Affordable, mom and pop vibe, local soup and sandwich shop. I think this place is what national franchise chains are trying to mimic when it comes to an affordable community kitchen. The soup and sandwich were both tasty AND affordable. Tastes home made! Now this isn't some fancy new-age concept that's trying to break culinary boundaries. What it is doing is making sure the community has a filling tasty meal at a reasonable price with warm and friendly service from the staff. You can see older folks come in right when the restaurant opens at 11AM on the dot. Will definitely add this place to my lunch rotation! read more

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The staff are some of the friendliest restaurant staffs I have encountered. They always have a wide variety of soups every day. Plus, they can help customize your meal with cheese, bacon. Fellow customers are generally friendly and helpful. read more

Stopped for a quick lunch, got a bowl of chili and huge jalapeño corn bread which I could not stop eating. Chili was great too, hey I don't remember having lunch under $10 since the C thing. The chili all by itself was filling, the corn bread was just the icing on the cake. Place is full of seniors have a quiet lunch and a few young people who want a home cooked meal. I'll be back for sure. read more

Soup was excellent! Reuben sandwich was very good. I will go back. Staff was very pleasant. read more

Food always good - especially if you. Love healthy homemade soup. Staff always accommodates the customer b

After our recent soup failure, chronicled in another review, we were looking for GOOD soup. It has been years since we last ate with the Soup Kitchen. Can't say why, only that it has been. We were NOT disappointed. We ate there twice on Friday. My wife had the potato soup for lunch and chicken noodle for dinner. I had the GF Chili both times. It was so very yummy. My only disappointment was for dinner and they only had 1 brown roll left and no cheese bread. The hazards of getting food late in the after or early evening, things run out. :) The staff was very friendly and welcoming. This location is small so seating is limited. For us that wasn't an issue as we were taking it to go. We would definitely recommend The Soup Kitchen Express for Knoxville residents who can't get to the Oak Ridge location. read more

I've been meaning to submit a review for here for a bit, so this is actually a composite review over several visits. This is a little hidden gem tucked into a small strip mall. My mother found it one day, and she kept telling me about it, but at that time I lived across town and hadn't gotten to go. I moved to this side of town in the spring. Well, I've certainly been now! I love their chicken salad croissants, and the soups are really very good. They have different ones on different days, and the desserts are great! The service is always great and the staff are so nice. If you have a craving for a good soup - this is a great place for it! read more

I like the Soup Kitchen. When I first heard about this place all I could think about was a place that serves homeless people. But whoa! They run a great operation here in town. I should admit that I've had soup kitchen a bajillion times in the last 2 years because their food truck comes near my work several days a week. Every time the Trisha Yearwood cake is available - get it! Lip smacking good. It's a menu of soup. And sandwiches. It is what it is. But oh the bread served in your sandwich is out of this world. That brown bread has molasses that'll make you miss home. And the cheesey bread is a dream. You don't even need butter or honey or jam or __ for this bread it's so good. Eat it naked (no..not like that. I'm just saying). The roast beef and cheddar is my favorite. All their fixings are high quality. Forget Arby's. These guys have the meats. I like the chicken curry and the gratin savoyard and the potato soups. Sometimes it comes out way too piping hot. You might have to wait for it to cool a bit. They run a tight ship. The interior is so clean you could eat off the floors. All the workers know their business and are real friendly. When you come, you're family here. read more

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Delicious hot soup. Pleasant personnel. Great choices. Clean storefront. Glad we tried it

Really love this little place. The soup is so yummy and they always have at least one gluten-free option which is amazing

Although the food is amazing, I mean the chili and jalapeño cornbread yum, the lady who works there is RUDE. She is the polar opposite of friendly and should not be working around living creatures at all. I would rather drive to the original Soup Kitchen in Oak Ridge than deal with Kathy. I keep saying I'm not going back but I like the convenience of having lunch and picking up dinner for the family. But 3-4 strikes..out. To many places that are happy to have the business. read more

Horrible experience! I recall The Soup Kitchen in Oak Ridge being hands down the very best place to eat! The soup was amazing and the bread was unbeatable, so assuming this location would at least somewhat match the quality, we decided to try it out. Honestly, I've never been so disgusted! The soup had zero flavor and was served at a boiling temperature in a thin styrofoam bowl, with plastic spoons...and the bread was just as tasteless! No question that a can of Chambell's soup has more flavor! Two small bowls of soup with bread with water was right at $20! This was clearly not a $20 meal!! Honestly, even if the food was amazing I wouldn't step foot back in this place. It was so nasty! The restaurant looked old, worn down and very unkept. And to top it all off, a lady had her smelly poodle dog behind us IN THE RESTAURANT!! I love animals, but I don't appreciate being forced to sit in the same room with one while trying to eat! It stood up several times and shook itself off throwing dog hair into the air, and obviously into the food as well. I noticed another couple trying to eat and didn't appreciate it any more than we did. It was not a service dog, just a pet on a leash. I was shocked that it was allowed, but not only allowed, one of the line workers came over to pet it and walked right back into the kitchen afterwards!! Disgusting is an understatement and we most definitely won't be back!! read more

