{"id":80870,"date":"2024-01-10T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-01-10T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/hi-lo\/?post_type=newspack_nl_cpt&p=80870"},"modified":"2024-01-09T17:53:25","modified_gmt":"2024-01-10T01:53:25","slug":"souper-advice-for-cold-cold-weather","status":"publish","type":"newspack_nl_cpt","link":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/newsletter\/souper-advice-for-cold-cold-weather","title":{"rendered":"Souper advice for cold, cold weather"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n
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The vegetarian pho at Mangosteen in Belmont Shore is the perfect antidote to a frigid day or an immune system on the fritz. (Photo by Kat Schuster)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Good morning \u2014 are you buried under three blankets huddled beside your oil-filled radiator heater, or is that just me? Tonight, it\u2019s going to get down to 41 degrees. Frankly, I moved here to sunny SoCal from the frigid Central Coast, and I want my money back. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Folks who just rolled their eyes, that\u2019s a joke; we\u2019re lucky to have walls around us at all. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

OK, second question: Have you been acquainted with one of the several nasty nasties infecting seemingly everyone lately? I don\u2019t know about you, but I just barely stopped coughing and hacking last week from a mystery respiratory bug I caught in early December. That one rendered me horizontal for days and days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many others I know are still catching either COVID, RSV, the flu or something else we don\u2019t yet know about. Some are struggling with the lingering symptoms, and the rest of you are trying like hell to avoid it all. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, where am I going with this? Soup and places to keep warm this week, obviously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soup, curry and other spicy delights<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Rim Talay’s Tom Yum Noodle Soup, a unique take on a the traditional Tom Yum lemongrass-based Thai soup. (Photo by Kat Schuster)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ll begin with something warm to fill our bellies, but please<\/strong> friends, order takeout or have a saintly friend deliver if you are sick or even have the beginnings of a pesky sore throat \u2014 stay your butt home. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the cold seasons, I am partial to soups of the Vietnamese<\/strong> and Thai<\/strong> variety. Why? Because they\u2019re herbaceous, can be ordered spicy, they\u2019re pretty healthy and ridiculously delicious.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ll start with Thai. While I\u2019m a huge fan of and would recommend Thai District, Long Beach Thai <\/strong>and Thai Curry Pizza & Thai<\/strong> Cuisine<\/strong> every day of the week, I\u2019m going to recommend Rim Talay<\/strong>. It\u2019s Naples\u2019 newest restaurant, which opened quietly over the summer. And I recommend it simply because it\u2019s good (I\u2019m picky) and I hope it will stay open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Thai Gourmet<\/strong> closed several years back, the area went through a rather dark chapter, with hardly any Asian cuisine (except sushi) available for a corridor with the nickname \u201cRestaurant Row<\/strong>.\u201d Now, Belmont Shoreans and Napleites can enjoy Mangosteen<\/strong>, Rakkan Ramen<\/strong>, Northern Cafe<\/strong> and<\/em> Rim Talay<\/strong> (\u201cBy the Sea\u201d).\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Green Curry, Drunken Noodles, Tom Yum, Tom Kha (coconut soup) and Pad Woon Sen are all wonderful<\/em> and will warm you up if you order them spicy (“Thai-spicy” if you’re looking to break a sweat). For me, it\u2019s the Tom Yum Noodle Soup (a standing chef\u2019s special) that stole the show. Note: Everything on the menu can be made vegetarian.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moving onto Vietnamese<\/strong>, there\u2019s no better way to kick your immune system into gear (IMO) than to indulge in a giant bowl of hot pho. I\u2019m going to admit straight away that I may not have the best recommendations as to what is considered the best pho institution in Long Beach, simply because I tend to gravitate toward several small strip mall gems over in Orange County<\/strong> (will share in another newsletter).\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Long Beach, my long-standing<\/em> favorite has been Pho Long Beach<\/strong>, over in the Wrigley neighborhood. You simply can\u2019t go wrong. When I used to eat meat, my staple was the noodle pho with rare steak for $12.50 (a steal). Lately, however, I\u2019ve been going to Mangosteen in Belmont Shore, a new-ish but reliably good pho plug. Plus they have a lengthy vegetarian and vegan menu offering mock beef, pork, salmon and chicken. The vegetarian pho is gigantic ($13). It has tofu, tons of veggies and of course, a pile of herbs and other goodies on the side to mix in \u2014 mint, basil, lime, sprouts, jalapenos and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where do you go for your pho? (If you heard a rhyme in your head, you\u2019re pronouncing it wrong) Email me your recommendations.