Like me, Sewell Chan mourns the loss of Souplantation. Its closure doesn't even make the list of the Top Ten Thousand bits of bad news we've had lately but I'll still miss it…at least during the periods when they would have been offering my favorite tomato soup.
To be honest though — and if we can't be honest about soup, what can we be honest about? — I am not surprised. First of all, just about all the "buffet-style" chains in this country were seeing declining sales and occasional bankruptcies before any of us had heard of COVID-19. Souplantation was crawling back from a 2016 bankruptcy when they closed thirty stores.
Buffets LLC, which operates Hometown Buffet, Old Country Buffet, Ryan's and others filed for Chapter 11 at about the same time (their third bankruptcy since 2008) and closed many outlets. For the last few years, Las Vegas hotels have either closed their buffets or not opened one in the first place.
I don't have any particular theory as to why this is but even before the coronavirus was in our lives, a lot of restaurant chains were in trouble and that included almost all the buffet ones.
Also, last September I wrote here…
…I've cooled a bit on the glories of the Souplantation chain…at least the three I used to frequent in or around Los Angeles. In honor of Classic Creamy Tomato Soup [this month], I'll go try one of them again in the next few days but my last visits there were a bit disappointing. The food didn't seem as fresh, the serving areas didn't feel as clean and they seemed to have troubles keeping the buffet serving areas stocked. They were all in or near L.A. Last year, I went to one in San Diego that was phenomenal — great service, great food, great decor, everything. It reminded me of how good the ones I patronize used to be. I suppose it's just a coincidence that the corporate offices of the Souplantation company are in San Diego…
So I'm not that surprised and I'm not as saddened as I would be if this closure had come ten years ago. Back then, I used to even go to Souplantations when they didn't have my favorite soup.
Speaking of which: Since I first got on this subject, people have been sending me recommendations of restaurants that serve what they consider great tomato soup ("Next time you find yourself in Rineyville, Kentucky…") and endorsements of certain brands of canned or packaged tomato soup and recipes…
I appreciate the eagerness to help but please don't. I loved the Classic Creamy Tomato at Souplantation because I thought it was great soup. I'm not in love with any or even most tomato soups and am jes' fine with a good chicken or turkey or chowder. I've also lost my interest in cooking anything more elaborate than a ham sandwich for a while. I'll be fine, thanks.