Chili My Soul

I have heard about Chili My Soul on several occasions and finally had the chance to try it out today. I met my fiance in Encino on my way home from a "half-day" at work for lunch at Chili My Soul. Be forewarned--if you are coming from the 101 Balboa exit, the restaurant is not obvious on the corner of Ventura Blvd. I missed it twice. The traffic in the area is also really bad--the cars were driving like madmen on both the streets and the parking lot. Look for the Smart and Final and that's where Chili My Soul is.

The restaurant has two store fronts. One with seating and one with a counter and the kitchen. I imagine it started with just the latter and expanded, but who knows. They have about 50 kinds of chili but about 10-15 choices a day. You can check the daily menu online before you go. Look at the board to see what Today's menu is and then read the descriptions on the laminated menus. They also offer generous samples of each of the chili's in case you really can't decide.

I ordered the Hickory Turkey Chili Lunch special which comes with a salad, a half pint of chili, and a small (but refillable) drink. My Fiance got the lunch special with the fries and the Texas Pride. He also upgraded to the pint for $4 more (the bowl).

The service was a little bit slow especially considering that the chili's are already made and all they have to do is add the toppings, whip up a quick salad and fry the fries. The chili came first (I was surprised at how small the half pint really was). Then my salad (small and they didn't even dry the lettuce!) and then, after we were all done, the fries arrived on our table looking seemingly piping hot--but actually not hot. The fries did have some delicious chili powder and possibly sugar on them...but I think they would have tasted even better if they were served WITH our meal instead of after.

My chili was good but I did not notice the hickory flavor exactly. I did notice the large slices of onion though, and I am surprised to say that I missed the beans. The salad I got with my lunch was good--but tiny. In fact my whole lunch was tiny. We had lunch around 2:30 and by 5:30 I was hungry. My fiance's bowl and fries were more filling but still a little pricey for the size.

The weird thing is that we didn't actually pay what it said on the menu. The menu said $12 something for the lunch special and $4 more for the bowl. We paid $23 in total. So...expensive for lunch--and especially for the size, but not as expensive as advertised.

I would go back to Chili My Soul to try another flavor--but I'd also look for a different entree combination that would be more food and a better deal. Maybe chili over a potato or a tamale would fill me up.

[3 1/2 Stars]

Chili My Soul
4928 Balboa Blvd.
Encino, CA 91316

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