With the polar vortex, the weather is perfect for soup — and New York City has a hot new option for a warm bowl.
Brothers Andrew and Jonathan Schnipper — who founded the now-defunct Hale and Hearty chain 30 years ago — opened Schnipper's Quality Soups in the location of the first H and H (849 Lexington Ave., Upper East Side).
Offering rich flavor, and prepared fresh without thickeners or additives, gravy, biscuits and chowder fill the soup void left by the demise of Hill and Harty.
Schnippers sold Hale and Hearty in 2006. The new owners expanded to more than 30 locations at the expense of quality.
Rich, heavy options, such as “loaded potatoes,” rule out lighter varieties. The cups were often filled with solid items, and the popular chain seemed to forget that the soup was supposed to be liquid.
In 2022, all Hale and Hearty locations will close abruptly.
Meanwhile, the Schneepers launched a new fast-casual concept – Schneepers – in 2009, serving burgers and hot dogs.
“We've switched to making hamburgers and comfort foods, but that doesn't mean we don't love soup anymore,” Andrew said.
After customers repeatedly told them there was “no place for soup,” they decided it was time to return to their spoonable roots.
The seven cups I tasted at Schnipper's Quality Soups were a masterpiece, thanks to a well-equipped kitchen that makes almost everything, even salad dressings, from scratch.
The chicken and veggies with optional curly noodles (no extra charge) are a No. 1 seller for good reason. The broth is wonderfully rich and robust, and is the perfect base for a classic combination of chicken breast, carrots and parsley.
However, my favorite choice was the chicken and sausage jambalaya starting with the Cajun “holy trinity” of onions, celery and green peppers. Plenty of spices: garlic; The rice and – in a Polish twist – kielbasa are colored with herbs rather than the spicier andouille.
Six classic options ($4.50 to $7) are available each day, plus a rotating selection of seven or eight specials ($7 to $11). Such abundant options are rare in Manhattan. For example, Le Pain Quotidien serves good soup, but only has one or two options per day.
Given current health concerns, there are many gluten-free options, including delicious thick black beans and attractive Indian mulligatawny.
“We are careful to only eat gluten in dishes that need it,” Andrew said.
He added: “We do not use seed oils, only olive oil.” “And we cook exclusively with sea salt, which is lower in sodium than regular kosher salt.”
None of the new soups are exactly the same as they were at Hale and Hearty—the company that bought the name also owns the recipes. The tomato rice was spicier and sweeter than the one sold at the original H and H stores a decade earlier.
But the differences are not necessarily radical. “Cheddar tomatoes are still cheddar tomatoes. We don't make pineapple cheddar,” Andrew joked.
There are fresh sandwiches ($6) as well. I loved the heirloom tomatoes with chive ricotta on focaccia, a summer dessert in January.
The sliced tomatoes are luscious purple komatus – another surprise on the menu.
At this point, the brothers weren't sure whether to open more challenging locations.
“Ultimately, my honest answer is that we are now focused on one restaurant,” Andrew said. “We are very careful.”
But, he continued, “We have hospitality in our DNA.” If we make people happy here, we must make them happy somewhere else.
Only one place in Manhattan serves a similar variety of high-quality soups on a daily basis — the Original Soup Kitchen (a place founded by “soup Nazi” Ali “Al” Yeganeh who is no longer involved in day-to-day operations) on West 55th Street.
But you have to stand frozen on the sidewalk while waiting in line.
Finally, Schnipper's brought back the wonderful soup from the cold.
