Demand For Flu-Fighting Soup Has San Francisco Restaurant Swamped
(KPIX 5) -- Flu sufferers swear by it. Others call it a cure for whatever ails you. It's the sopa de pollo, chicken soup, at a small San Francisco Mexican restaurant that people are lining up for.
And it is selling out this flu season.
"In Mexico we put in carrots, potatoes, cabbage, and for the flavor we put in a little bit of jalapenos," said Franciso Jamie of Pancho's Mexican Grill.
Another winter day at Pancho's means cooking up another batch of sopa.
But it's not just any chicken soup. The talk of the neighborhood is that this slightly secretive broth can cure what ails so many.
"The flu is worse this year, my daughter has been in bed for a week," said customer Sherly Reuben, one of many believers spreading the word to family and friend that this soup offers hope for the flu stricken.
"Tamiflu and Pancho's Chicken Tortilla Soup," said Reuben.
As a result, Panchos is swamped.
"They talk, like everybody knows each other in this neighborhood, so everybody's talking about the soup," said Jamie.
It's entirely possible the soup holds healing powers. Science has shown that warm soup broth can help keep you hydrated - and boost your immune response.
"It's like Jewish penicillin," said Reuben.
This reporter had the flu two weeks ago and the only thing that made me feel any better was standing in a scalding shower. But word of this soup is getting out around the neighborhood, and people are showing up for it.
"Yeah, a lot of people coming in, saying I feel kind of sick, and I heard your soup is good," said Jamie.
"So the word is spreading, as quickly as the flu is spreading."
