If you haven't eaten at Ole Mexican Grill in Cambridge, MA, and you love unique and authentic Mexican cuisine, I highly recommend it.  It is a small, bright building tucked away on a side street in Inman Square.  The menu is inspired, and they offer Cambridge's largest selection of specialty tequilas as well as several enticing margaritas.  When you visit (I don't say if, you really should go) I highly recommend starting with a soup.

There was only one soup on the menu when I visited Ole.  That said, I would much rather visit a restaurant that serves only one soup and does it really well than a restaurant with a multitude of so-so soups.  Ole's soup was perfection.

The soup in question was Sopa de Frijoles, or black bean soup.  I simply call it soup perfection.  I ogled the soup, I photographed the soup, and then my family and I all sampled the soup.  My dad aptly noted that I would be hard-pressed to find a better tasting soup to blog about.

The soup was lovely to look at.  The ebony soup sat in a pure white bowl and was beautifully garnished with avocado, fried tortilla strips, queso fresco, and plantains.  I'm not a fast or impulsive eater, but my husband had to remind me to photograph the soup before digging in to taste the wonderful creation in front of me.

When I did dig in, I was awed.  The soup tasted of fresh pureed black beans and mystery spices.  Everyone at the table took a turn tasting the soup and we each, in turn, crinkled our brows and guessed...cumin?  No.  Cardamom?  I don't think so.  Addictive Mystery Mexican Spice?  Definitely.  None of us could identify the underlying flavors, we couldn't even be sure they were spices and not some other mystery ingredient.  The bean puree danced on my tongue with a mild spice.  Better yet, the spices were played off wonderfully by the garnishes.  My favorite bites were those of plaintain and soup - the perfect balance of sweet and spicy.  The soft cheese and avocado also complemented the soup well, while the tortilla strips added a contrasting crunch.  Yum.

This was certainly the best soup I have eaten in a long time, and my dad may be right - I may not find a more perfect soup - but I love a challenge!