SFR Picks | Battle of the Broths

The Food Depot's development director, Jill Gentry, has been helping coordinate the annual soup-off since 2013 and says the competition is a huge deal and greatly beloved to Santa Feans. "We typically raise somewhere around $60,000 at the Souper Bowl," she says, "which is enough to provide 240,000 meals in Northern New Mexico."

The awards themselves are doled out in four categories: savory, cream, vegetarian and seafood—as well as best overall soup—and are chosen by the attendees. "We typically have between 1,200 and 1,400 attendees," Gentry tells SFR. "That's really awesome and dynamic because we get the community to come together with an underlying focus on ending hunger in our community."

Gentry also believes this year's competition will be hotter than ever. "It's a nice blend of returning chefs, past winners and some new blood, which is always really exciting," she says.

Soup contenders include veterans, like last year's Best Seafood/Best Overall winners, Sweetwater Harvest Kitchen, plus local favorites like Paper Dosa, Santacafé, Vinaigrette, Second Street Brewery and many more. Sounds like a date! (Maria Egolf-Romero)

Souper Bowl XXIII
Noon-2:30 pm Saturday, Jan. 21. $30.
Santa Fe Community Convention Center,
201 W Marcy St.,
955-6590

Fantastic For

It is often assumed that fantasy writing must adhere to some arbitrary list of Tolkien-esque tropes, but award-winning British author China Miéville avoids such simple classification in favor of the fantastically weird told exceptionally well. Books like 1998’s

King Rat

, 2000’s

Perdido Street Station

and last year’s

The Census Taker

have more in common with HP Lovecraft or Clive Barker, which opens up innumerable possibilities in a genre aimed at adult literary fans looking for the bizarre, the macabre or some mix of both. Miéville comes to the Lensic tonight to speak, and hopefully to open some minds to the intersection of fantasy and horror. (Alex De Vore)

Readings and Conversations: China Miéville:
7 pm Wednesday Jan. 18. $6.
Lensic Performing Arts Center,
211 W San Francisco St.,
988-1234.

Maze for Change

Whether you’re a Republican, Democrat or Independent, consider yourself invited to an Inauguration Day labyrinth walk. The Labyrinth Resource Group of Santa Fe encourages the public to walk the path and consider their actions following the inauguration. Chris Harrell, event coordinator for the group, says, “There’s not going to be an outspoken rally or cry. The whole idea is we are one; we are still one nation.” Weave through the labyrinth to the sounds of the djembe and Native American flutes and ponder how to make a difference in your community and nation. “Change occurs in ourselves first,” Harrell advises. (Kim Jones)

Inauguration Day Labyrinth Walk:
10 am Friday Jan. 20. Free.
Museum of International Folk Art,
706 Camino Lejo,
476-1200.

Guitar You Ready?

Pat Malone’s custom guitar is literally one of two in the world, which really works for the guy, considering he’s a jazz shredder of the highest caliber who performs basically always. And while you can catch him with his trio a fair amount of the time, Malone goes solo more often than not, which is cool because it allows him a certain amount of freedom. “As a soloist, there’s always room for improvisation,” Malone says, “and that’s kind of the fun of jazz music.” There’s more fun to be had, too, because TerraCotta is all about that wine. (ADV)

Pat Malone:
6 pm Tuesday Jan. 24. Free.
TerraCotta Wine Bistro,
304 Johnson St.,
989-1166.

Santa Fe Reporter