If you walk towards 'Szabadság híd' - Liberty bridge from Kálvin square, on the right side you can easily miss the entrance of a tiny canteen that wasn't there a couple of months back. The place in not much wider than the door itself. One of our readers Gabi recommended the miniature shop where allegedly genius soup is sold.
The name of the place is 'Leves.' - Soup. It was created by the same group as Pasta., but this was the first place.
At my arrival three people were queuing and I've squeezed myself into the place to try out what do they know about soup. That afternoon there were 3 different soups by the blackboard: Morocco style thick lentil soup, Carrot cream soup with saffron and chicken soup Lyon style. I've asked for the last, payed 450 forints (1,5 EUR) and in exchange I've got a cup with a bayonetted spoon:
I've tasted it and my mouth dropped. Excitingly spiced, neatly cooked reach soup what they gave me. My plan was only to taste it and than to have it on the street, but than and there I just had to have the whole thing at the roughly 1 meter long counter.
On the same day I was mocking about the neighbourhood, so when I remembered the soup I had earlier I turn my way the direction of the place again. I wanted to try a different soup knowing by now that I'll write about the little shop. Carrot cream soup with saffron and half of a grilled baguette is what I've asked for this time. Bonaparte flavour was my choice for the toasted baguette with chicken, caramelised carrot, leak, white wine and cheese stuffed in the middle.
This second course was fantastic too. At the beginning the sweetness of vegetables was dominating my first taste of the soup than came the blast of the carrot relish that filled up my entire mouth. I didn't expect much of the baguette than to the contrary it cranked my former experiences up.
Consequently the place is very sympathetic, it is cheap, uses good ingredients to make ambitious soups without any mystification. You get the paper cup, walk out to the street and by spooning the steaming stuff on the open you get the 'cool factor' never seen before. The sandwich is not a necessary extra that's tossed on the soup but a new excellent dish, the whole thing done quickly and compact, ready to go.
Leves.
Vámház körút 14., Budapest, HU.
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