Hot temps don’t cool soup sales at Fort Mill shop

Some may say it’s too hot for soup, but if the amount of business at the Ladles restaurant is an indicator, the summer soup market is alive and well.

Ladles, a soup, salad and sandwich franchise based in Charleston, opened its doors in Springfield Town Center off of Springfield Parkwa. in December 2015.

Business has been going “very, very well,” since the restaurant’s opening, owners Brenda and Jon Johnston say.

“There weren’t a lot of restaurants on this side of (Interstate) 77,” Jon said. “It kind of filled a niche that wasn’t here.”

The Johnstons, from Cincinnati, visited a Ladles in Kiawah Island a few years back and liked the concept. After relocating to Fort Mill two years ago, they were ready to take the leap.

“I was looking for something new, something unique and thought, ‘Why not?’” Brenda Johnston said.

While soup constitutes the restaurant’s namesake, the salad and sandwich choices are also popular, as is pairing two of the three choices together for a meal.

The restaurant’s most popular soups are the She Crab and the Greek Lemon Chicken. The Pear and Walnut Salad is the top salad choice of many patrons and the BLT on Pretzel Roll and the Turkey Bacon Griller are the most popular sandwiches.

Ladles is featuring two cold soups daily for summer, Gazpacho and Cucumber Dill; the Kale Caesar is the featured summer salad.

“Everyone that has tried (gazpacho) today has gotten it,” Brenda said, adding that customers are encouraged to sample any of the soups before purchase.

The fresh ingredients are what sets Ladles apart from other soup franchises, the owners say. The restaurants’ chef comes in early each morning to prepare the soups from scratch. The salad dressings are also made in house.

“So many people are becoming more health conscious,” Jon said. “With fresh ingredients, you can’t go wrong.”

If any soups remain at closing, they are frozen and sold the next morning at customers’ request, three quarts for $10. Customers love this option and many call each morning to ask which soups are available for pick up, Brenda said.

There are over 400 soups in Ladles’ database that can be prepared with a 24-hour notice. Vegetarian, vegan and gluten free menu items are also available.

“We have days when the line is out the door and there’s no tables left,” Brenda said. “It’s all the people that just keep coming back and I’m very grateful for that.”

This story was originally published June 24, 2016 at 12:24 PM with the headline "Hot temps don’t cool soup sales at Fort Mill shop."