The legacy of Spokane’s decades-old downtown staple, Soulful Soups & Spirits, will live on as Lauren D’Arienzo hands over the ladle to new owners, Aaron and Kaden Earle.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” says Aaron Earle. “The most beautiful thing about it is this restaurant keeps living. It’s beautiful to keep on the tradition.”

The Earles continue the 25-year-old operation of Soulful Soups, which reopened earlier this month in a new location at 111 S. Madison, in downtown Spokane, roughly five blocks west of its former location, at 117 N. Howard.

D’Arienzo closed the Howard location in April of this year due to lease complications, she says. After two years trying to sell the business, she’s thrilled to have found new owners to continue Soulful Soup’s legacy. 

“They are 'fourth-generation' owners with new energy and fresh perspective,” says D’Arienzo. “They are eager to honor and grow the Soulful traditions while strengthening downtown Spokane."

The restaurant's new location is the former site of One Tree Hard Cider’s tasting room. The 2,300-square-foot space seats up to 49 patrons.

Initially, the Earleswill be the only two employees.

“This is just because it’s summer,” Aaron says. “It’s not particularly soup season yet. If we start to get crazy busy, we’ll start hiring.”

Menu items, for the most part, will remain the same as it was under D’Arienzo. 

“We have over 45 soup recipes that we will rotate throughout the week and throughout the year,” he says. “Some are seasonal. Some are not.” 

Soulful Soups' menu includes seven to 10 rotating soups and three permanent staple soups, which include tomato basil, beer cheese, and broccoli cheddar. 

A variety of croissant sandwiches, including turkey and ham selections, are still on the menu. 

“The only thing we might change is possibly a few additions,” Kaden says. “These would include extra sandwich options, such as a grilled cheese with soup.”

Soulful Soup’s signature beer bread will still be made in house and, to start, the restaurant will serve just beer, ciders, and wine.

“We will end up doing spirits in September,” Aaron says. “Hopefully by the end of September, we can host a grand opening with all the cocktails and spirits.”

With a shared background in hospitality and management, Aaron and Kaden, 29 and 23 respectively, say they had been searching for a business to buy for nearly two years. 

“We’ve been in manager roles,” Aaron says. “We’re running other people’s businesses, and we’ve always wanted to do it for ourselves.”

Both born and raised locally, the Earles briefly moved to San Diego in July of 2024 when they saw on Facebook in April that D’Arienzo was closing Soulful Soups for good. The Earles previously tried to purchase the business in 2023, but the transaction fell through.

“We found out she was closing the doors, and we reached back out,” Aaron says. “We officially closed the deal on June 20.”

The downtown restaurant originally opened its doors in 2000, with D’Arienzo taking ownership in 2011. 

Although neither party disclosed the final purchase amount, D’Arienzo had previously listed the business for $103,000 with Murphy Business Sales. 

“I won’t share (the purchase price), but it’s way less than I would’ve got if I had been able to sell it with the location attached,” D’Arienzo says. “They basically bought the recipes, the name, and my help.” 

D’Arienzo says she’s happy to entrust the future of Soulful to the Earles and will temporarily continue as a consultant.

“After they open full force in September, I will meet with them once a month to help in any way I can,” she says. “I just ask for Spokane to be gentle while they navigate the new location and adventure.”

Hours of operation will be Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.  The proprietors plan to host trivia and game nights, and live music is planned in the future. 

An open call for fine artists was posted to social media on July 3.

“They can sell their art through here and we won’t take a commission,” Aaron says. “We’ll have a new artist every month and they’ll host a first Friday reception.” 

Small bites:

Bide & Burgeon, a furniture and décor shop located at 1720 E. Sprague, in Spokane’s Sprague Union District, announced on social media it will permanently close its doors near the end of July. No exact date was given.

Heather Hanley, and her parents Jim and Sue Hanley, opened the store in 2020, across from their 79-year-old Acme TV Home & Office, and Acme’s flagship furniture store, Tin Roof, at 1727 E. Sprague.

The owners of First Avenue Coffee have opened a new biscuit bar, called Sporks, downtown at 502 W. Riverside, Suite 201. The menu includes biscuits, croissants, waffles, coffee cakes, salads, tacos, and a variety of biscuit sandwiches, including Smoked Brisket Biscuit and Bacon, Egg n Cheese Biscuit.

The eatery, located in Spokane’s skywalk system, will be open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.