It’s National Soup Month – Start Slurping!

The MLA team just finished a two-day juice detox and after 48 hours of drinking nothing but cold, tart fruit juice, all I am craving is a hot bowl of soup. Luckily, it happens to be National Soup Month AND, despite the unseasonably warm weather we’ve been having, the weather reports for the rest of this week finally point to colder temperatures. I can’t think of a better time to sample our city’s selection of body-warming bowls of goodness. Check out a list of our favorites around town in the latest edition of The Dish. My must-haves are Aria’s creamless celery root and black truffle soup (you will not believe this soup doesn’t have cream in it!) and Spice Market’s spicy chicken and coconut soup (pictured above). Both of these feel totally luxurious and are super satisfying on a cold day.

It's Time to Salute Soup!

January is National Soup Month and we’ve got a list of soups to help you celebrate! Grab a bowl and warm up at one of Atlanta’s top restaurants!

• Park your sale bags and take a soup break at Davio's Northern Italian Steakhouse in Phipps Plaza -- a bowl of roasted tomato soup with goat cheese-chive crostini ($6) is calling your name.

• We can be cheesy when bringing up the cheddar-based queso soup ($5) on the menu at all seven Marlow's Tavern locations. Chili-roasted chicken, tomatoes and crunchy tortilla strips thicken the spicy plot.

• In the Italian tradition, Pacci Ristorante keeps soup bubbling on the stove, including classic minestrone ($6) and Tuscan white bean soup with pancetta, pecorino cheese, crostini and rosemary oil ($7).

• RA Sushi has several soups to warm your tummy without weighing you down: tofu, seaweed and green onions swim in miso soup ($4); Miso Hot! soup spices up the broth and adds shiitake mushrooms, bok choy and shrimp ($6.75); potsticker soup adds pork potstickers, snow peas, carrots, bok choy and green onion to a lightly seasoned chicken broth ($7); and Nabeyaki udon brings on tempura shrimp, kani kama crab and scallops in a seafood broth ($13.75).

• Will your spoon stand up in a bowl of seafood gumbo at Ray's on the River or Ray's in the City ($7)? Ray's at Killer Creek offers another favorite -- classic French onion soup ($7). Like surprises? All three Ray's Restaurants have their own soup of the day ($5/cup, $7/bowl).

• Cross the globe by crossing Peachtree to the W Atlanta Midtown for a tasty trip through Spice Market's exotic chicken and coconut milk soup ($7) and butternut squash soup with ginger and pumpkin seeds ($7.50).

• Uncle Julio's Fine Mexican Food has a steaming hot tortilla soup that's the ultimate cold day cure -- diced chicken fajita paired with fresh vegetables and tortilla strips in a zesty chicken broth. The good uncle has five other "souper" soups-of-the-day reasons to bring out the bowls: Monday, it's Mexican corn chowder; Tuesday brings on poblano beef fajita soup; Wednesday doles out thick black bean soup; Thursday tempts with poblano cream soup; and Friday's little luxury is shrimp and lobster soup. All of Uncle Julio's soups are $5.95 a bowl.

• Soup in a burger joint? One spoon and you'll have the hots for Shaun's red chili ($2.99/cup) at YEAH! BURGER.

• Do-it-yourselfers can thank Gena Knox for keeping the home fires burning with a simmering soup pot of Gena's sweet corn chowder with crumbled bacon. The hearty recipe is on her website and also in her recently released cookbook, "Southern My Way."