy and savoury pick-me-up to warm you from top to toe.

Banana Leaf Tropical Cuisine 

This lovely little Malaysian restaurant is a well-kept secret for locals, but everyone should have a chance to try its selection of laksa soups. Laska is a popular Southeast Asian soup known for its complex spicy flavour and filling combination of noodles and generous meat and veggie toppings. Banana Leaf has several laksa options, with flavours like curry beef brisket and Hainanese chicken.

Address: 3330 32 St NE

Goro + Gun 

This downtown Japanese noodle bar has five kinds of hot ramen soup (as well as a broth-free versions) on the menu. The classic tonkotsu with barbecued pork belly is made with a rich and milky pork-bone broth, but there are also plenty of options for soup lovers looking for something different. Chicken and mushroom broth are also available, as well as a vegan ramen for a completely meat-free experience.

Address: 225 7 Ave SW #245

Heritage Bakery and Deli 

If it’s a traditional Eastern European-style soup you’re after, Heritage Bakery and Deli will have a comforting bowl of borscht waiting. All of Heritage’s homey soups are made from scratch, with choices like a classic beet-based vegetarian borscht, a white borscht called zurek made with garlic sausage and potatoes, and a creamy pickled cucumber, chicken and potato soup.

Address: 1912 37 Street SW

Lazy Loaf and Kettle  

An old standby for local comfort food, Lazy Loaf and Kettle is the place to go for a bowl of homestyle soup that feels like a warm hug. Cozy and welcoming, this little cafe is the spot for a classic soup and sandwich combo. The soups of the day are homemade and belly-warming.

Address: 8 Parkdale Crescent NW

Lonely Mouth 

It’s incredibly rare for restaurants in Canada to make Japanese udon noodles in-house, but thanks to a special machine imported from Japan, Lonely Mouth can serve completely house made udon noodle soup. The restaurant’s name refers to that feeling of not really being hungry but still wanting to eat, which is exactly what happens when customers pop in for a drink or small snack and see those bowls of steaming hot udon topped with yuzu zest and the option of shaved beef, onsen egg or shredded chicken coming out of the kitchen.

Address: 528 17 Ave SW

Một Tô

A sister restaurant to the also excellent Pho Dau Bo, Một Tô offers a fun and modernized take on Vietnamese cuisine, but its soups are classics that remind the restaurant’s owners of their childhoods in Vietnam. “Một Tô” translates to “one bowl” and it’s hard to choose just one, with hearty crab and pork tomato soup, spicy lemongrass noodle soup, and the rich and meaty oxtail stew pho all on the menu. If you just want a taste of soup, opt for the signature pho grilled cheese which comes with a shot of broth for dipping or the shockingly tasty “Un-pho-gettable” pho broth cocktail.

Address: 1609 Centre St NW #101

Nan’s Noodle House 

Asian noodle soups are often built around a slow cooked meat broth, but everything at Nan’s Noodle House is completely vegan. The plant-based versions of classic ramen, laksa, and pho may skip the meat, but they certainly don’t skip on the flavour. These are some of the tastiest soups in town and will satisfy both the body and the soul.

Address: 3103b Edmonton Trl

Pho Dau Bo 

Calgary is chock-a-block with great Vietnamese restaurants, but Pho Dau Bo , located on the diverse and restaurant-heavy International Avenue, is one of the very best. Every one of the over a dozen varieties of pho on the menu is a winner, full of different cuts of meat and plenty of noodles. Go for the saté broth if you want an extra explosion of flavour.

Address: 4909 17 Ave SE #110

Primal Soup Company 

Located in Avenida Village’s Fresh and Local Market and Kitchens as well as the standalone Primal Grounds Cafe, Primal Soup Company makes a wide variety of from-scratch gluten-free soups using local fresh ingredients. Order a hot bowl of one of Primal Soup’s signature bowls, with flavours ranging from African peanut veggie to mango butternut squash. They also sell frozen containers of soup to-go for a super easy lunch or weeknight meal.

Address:

• 5255 Richmond Rd SW

• 12445 Lake Fraser Dr SE

Shiki Menya 

Every single variety of ramen at Shiki Menya is phenomenal, but the cult favourite will always be the chili goma. Rich and spicy (but not too spicy — don’t be afraid) and topped with minced pork and veggies, this bowl really is a work of art. For something slightly less meat-heavy try the tonkotsu black ramen with black garlic oil and squid ink. Keep in mind that this place opens at 11 am and closes when they run out of ramen, but it’s worth waiting in line for.

Address: 824 1 Ave NE

Yim Siam 

Thai cuisine is responsible for some of the world’s most delicious soups and Yim Siam , a MacLeod Trail restaurant renowned for its Thai Street Food makes some irresistible versions of the classics. Start your Thai feast off with a hot bowl of chicken or shrimp-spiked Tom Yum soup or go for the full coconut flavour of the kitchen’s Tom Kha.

Address: 4327 Macleod Trail SW

About the author:

Elizabeth Chorney-Booth is a local food writer, cookbook author, radio columnist and a lifelong Calgarian.