Inspired by Seinfeld and its famous "Soup Nazi" episode, Uncle Bernie's Soup Kitchen is turning heads and burning tongues.
The new addition to food choices on campus became larger this past fall when Uncle Bernie's Soup Kitchen opened in October. The shop is located between Sbarro and Dairy Queen in the Commons and is the brainchild of Michael Lewkowicz, president of QSR Brands.
Lewkowicz also owns the Subway, Dairy Queen and Sbarro franchises on campus as well as 16 other Subways around Western New York.
The Uncle Bernie's on campus is the first of its kind, and the concept came after Lewkowicz was looking to supplement the loss of business at Dairy Queen during the winter months.
"We were looking to bring another brand onto campus and we remembered the soup man from Seinfeld and thought we could do this ourselves," Lewkowicz said.
Uncle Bernie's soups are homemade and the shop offers 70 varieties. Lewkowicz traveled the country attending trade shows and restaurant conferences to find the perfect recipes for his soups.
"I spent a year and a half researching soups and concepts," Lewkowicz said.
Uncle Bernie's has up to eight soups featured on their daily menu. They offer eight-, 12- and 32-ounce soups and the prize ranges vary from $2.99 to $4.99.
Soup at Uncle Bernie's is all-natural and includes organic and vegetarian options. The shop prides itself on not including MSG or chemical additives in its soups.
Each soup purchased at Uncle Bernie's comes with a side of bread. Everyone has the option of filling their cup of soup with sides such as sour cream and bacon. The shop also has an extensive collection of condiments including kosher sea salts, fresh pepper and a pile of hot sauces.
"I love the ground beef chili," said history major and Uncle Bernie's employee Brett Decker.
Lewkowicz's first franchise was a Subway he opened in the Buffalo Airport Plaza. He said that he is constantly searching for more opportunities to open up restaurants, including another Uncle Bernie's.
"This is our world famous Uncle Bernie's and we plan on expanding to a second location soon," Lewkowicz said.
Soup on campus is also offered at many of the Campus and Dining Shops (CDS). The soup offered at Purtam's in the Student Union is an 8-ounce cup for $2.99. Putnam's, however, does not offer any sides and only offers three choices of soup each day.
"Being on campus is great because you are always dealing with a captive audience," Lewkowicz said. "Right now when school is in session the Subway is the biggest in Western New York, and we are hoping Uncle Bernie's will do that good."
Lewkowicz said that although he enjoys great business because of the university, he has had trouble with some of UB's regulations. For the past year, he has been trying to get students to be able to use dining dollars at his campus locations, but the request has been denied.
"Students approach us because they are sick of the cafeteria style food at the dining shops and want to use their dining dollars at my places," Lewkowicz said.
Lewkowicz will continue to serve soup seven days a week and has big plans for the upcoming semester.
In February he will host an all-you-can-eat spicy chili competition, and hopes that this will get the students more interested in what Lewkowicz calls his "mid-life crisis," Uncle Bernie's Soup Kitchen.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
