The Hale and Hearty Founders Opened a New Uptown Soup Spot. How Is It? | Eater NY
"Opened over the holidays by brothers Andrew and Jonathan Schnipper in the same spot as their original Hale and Hearty Soups location 30 years ago (next-door to Donohue’s Steakhouse at 849 Lexington Avenue, near East 64th Street), this relaunch is framed as a personal comeback: “Soup in this location is personal to us — it’s how I met my wife, and my brother is literally going to be standing back where he was making soups [when we first opened],” Schnipper told Eater last year. Styled like a throwback luncheonette/automat rather than the early-aughts Hale and Hearty aesthetic—with brown-and-cream checkerboard tiles, milk-glass lights, a ladle serving as the door handle, and a scallop-edged orange awning—the space currently has standing counters (an employee said they’re working on adding chairs) and leans into its history with a front sign timeline, though the owners are “doing a careful dance of not relying too far on a name that is no longer theirs.” At the counter, soups are presented in kettles in a glass case with daily flavors announced on Instagram and options that include vegan and gluten-free choices; examples cited are tomato-cheddar, chicken-sausage jambalaya, and spinach-artichoke cheddar. Prices remain reasonable (small eight-ounce cups start at $4.50), and a small paired with oyster crackers or bread makes an inexpensive takeout lunch for under $10; sandwiches are $6.50 each ($6 when paired with soup), salads run $10–$12 (the owners note they were early to the chopped-salad game), and there’s a beverage case. The owners—who also operate Schnipper’s fast-food locations and opened Hamburger Americain Soho with George Motz—emphasize homemade recipes and a comforting, nostalgic vibe: one customer exclaimed, “This used to be Hale and Hearty!” and Andrew Schnipper summed up the ethos plainly: “Listen, we’ve always loved soup — my brother just has a knack for making unbelievable soup.” The thick, savory tomato-cheddar is singled out as particularly restorative (useful, the writer notes, for curing a hangover), and the concept is pitched as a neighborhood, proximity-driven luncheonette rather than a destination—ideal for nearby workers and students (it’s right near Hunter College) and positioned for modest expansion to other neighborhoods." - Emma Orlow
