The POWER OF SOUP with Sopa! and Soup & Salaam
There is something special about soup which spans across cultures and communities. Sharing a pot of soup creates a feeling of intimacy and connection that somehow achieves something different than a dish of rice or a platter of burgers can. Erik Rey and Sumiya Khan are both passionate about soup as sustenance as well as a way of bringing people together, and they gush about it all in this episode! Eric and his brother Alejandro Pabon-Rey of Sopa New Haven, started their new soup subscription business as a way to nourish their community and their own relationship. Soup & Salaam: Creating community over soup and conversation is a new project of Sanctuary Kitchen and CitySeed which Sumiya helps to run. Chefs who are recent refugees are supported in creating super club type events that feature their favorite soups and traditional breads as a way of creating connections across cultures, and business opportunities for immigrants trying to make a living in a new country.
Sopa! New Haven
If you are in the New Haven, CT area and are interested in getting soup delivered from Sopa!, sign on to their email list, follow them on social media and check out their new website! Eric and Alejandro will also be hosting intimate tasting events in their homes where you will be able to sample their traditional Puerto Rican Sancocho soup they learned from their mom, and the Coconut Curry Kale soup that their subscribers are raving about!
Soup & Salaam
The first Soup & Salaam is Janary 31, but is SOLD OUT.
The next Soup is an Afghan Dinner with chef Maleka , on Thursday, February 28 from 6-7:30pm, click here for more info and tickets.
Save the Dates:
Congolese Dinner, March 28, 2019
Sudanese Dinner, April 25, 2019
Sanctuary Kitchen sells soup (and other food products) every Saturday at CitySeed's winter indoor market - 10am to 1pm, Metropolitan Business Academy on Water St. SNAP benefits are doubled for fruits & veggies at CitySeed markets.
Eric and Sumiya first met through the Food Business Accelerator run as a partnership of CitySeed and Collab, with support from the City of New Haven and EDC of New Haven. (Host, Tagan Engel also serves as a mentor in this program and with Collab.)
AND….if you need some more soup making inspiration, check out one of our favorite “work with what you got” soups (above).. a few lentils, a bunch of veggies, some onion, garlic..and you’ve got a soup. Check out our recipe HERE.
Sumiya Khan of Sanctuary Kitchen & CitySeed, and Eric Rey of Sopa! New Haven, recording at Baobob Tree Studios in New Haven, CT
Check out these fab folks, take a listen, and chime in!
What are your favorite soups, and who do you share them with?