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warm and cozy theaters<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Two men walk past the Art Theater as a 3:00 mid-day movie, Oppenheimer, is about to start in Long Beach, Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023. Photo by Thomas R. Cordova.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Now that our bellies are full of soup, herbs, curry and spicy things, we\u2019ll head to the theater. When the cold snap began last week, I didn\u2019t quite know what to do with myself, so, naturally I stayed home buried beneath three blankets beside my old space heater (if you have central heating, you are blessed). But on Monday night, I ventured out to the movies in my coziest attire (after eating aforementioned soup of course).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After settling into the oversized reclining seats over at AMC Marina Pacifica<\/strong>, I thought, this must be the place<\/em>. Full disclosure, I watched \u201cPoor Things<\/strong>\u201d and absolutely adored that trip, but be warned, it is <\/em>R rated and they really meant it, so probably don\u2019t take your grandparents to this one. The film is also showing at the Art Theatre <\/strong>on Retro Row<\/strong> all this week and next. Find showings here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can also watch an 11 a.m.<\/strong> matinee, \u201cGumby: The Movie,\u201d<\/strong> this weekend (Jan. 13 and 14) at the Art Theatre<\/strong>, the city\u2019s last standing independent (and only nonprofit) movie house.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A place to sweat<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s perhaps a weird one, but I\u2019m simply sharing my own, personal cold-day itinerary and this last step certainly melts the ice for me. Before, between or after bowling for soup and movie-watching, I need to get my body moving to really feel good about myself. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This wretched weather has absolutely killed my motivation to go out on a morning or evening walk or jog, so, I\u2019ve been going to hot yoga (not bikram). Personally, I am a huge fan of hot weather. Born in the summertime, I find myself yearning for that all-enveloping warmth (and even tropical humidity). Since that isn\u2019t an option at the moment, I have found myself flocking to a place where I can enjoy artificial tropics. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are many studios in the city that offer heated yoga classes, but my loyalties lie with Ra Yoga<\/strong> over at the Long Beach Exchange<\/strong>. It\u2019s a wee bit expensive, but for newcomers, they offer two weeks of unlimited classes for $35.<\/strong> They have a whole range of classes for any level of experience from meditation and restorative classes to the extremely<\/em> active vinyasa and yogalates classes.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Happy sweating and souping. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where do you flock to during the cold months (aside from your couch)? Email me, tell me your winter secrets.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Kat Schuster<\/strong> is the assistant editor for the Long Beach Post. You can reach her at kat@lbpost.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Escape the crispy cold and chilly days with this wintry itinerary <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":302,"featured_media":80873,"template":"","meta":{"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","inline_featured_image":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":"","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_":"","_author_alias":"","cap-aim":"","cap-description":"","cap-display_name":"","cap-first_name":"","cap-jabber":"","cap-last_name":"","cap-linked_account":"","cap-newspack_employer":"","cap-newspack_job_title":"","cap-newspack_phone_number":"","cap-newspack_role":"","cap-user_email":"","cap-user_login":"","cap-website":"","cap-yahooim":"","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_email_type":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"hidden","newspack_hide_page_title":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_show_share_buttons":"","newspack_sponsor_byline_prefix":"","newspack_sponsor_disclaimer_override":"","newspack_sponsor_flag_override":"","newspack_sponsor_only_direct":"","newspack_sponsor_url":"","disable_auto_ads":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"newspack_nl_advertiser":[],"coauthors":[9454],"class_list":["post-80870","newspack_nl_cpt","type-newspack_nl_cpt","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hi-lo","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_nl_cpt\/80870","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_nl_cpt"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/newspack_nl_cpt"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/302"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_nl_cpt\/80870\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":80885,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_nl_cpt\/80870\/revisions\/80885"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/80873"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=80870"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=80870"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=80870"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_nl_advertiser","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_nl_advertiser?post=80870"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=80870"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}