When it comes to food in general, certain words resonate more than others. When it comes to restaurants in particular, few words have more power than “local” and “fresh.”
You’ll find ample evidence of both at the A Street Soup Market in Historic Downtown Idaho Falls. Situated directly across the lane from the Willard Arts Center, this dining option offers a unique and thoughtful blend of fresh soups and sandwiches.
Owner and Head Chef Bryan Lloyd started from the bottom-up some 30 years ago as a dish washer, then graduated from the culinary program at ISU and went on to work under a number of accomplished chefs. He earned his stripes in international cuisine and fine dining, but his interests have refocused in recent years to create an establishment that has an atmosphere of clean simplicity.
“One of my favorite places to work was a little soup shop in Pocatello,” Lloyd said. “The owner was really focused on simplicity. That’s what he had going on. Now I’m getting up a little in age, and I’m looking at slowing things down a bit and doing the same thing.”
Every successful recipe has its key ingredients. For Lloyd, that means a team of 10 dedicated employees, which includes manager Kayla Thomas.
“We pretty much make everything in-house except for the cheese, and we don’t grow our own vegetables,” Thomas said. “We’ve taken something that is very simple—like soups and sandwiches—and elevated it all in the way we prepare and serve it.”
Take a House Roasted Beef sandwich, for example, she said. “It’s not roast beef that our people have just pulled out of a carton. That’s a roast product that they’ve seasoned in our kitchen, that they’ve roasted and sliced themselves.”
Other popular dishes at the Market include the Chipotle Chicken Salad, Herb Roasted Turkey and Brie, Black Forest Ham and Mediterranean Shrimp. (The latter is an amazing concoction of avocado, shrimp, tomato, kalamata olives, thinly sliced purple onions, feta cheese and fresh dill weed. Served on multi-grain whole wheat toast.)
Hours run from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday to Friday. For more information, visit www.astreetsoupmarket.com or call 419-3483.