Soup du jour

I was trying to explain some of the subtleties of New York culture to my Scottish friends today, and I found myself reminiscing about the old Empire Diner — a restaurant in Manhattan, now sadly closed, whose boldly retro decor, delightful drink menu and general sense of style quoted the old diners from the 1950s all with tongue firmly planted in cheek.

In particular I fondly recalled how the menu had a listing for “Soup of the Day” (for $3.00), as well as a listing for “Soup du Jour” (for $3.50). No matter which one you ordered, you would get exactly the same dish.

It was a fair exchange of value, in a typically New York way: The restaurant was quite happy to give you the option of ordering in french, and equally happy to charge you the extra 50 cents for the privilege of having done so.

4 thoughts on “Soup du jour”

  1. Some things are hard to translate across cultures. Have your hosts been able to explain the appeal of haggis? (Or bagpipes, for that matter 😉

  2. A tax on the pretend pedants serves them right.
    A proper connoisseur would demand the “soupe du jour.”

  3. I was walking by the former Empire Diner a week ago, and saw, to my surprise, that it was OPEN! From the outside, it seems to have the same name (I did not have time to go inside and explore further) I then Googled and found the following:

    “Following its teary shuttering in May 2010 it looks like the Empire Diner space is getting ready for its grand reopening as a yet-to-be-named project from the Coffee Shop team. Sources close to the restaurant reveal that the new project is shooting for a fall 2010 launch, and that the menu will be different from both that of the old diner and Coffee Shop. Think American food, with a more upscale focus and price point to match. The owners previously stated that they want to keep the space mostly as it was, and considering that the restaurant was beloved for years largely because of its design, it’s a good plan to stick to. If they can nail a menu that’s competitive in the pricey comfort food arena, Empire Diner 2.0 could be a hit with the neighborhood and tourists alike….”

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