It was balmy and mild last year too — until suddenly, angrily, with a vengeance — it wasn’t. We may have banned "polar vortex" from our collective vocabularly, but it's going to get a little frosty up in here.
The silver lining is that it feels extra-nice to warm up with a hot, slurpable meal. Here are four of the best soups in the Boston area to keep you cozy when the inevitable chill arrives:
The New England Soup Factory, Newton
The New England Soup Factory in Newton is the long-acclaimed and always-bustling soup hot spot of greater Boston. Whatever your go-to classic American comfort soup is, husband-and-wife team Marjorie Druker and Paul Brophy just might make it better than your mom does (sorry). The chicken pot pie is especially dreamy, with chunks of white meat chicken in a thick gravy mixed with vegetables and topped with a buttery puff pastry.
244 Needham St., Newton, 617-558-9966, newenglandsoupfactory.com
Also featured in Here Are Five Chicken Soups To Help Fight Off Colds .
The Daily Catch, North End, Brookline, Seaport
The Daily Catch is a popular Sicilian seafood restaurant with a famously tiny location in the North End, a second location in Brookline and, most recently, a third on the Seaport. It also has some stellar clam "chowdah." Of course, the title for the ultimate New England clam chowder will always see healthy competition and grumbling disagreement, but Boston Magazine gave the 2015 “Best of Boston” chowder award to this bowl.
3 locations: 323 Hanover St., North End, Boston; 441 Harvard St., Brookline; 2 Northern Ave., Seaport, Boston, 617-734-2700, thedailycatch.com
Shojo, Boston
Shojo in Chinatown offers eclectic Asian-fusion fare starring ramen during the lunch hour. This is not the prepackaged ramen from your college days; this is ramen with Cantonese-style pork belly and a six-minute egg in a rich chicken broth.
9A Tyler St., Boston, 617-423-7888, shojoboston.com
Courtesy of Facebook
Pho Basil, Boston
Pho Basil in Back Bay serves a wide variety of pho, the popular Vietnamese noodle soup. For chilly weather, you can’t go wrong with the tom yum: a spicy, aromatic, Thai-style hot-and-sour soup with thick udon noodles, shrimp, chicken, mushroom, scallion, cilantro and chili paste.
177A Mass Ave., Boston, 617-262-5377, phobasil.com
Also featured in Here Are Five Chicken Soups To Help Fight Off Colds .
Courtesy of Facebook
Santouka, Back Bay
Blink and you'll miss it when you walk by restaurant, but locals certainly know it by name. Santouka 's original Shio ramen is our pick. The classic Tonkotsu broth, combined with a variety of tasty textures and a red pickled plum on off, will keep you warm all day long.
2 locations: 66 Hereford St., Boston; 1 Bow St., Cambridge; 857-310-5194, santouka.co
Also featured in Boston-Area Comfort Foods To Warm You Up In The Dead Of Winter .
Courtesy of Facebook
Happy Lamb Hot Pot, Chinatown
Hot pot is a Chinese cooking practice that involves a simmering pot of flavorful hot broth in the middle of the table, and a variety of ingredients like meats, vegetables and noodles nearby for dipping. (Think fondue.) And Happy Lamb Hot Pot in Chinatown is known for their offerings! They use special pots that are split down the middle so you can enjoy a variety of their delicious broths, mixing and matching the flavors. They're incredible and oh so satisfying.
2 locations: 693 Washington St., Boston; 485 Mass. Ave., Cambridge; 857-277-1000, http://www.littlesheep.com/
Pre-gaming for winter never tasted so good.
