With all the 90 degree days we’ve had this summer, it’s hard to even think about soup right now. But by October, we’ll be ready for its comforting warmth. This year, Jenny Levison (aka Souper Jenny) is hosting Souptoberfest, a chef-driven soup competition and taste-around festival October 23.
Held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the parking lot of her Westside restaurant, Souptoberfest will feature soup from 25 chefs and restaurateurs like Linda Harrell (Cibo e Beve), Nick Leahy (Saltyard), and Tom Murphy (Murphy’s). Each will prepare his or her favorite soup and serve unlimited cups of it. There will be fresh bread, treats, and live Brazilian music, too. Local celebrities will judge, and prizes—as well as proceeds—will benefit Levison’s new charitable initiative called the Zadie Project.
“It’s an initiative that for every bowl of My Dad’s Turkey Chili we sell, we’ll donate a bowl of soup to feed hungry kids in Atlanta. The goal is to start being a more conscious company and give [back] for everything we’re making,” she says. “We committed to 800 quarts (1,600 bowls) of soup a week.”
The initiative is named Zadie (Yiddish for “grandpa”) in honor of Levison’s father, the man behind her famous chili recipe. To raise money for the charity, Souptoberfest tickets will cost $30. Those ages 12 and under are free.
Elsewhere in the Planet Jenny universe, Levison says she’s hoping to create an educational farm with a CSA near her Westside location. She’s also seeking locations for Juicy Jenny in Buckhead and working on her third cookbook, Souper Jenny Does Vegan, which is set to come out this spring.
