For my inaugural post (with actual content), I am excited to report on one of my favorite places for lunch: Temple of Zeus. This small cafe, tucked in the basement of Goldwin Smith Hall on the Arts Quad of Cornell University offers some of the freshest and tastiest soups I’ve tried. Each day Choklay, the chef, cooks up two delicious soups – ranging from heart-warming creamy parsnip to a more unusual delight such as spicy groundnut soup. All soups are vegetarian, and most days both a cream or milk-based soup and a non-milk (vegan) soup are offered. They are always freshly made, tasting homemade, wholesome, and scrumptious. To be sure, I have my favorites, but none will disappoint.
The soups have developed somewhat of a devoted following, and you may notice some of the same faithful soup lovers on most days queuing up with their bowls in hand. The lines during the lunch hours are guaranteed to be long (and I hesitated to blog about Ithaca’s best soups…for fear the line with lengthen), but, dear reader, I would not be a good reporter if I failed to mention Temple of Zeus’ soups.
The kitchen opens for serving at 11:00 am, and anyone in the know is savvy to the fact that you must be in the soup line before 12:45 pm if you have any realistic hopes of tasting that day’s soup. Another tip: bring your own bowl…you’ll get a little more. They also serve up sandwiches, coffee, baked goods, and other sundries. Check out Temple of Zeus’ website for their weekly soup menu, the recipes, and for cafe hours.