Results tagged ‘ Jeff Suppan ’

Return to Soup’s Grill


soupsgrill.jpgLast week, I ventured back to Soup’s Grill. One of my Cardinals ‘net friends, Sandi, was visiting from Jefferson City, MO and it was our first chance to meet in the non-virtual world.  We were accompanied by our friend Emma, who writes the excellent blog Crzblue’s Dodger World here on this fine site.
We had a really fun day together. We went up to Santa Barbara and checked out the Mission, had a awesome seafood lunch at Santa Barbara Shellfish Company, and tried the wines at Kalyra. I’m a big fan of Kalyra’s winery in Santa Ynez (even before Sideways made it famous ;)  but this was my first visit to their Santa Barbara tasting room. It’s reminiscent of the Enchanted Tiki Room. I love the Kalyra vibe and the wine. We also took Sandi to Trader Joe’s as she had never experienced one.  Sounds like they need to add more stores in MO! 
Our day trip ended with dinner at Soup’s Grill.  We didn’t really expect to see owner Jeff Suppan, so it was a pleasant surprise when I went to the bathroom and noticed him eating in the dugout booth with his wife and baby daughter.  Sandi approached him politely, and he was very excited to meet a Cardinal fan from MO. Jeff proceeded to give Sandi a tour of the memorabilia in the restaurant and posed for pics with us. He even seemed to remember us from our last visit which was like 3 years ago and told a story about how he had autographed a menu for Emma but she had asked him to sign another one because the autograph was sloppy. I think he was kidding as Emma had no memory of this, and neither did I.  
I’m really impressed with how generous Jeff is with his time. We apologized for taking him away from his dinner, but he didn’t seem bothered in the least and was excited to show off new additions to the restaurant.  He even gave us autographed trading cards he’d had made up to promote the restaurant!
The food at Soup’s Grill is pretty much standard sports bar fare, but it’s really well-executed. The philly cheesesteak is one of their specialities, and it’s really good. I can’t think of a better one I’ve had outside of Philly.  We also enjoyed the house-made tortilla chips that are Cardinal red, and the spicy salsa.  

soupsgrill2.jpg

It’s a great place to watch games, and I’d definitely go more if I lived in the Valley.  Happy hour specials are great, and Wednesdays are 35 cent wing night. Any baseball fan would love seeing all the memorabilia. One of my favorites is this signed pic of Jim Edmonds making a spectacular catch. Jim wrote on the pic: “Don’t hang this in the back somewhere. It’s probably my best ever.”  So for fun, Jeff hung it in a back stairway. 
Thank you, Jeff, for the hospitality.  I would love to see you back in a Cardinal uniform, but until then, I’m glad to know I can find you at Soup’s Grill. 
Also, congrats to my friend Emma for coming in at #25 on the top fan blogs of the season. Cardinal Girl came in at #52 – the reverse!

Game Haiku – 05/26/09 – Cardinals 8, Brewers 1

Supp’s off, and Cards break
out the lumber, awak’ning
from a long slumber.

Game Haiku – 05/16/09 – Brewers 1, Cardinals 0

“Anything you can
do I can do better,” says
Suppan to Adam.

Restaurant Review – Soup’s Grill

Img_2953Finally, there’s a restaurant for Cardinal fans in Los Angeles!  At long last, Jeff Suppan has opened his restaurant/sports bar – Soup’s Grill – in Woodland Hills.  A new story on mlb.com describes the long road to this opening, but I can report it was definitely worth the wait.

I work with a good friend of Jeff’s, and he told Jeff I would be coming in.  Jeff came up to me as soon as he saw my Cardinal shirt and said hello. He was super-friendly and even gave me and my friends a personal tour of some of the memorabilia.  You don’t need a connection to talk to Jeff, as he is spending quite a bit of off-season time at the restaurant and chatted with many of the guests. He buzzed around the restaurant, keeping tabs on the kitchen, the bar area, and even wiping off some tables.

 

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Jeff showed us the displays of the 2006 National Championship and World Series Rings. He said some folks were shocked to see them, thinking he had cut his rings up for the sake of displaying them in the restaurant.  No need to worry, he said, as they had all been given these displays along with the rings.

 

Jeff pointed out the dugout section which he said he wanted to recreate the feeling of actually being in a dugout for fans. The wall of the dugout is lined with autographed photos, many with funny quotes. Scott Rolen wrote, "Your cheesesteaks are better than your curveball."

 

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Cheesesteaks are a specialty at Soup’s Grill, as Jeff’s parents hail from Philly.  I tried one and thought it was really tasty and as good as any I’ve tried in Philly.  The menu features all the sports bar favorites, lots of choices of sandwiches and salads.  We split a piece of dulce de leche cheesecake for dessert which was also yummy. 

St. Louisans will be glad to know Bud Light is on draft, along with Harp, Stella, Sierra Nevada and a few others.  There’s also a wine list. The baseball wall behind the bar was definitely eye-catching. 

Img_2965 The restaurant is packed with memorabilia from Jeff’s career, including lots of Cardinals stuff.  Even the back stairway is fully decorated. Here we discovered an autographed picture of Jim Edmonds’ dramatic behind-the-back catch.  Jim had inscribed, "Don’t hang this in the back. It’s probably my best ever."  Haha, Jimmy, it is in the back, but the stairway should be more trafficked soon as plans call for a roof deck expansion. 

Service was friendly and quick, even though the restaurant was at capacity when we arrived. If you have to wait for a table, you can sit on authentic seats from old Busch Stadium in front of the restaurant.

 

Img_2963I definitely recommend Soup’s Grill as a great spot to watch a game and enjoy a good meal, and be on alert because that busboy over there might be Jeff Suppan himself!


Visit Soup’s Grill at 21028 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills, CA. 

Game Haiku – 04/14/07 – Brewers 3, Cards 2

Suppan gets his ring,
then rings up former teammates.
Cards’ comeback falls short.

Supp’s Off

Jeff Suppan got a nice Christmas present from the Brewers – a 4-year, $42 million contract.  To put that in terms Brewers fans can relate to, that would buy 6,461,538 cases of Miller High Life. The Cards didn’t even come close with their 3-year $20 million offer.  You can’t blame Supp for going.  I’ll miss him, as he was generally reliable and a hero in the playoffs this year, but I wouldn’t have wanted the Cards to spend $40 million on him.  I have to hope that money can be spent better down the road, though I am worrying about what the rotation is going to look like.  Hopefully, we can hang on to Weaver.  I might still venture up to the Valley and review Soup’s Grill sometime, for old time’s sake.

Game Haiku – 10/14/06 – Cards 5, Mets 0

Supp’s on!  Trachsel’s off. 
Spiezio thrills fans wearing
fake red soul patches. 

Game Haiku – 08/31/06 – Cards 5, Marlins 2

Supp is fierce, sticks with
Dontrelle. Dunc supplies power
Cards need in a pinch.

Game Haiku – 08/25/06 – Cards 2, Cubs 0

Small ball is enough,
plus Suppandemonium!
At least Cubs won’t sweep.

Game Haiku – 07/26/06 – Cards 6, Rockies 1

Another good show
from Suppan, who helps himself
with RBI

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