The Original SoupMan

Back in 1995, an episode of Seinfeld featured a chef dubbed "the Soup Nazi," based on the real-life Al Yeganeh of the Soup Kitchen International, a takeout counter in midtown. The eatery was remarkable both for its quality soups and for the litany of rules customers were instructed to follow while ordering and paying. While Yeganeh has claimed to resent the "Nazi" moniker, there's no question that he benefited from the exposure: The fame helped him launch the Original SoupMan, a nationwide franchise. Now, he reopens the original location, which closed in 2004. While under the franchise umbrella, representatives claim the rotating selection of 12 soups—including the signature lobster bisque, as well as new creations like Irish corned beef and cabbage—will be made the way Yeganeh used to: from scratch, on the premises.