Brief Update on the 2026-2027 Soup Season
Soup Fridays return next week! Like a bisque-loving bee, I’m buzzing at the thought of a new Soup Season. Soup Gods willing, I intend for the 2026-2027 season to broaden the Soup Friday horizons with a couple of cultured cups in metropolises and an eventful eat or two. Insouplah brother! Unfortunately, there’ll be times where the seasonal depression that comes with a gray Pennsylvania winter exacerbates my sluggishness and subdues my enthusiasm to drive twenty minute to acquire a run-of-the-mill soup and summarize my tastebuds’ findings over a few subpar paragraphs. During these occasions, I’ll post an Instagram story with the score of a more ubiquitous option from either a grocery store to-go section, a fast food establishment, or, the most depressing option of all, a well-known can of soup. However, soup is for all and we at Ev Dog Blog value inclusion, even for those who don’t currently follow @Ev_Dog_ on IG. To keep everyone informed on all my soup happenings, I plan on copying my Scoop Friday method of regularly updating a blog that lists the score of every soup that doesn’t receive a write-up. Additionally, I may record another video review or two in an effort to improve my Reels/TikTok game.
And the Soupie goes to…
Before I can accomplish any of these feats, I wanted to go back to last year’s reviews to remember what makes Soup Friday so special. In a celebration of my growth as both a writer and meme maker on an archaic version of PowerPoint, I’ve decided to bestow myself with some awards in categories I created over the last hour. Congrats to Ev Dog for sweeping and winning all the Soupies this year!
Best Soup: Miller’s Smorgasbord - Sausage and Cabbage
Unlike those cash-grabbing TV executives that make viewers wait three hours to reveal the results of an inconsequential ranking from a group of biased board voters with freshly-kissed fannies featuring an array of smooch marks from all the top studios, I start off with the top prize. Not only did the Sausage & Cabbage outrank the five other soups I ate during the 25-26 finale and the other seventeen soups I downed during the 25-26 season, it also performed under a higher degree of difficulty by containing cabbage as a primary ingredient. Quite the achievement from a buffet soup!
Best Mollusk Meme: (TIE) Bacco Pizzeria & Wine Bar - Clams Casino Chowder/ Soup Friday: Dockside Willie’s - Seafood Chowder
GASP – A tie! How can you make a parent pick between their favorite children, especially when they’re in the form of clams on top of the heads of human bodies.
Best Human Trafficking Investigative Journalism Moment: Nalan Indian Cuisine - Tomato Rasam
Some unintentional slick sleuthing from your boy, who was just reveling in the wonders of Lemoyne’s State Street Plaza occupants, potentially may have uncovered a human trafficking scheme at a local massage parlor. I salute the Cumberland County District Attorney’s Office for a thorough analysis of all the local soup blogs in order to find evidence for their case. (DA Case Link) I imagine that based on their reading of my November 28, 2025 Soup Friday edition, investigators discovered that massage parlors with blocked views of the interior and a promo sign for “other services” may in fact be up to some sketchy shit.
Best Excerpt: (Tie)
The vainest of the categories, but each of these produced a chortle from me on rereads.
“Some may blame me for getting there too late in the day, but I choose to blame the cluster of health insurance companies that have multiple buildings within a block of Simply Turkey’s premises. I guess their avarice expands beyond taking all of our money. Now, they want to eat all of our soup too! If only there was a Luigi Minestrone.”
West Shore Plaza Family Restaurant - Chicken Orzo
“Due to being a young nerd with asthma, my lack of coolness barred my family from sitting in the smoking section. However, because the kitchen was located in an area right next to the smoking section, your food would still come through a cloud of smoke and you’d occasionally get a hint of Marlboro in your pancakes. A nice victory for the little guys at that time: the benevolent tobacco companies!”
Best Soup Memory: (Tie) Hofbräuhaus – Potato / John Wright Restaurant - Cream of Crab
Without a doubt, my two favorite soup excursions over the past year involved times when I got the opportunity to eat soup with friends and family and provide them with a live review. Sure, one can easily find delight in a solitary session with a bowl of beef barley, but I believe soup is best enjoyed in a communal setting where bread is broken and dipped into a cup of corn chowder. Here’s to hoping I’ll get more of these opportunities this year and have another fantastic Soup Season overall!