After a long week, I needed some comfort food the other night. Preferably, comfort food that didn’t require me to cook it. So, I headed to downtown Newburyport with this on my mind. After doing some errands, I wandered into the Purple Onion for take-out, and felt immediately welcomed. The Purple Onion makes me feel like I have a slightly earth-crunchy relative who opened up her cool and slightly quirky kitchen and dining room to sell healthy fare.

I’ve often looked here at What’s the Soup and noticed that The Purple Onion has a regular soup called Sweet N’ Sour Tomato Soup. I was leary of trying it since they add lemon juice. Adding citrus to an already acidic soup? Wouldn’t that just be weird? I know that lemon juice can enhance other flavors, but in this case, it just sounded like too much acidity. As it turns out, I was dead wrong. The soup, which has a beef broth base, tomatoes, onions, and is scattered with scallions and Monterey Jack cheese, is wonderful. It is more sour than sweet, but it has a pleasing and not overpowering sourness with a nice, tart aftertaste. There is something about the combination of the lemon with the other ingredients – particularly the tomato – that adds an incredible depth of flavor. The soup also has a lovely consistency; it is slightly thick from the pureed tomato, and very smooth with large chunks of onion throughout.

 Service at the Purple Onion was great – the girls working were friendly and efficient, and it was a pleasant stop on a rainy day. And, a good value. A cup of soup is approximately $3 while a bowl is about $4. It is served up with a nice bready breadstick that is perfect for dipping in your new go-to tomato soup!