Coming into the soup kitchen just after lunchtime we wanted to try a fresh sandwich with soup..ohhh we got it!! The hot ham and swiss on rye bread is really good!! The bowl of cheddar cheese soup is really good too.... Asked for the Trisha Yearwood cake as Paisley suggested and they never heard of it. O.K. I got the Peanut Butter Cake...REALLY good!!!! Must try. Support our locals! Come here--- read more

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I LOVE SOUP! We are so glad we found this place. They usually have 8 different soups a day. They have a daily sandwich special as well as desserts and homemade breads. I cannot wait to try the peanut butter pie and chocolate layer cake! Check online for their daily specials. Soup and 1/2 sandwich come with choice of chips. I've had the lasagna soup, stuffed pepper soup, vegetable soup and chicken rice soup all in large sizes. They are all hearty delicious filling soup. But my favorite is the Lasagna soup! Yum! Looking forward to trying chicken noodle soup! I also have had the meatloaf sandwich, chicken salad sandwich and chicken salad with pecans. Everything good except the chicken salad was to creamy (not the one with pecans) and a bit sweet for my liking. The employees are really pleasant and always ask how you are. Check website or call for daily soups and specials. I would also call for hours they are open to because on some sites it says they close at 6pm and another 7pm as well as being open on Saturday and another site saying they are closed so best to call them! . Located in Cedar Springs Shopping Center on Kingston Pike. Tip: ask for the customer rewards card. Each time you visit get card marked to earn free food. read more

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I am always on the hunt for a good little lunch place where I can get a decent sandwich, soup and/or salad, whether its dine in or carry out. I ventured in here a little past lunchtime and ended up w/ a grilled cheese and vegetable soup. It was the perfect fix on a cold day. You could taste the griddle taste on the grilled cheese which I personally like. It reminds me of that diner type feel. If you are hungry and on the look for a quick little place to grab a bite, or to even take it to go, I would recommend the soup kitchen. They have a salad bar at lunchtime which I was a little too late for but I will definitely check it out next time! Cheers & Enjoy! read more

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No place around other than your grandmas kitchen to get food and soups like theirs. I'm a very "boogie" picky eater and I would literally eat here every day. So good! And the staff are really the nicest. Great place. read more

The bread alone gives this place 5 stars for me! The soups are decent but nothing spectacular. But the Mexican cornbread will keep me coming back here every time I'm in Knoxville! I've never had any of the sandwiches, so I'm not sure about them. The staff was very friendly on my latest visit, too! read more

Soup Kitchen Express - Chili with Mexican cornbread in the foreground. Chili with cheese bread and Fritos in the background. - Cafes Near Me - Knoxville, Tennessee

Awesome chili and you have to try the chicken Phili!! Get here early!! Soups go fast! Can't wait to come back!! I would like to suggest that y'all invest in soup spoons..just say'n :) read more

This was a go-to lunch place for me at several jobs. One of my jobs, they had a truck that came by where you could buy soups and sandwiches and cookies and the like. And then I changed jobs and was near their store and went in a lot. Their soups are delicious. I really liked their potato soup and clam chowder in particular. The prices are rather high for Knoxville, but I like that it's a Mom and Pop place and it seems to be homemade, so I was willing to pay a bit more to support a small local business. I also get the chessmen brownies, which are good, too. Service is friendly, decor is pretty much non-existent (it's in an older strip mall) but I usually do take out anyway. The only bummer is that they aren't open later in the day for weeknight dinner. I believe they close at 6. Definitely a good place for a workday lunch. read more

Tiny restaurant. Very nice people! I went in on a Friday and, of course, had the clam chowder, New England. It was homemade and delicious. Really hit the spot. I also had a square of their jalapeño corn bread. It was excellent! What a great place for lunch on a cold day! read more

OMG! At work we order and had it delivered. First of all, we all had a little taste of each other's. We can't choose which is the best. I rate them ALL a 10+. Plus the delivery guy went WAY ABOVE and BEYOND and brought one of our vegetarian girls another Grautin Salvador. Holy Molly! Y'all got to visit and prepare to have your taste buds go to heaven. read more

I'm a huge fan of soup but on this 90 degree summer day I was just looking for a sandwich and a place to cool off. I was lured in by the website that said they bake their breads which is appealing to me since almost all great sandwiches start with good bread. My order was a philly cheesesteak, a slice of coconut cake, and a drink. The cheesesteak came on a store bought roll and I'd give the entire sandwich a 2. It was just ok and was a little salty but nothing special about and I certainly wouldn't order it again. It's probably just me and I don't want to be complaining much about a sandwich at a soup place but if you're going to put something called a philly cheesesteak on the menu, you should at least TRY to make it something like a philly cheesesteak. Steakums and cheese on a store roll just doesn't seem to me like you really care about what you're putting out for product. The coconut cake was about a 4 inch square and it was ok. The bigger issue to me was that this "meal" of a bad sandwich, a smallish piece of ok cake, and a drink came to $12.05 - almost forgot, you get to select a bag of chips (smallest bag I've ever seen) from a rather poor selection of regular, bbq, cool ranch doritos, or sunchips. That SEEMS like a lot for what I received. I don't mind paying good money for good food but I do mind paying good money for ok food. And this was just ok. HOWEVER! As it cools down over the next few weeks I will go back and sample a couple of their soups and update this review but for now, it's a 2. I hope the soups are good. read more

