Soup Diary 100719

Have you ever noticed that in many restaurants, French Onion Soup is more expensive than other varieties. Is it the cheese? the bread cubes? I don't know for sure, but over the years I think I've only ever once had bad onion soup. This past week, I had it at two different places, because it was either the only thing on the menu, or the other option was not terribly appealing (I think it was Tomato). One cup, at a place called Bullfeathers was outstanding, with a rich, beefy flavored broth, thick sliced caramelized onions, and a cheesy cap of provolone. The other, at the Roadhouse Grill was much less robust, with just a sprinkle of Parmesan on top, but still fairly satisfying, suffering really only in comparison to the previous cup. I once tried to make homemade onion soup, and as I recall it turned out ok, but not spectacular. Actually, it improved with age, as I had enough to stretch out over several days. I wonder if that's why it's such a mainstay on so many menus-- they just keep a pot constantly simmering, occasionally tossing in a few more onions, and let it stew endlessly to extract all the flavor from the stock and onions. Whatever the reason is, I'm glad you can get this in so many places, even if I generally try something else. It's definitely my favorite standby (ahead of chicken noodle and broccoli cheddar, the other two ubiquitous choices), though I imagine it will be awhile before I have it twice in the space of a week again.