LA’s best soup spots ranking is just what the weather ordered as weekend El Niño-fueled downpours ahead

I gotta focus. I’m shifting into soup mode.

With another rainy weekend looming — perhaps bringing the first rain on Halloween in Los Angeles since 2014 — it’s a perfect time to warm up with a nice bowl of soup.

Travel blogger Mariana in LA has broken down 11 of her favorite spots to get soup in the City of Angels, with options ranging from Vietnamese pho to the classic chicken noodle.

She also acknowledged the beloved SoCal institution Souplantation, which closed during the COVID-19 pandemic, but last month announced its 2027 return.

While they are not ranked, she acknowledges the Rare Beef Pho from Pho 87 in Chinatown first on her list, adding that some believe it’s the best pho in Southern California.

“It’s all about the broth! It was rich, deeply aromatic, and packed with flavor, unlike anything I’d had before,” Mariana said. “It was so rich I completely forgot to add hoisin sauce. The thinly sliced rare beef cooks in the hot broth, becoming perfectly tender.”

Her favorite chicken noodle soup in town comes from San Gabriel’s Chong Qing Special Noodles, which she adds was a favorite spot of longtime Los Angeles Times food critic Johnathan Gold.

She described the chicken noodle soup as “a dream,” noting it features “fresh-tasting hand-cut noodles, tender shreds of chicken that effortlessly fall apart, a handful of bok choy, and a comforting broth that will leave you feeling satisfied and nourished.”

LA’s Koreatown is represented on the list by the ginseng chicken soup from Buil Samgye Tang, which she said stood out because of the chicken.

“The chicken is so tender that you don’t even need a fork. As if that weren’t enough, they also serve a nice selection of banchan (traditional Korean side dishes), including kimchi and radish, along with complimentary herbal tea!”

She also praised the friendly staff and also recommended the “#3” variant of the soup, since it features goji berries, “an excellent source of antioxidants.”

Another beloved LA neighborhood — Thai Town — is represented by the duck noodle soup from Roasted Duck by Pa Ord, which she describes as a “no frills” restaurant that is not recommended for big groups.

The duck noodle soup in question, though, she describes as “an absolute dream,” adding, “The way the succulent duck, thin rice noodles, and thick bean sprouts came together in the impossibly flavorful and aromatic broth was magical.”

Other soups on the list include the Japanese Plum “Ume” Soup from Otafuku (Gardena), the Chicken Soup from Kismet Rotisserie (Studio City, Los Feliz, Culver City, Pasadena), Chicken Dumpling Soup from Gjusta (Venice), Beef Noodle Soup from Corner Beef Noodle House (El Monte), Chicken Noodle Soup from Heng Heng Chicken Rice (Thai Town), Lentil Soup from Panini Kabob Grill (Hollywood, Century City, Downtown LA) and Japanese BBQ Chicken Ramen from Torisoba Sumiya (Sawtelle).

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