I'm sure the owner doesn't expect his employees to act this way. Store closes at 2 today, Saturday. I arrive at 1:45 to get some soup to go. Waited for 5 minutes before calling out to whoever was in the back. Finally someone comes out, not to greet me but to tell me they're closed and already threw out the remaining soup. Funny, there's a sign up of the soup Nazi from Seinfeld. That's how it felt... No soup for you. I guess 2pm doesn't mean 2pm anymore. Too bad. They have good food. Often eat off they're truck that comes to my workplace. Poor service and employee actions reflect badly on good places. read more

I'm a soup lover and I'm from Cajun country (South Louisiana) so I was looking forward to trying the crab soup. Then I found out it was snow crab soup, which is hardly Cajun,but I was not deterred. I went in on the day they serve this soup and ordered the soup/sandwich combo. Along with the soup I had a BLT which was quite good except for the mayo that was used on it, which had a sweet taste to it, like the white salad dressing that comes in a jar. I took most of the dressing off of the sandwich, it was much tastier without it. I've also tried thier jalapeno cornbread and found it quite tasty. The soup left a LOT to be desired. I was told it was made from snow crab, but I'm almost positive that it was that red and white artificial crab you find in some cheap, all you can eat buffet type restaurants. Most of the soup was trown away, which wouldn't have been ok had I not had a half off voucher. I have been to the Soup Kitchen Express one other time and I enjoyed the Vegetable soup very much. The service was friendly and fast and the restaurant appeared very clean. I plan on trying more of thier soups, but will skip the crab soup from now on. read more

I thoroughly enjoyed my broccoli and cheddar soup; but I would visit again JUST to grab another delicious pecan cinnamon roll (or three). Great little spot to grab a nice, hearty bite. read more

Excellent tomato basil soup and grilled cheese! I will come back to this place. I am not sure why some people didn't like it but I enjoyed my first time here. I was with a small baby and needed to warm up his food and the lady running the counter took care of it for me! So nice read more

Really wanted to like this place but average food and overpriced. Counter person was very helpful. Son and I stopped here whilst my daughter got her first highlights. read more

Wife's vegetable soup loaded with vegetables. They were frozen vegetables not fresh vegetables. She said her soup was good but bland. I had the chili which had little meat and surprisingly not many beans either. Chili had a good flavor though just lacking substance. The best part of the meal was the Mexican corn bread. Generous portion bread and very tasty. Not a place I would hurry to come back to but it was overall OK. Friendly staff, appears to be family run. read more

Pros: Soups are good Jalapeno cornbread is excellent Accomdates some dietary restrictions (Gluten Free & Vegan) Cons: Way overpriced... bowl of soup + bread + drink = ~$9.50 Not enough seating read more

Yelper's are right...everything is canned. And I do mean everything. Tomato soup was questionable as in it looked as if something was floating in it-fat or some type of curdled nastiness idk. It's cafeteria style, which is fine, but the people behind the counter act like you're bothering them to order. They were downright RUDE! I asked for a tuna melt...I got a cold tuna sandwich with white American cheese. It was awful. I was starving so I ate it, otherwise I would've just left. I would save my $ and try another place. Not worth the $11 I paid. read more

Just left The Soup Kitchen at Cedar Bluff road. I got a bowl of soup and my friend ordered a grilled chicken salad. I had finished my soup before my friend ever got the salad. We had to ask twice! When the "grilled" chicken finally came it was partially thawed chicken over cheap iceberg lettuce, cucumbers and cherry tomatoes! That was the sorriest excuse for an overpriced salad that I've ever seen. WENDY's and McDonalds both offer better salads read more

I wanted to like it here so much, I'm from cookeville and loved the one there. Mind this is my first visit and the staff was busy and did their job well. I just couldnt get past the fact that the Louisiana rice soup tasted straight up like spaghettios, I'll eat here again on a better soup day and see how I feel then, like I said I loved the cookeville one ...that soup tho...whew read more

I was really excited to try this place but was left hungry and disappointed. First I wait in line for 10 mins only to be told when it's my turn to order that they aren't serving sandwiches and only 3 of the 6 soups were left. I got the vegetable soup and it was served cold and pretty sure it came straight out of a Cambell soup can. Will not be returning. Also, prices very high for poor quality meal. read more

Its cafeteria food at best. The chili was bland and the sandwich was poor quality. Your better to go across the street to Jason's deli.