Look for this Davis Square spot in the back of the courtyard by Starbucks, set back from Elm Street, and try one of the cold or hot soba dishes. The sukiyaki soba is a giant, hearty bowl of soup packed full of soba, pork, tofu, scallions, and a perfectly poached egg.

Feel the heat with the spicy tom yum noodle soup at Dakzen in Davis Square (not for the faint of heart). It’s funky, it’s fishy, it’s fiery, and it may make you cry. It’s also delicious. And that’s not all for excellent soup options at Dakzen: The khao soi is also one of the best around. Pair either with a Thai iced tea with lime, cha manao, and an order of the northern Thai sausage sai ua.

Sugar & Spice's massive menu highlights a variety of regional cuisines of Thailand; try something you haven’t seen before, and you’re sure to find a new favorite. The guay jub is a standout, a soup featuring a five-spice soy broth that you'll want to drink on its own — but don't, because all the other ingredients are excellent as well. The complex broth is full of wide, flat rice noodles rolled into cigar-like shapes, as well as crispy pork, tofu, and an egg.

Blink and you'll miss this homey Korean restaurant in Somerville's Union Square, and that would be a shame. The hearty soups and stews will get you through the coldest winter day, but don't be afraid to order them the rest of the year. Try the kimchi chigae: kimchi, pork, rice cakes, and sliced tofu in a slightly fiery broth.

This East Boston favorite for Mexican — with a focus on Puebla cuisine — has locations in both Eagle Hill and Orient Heights. The hearty pozole, a hominy soup, is perfect in any weather, made with a choice of shredded pork or chicken; topped with lettuce, onions, radish, oregano, and chile powder; and served with corn tortilla layered with queso fresco and refried beans.

When night falls and the lights dim at the best new cafe in town, Cicada’s concise dinner menu packs a punch. The oxtail in lemongrass wine broth is an absolute must at this bustling Vietnamese restaurant, but first, start off with the spicy lemongrass duck tartare, and be sure to delve into the natural wine list.

Too often, chicken gets a bad rap — or at least a neutral one — but when done right, it's irresistible, and Branch Line does it really right, from the star of the menu (the rotisserie chicken) to this simple bowl of rotisserie chicken soup. This is the chicken soup of your dreams, the cure for what ails you, the missing piece of a dozen other idiomatic phrases. Even if you're getting chicken for the main course, which you should, don't you dare skip this soup. (Its composition changes occasionally; keep an eye out for the classic version with lemon, olives, and croutons, but any of its variations will do the trick.)

Way back in 2012, Guchi's Midnight Ramen — a ramen pop-up generally taking place at midnight — began popping up around town. It was short-lived but well-loved, and these days one of its founders, Tracy Chang, has her own restaurant, Pagu, where she thankfully offers Guchi's midnight ramen on the menu. The deeply satisfying soup includes pork belly, umami oil, and a six-minute egg. Relive the memories or try it for the first time.

While Chinatown’s longtime Cantonese restaurant Hong Kong Eatery is perhaps best known for dishes such as the sauteed duck tongues in Maggi sauce, the wonton noodle soup is also a fan favorite; it’s customizable with one or two toppings in addition to the wontons. Get the roast duck for one of those toppings.

An oldie but a goodie, Sportello's classic spicy tomato soup — topped with a taleggio and caraway crostini — is suitable for all seasons. Follow it up with a beautiful pasta dish and enjoy the hustle and bustle of the open kitchen from your counter seat. (You can try making this one at home if you’ve got Barbara Lynch’s cookbook, Stir.) Note: Sportello is taking a short winter break and is expected to reopen on January 19, 2022.

Previous versions of this map included the stellar French onion soups at Eastern Standard and Bar Lyon, which have both sadly closed. Fortunately there’s a newcomer in town already getting raves for its own French onion soup: Cafe Sauvage. The all-day Back Bay cafe, which aims to offer a multicultural taste of Paris, serves a hearty Gruyere-topped soup; try it as a prelude to the restaurant’s roasted chicken with jollof rice and fried plantains.

Little Big Diner is — as part of the name suggests — little. As for the "big"? The flavors. Try one of the noodle-filled soups, such as this spicy miso ramen with pork, an egg, bean sprouts, sweet corn, scallions, nori, and mayu (black garlic oil) with optional add-ons such as a butter cube, smoked honey corn, or a “wicked hot bomb.”

Part of Dorchester’s Polish Triangle, Cafe Polonia has been serving traditional Polish food for nearly two decades, from pierogi to stuffed cabbage. The famous Eastern European beet soup, borscht, is always available, filled with mushroom- or meat-stuffed ravioli, and other soups rotate. If dill pickle soup is available, get it.

This classic spot has an absolutely enormous roster of soups (both hot and cold, depending on the season), with a rotating selection available on any given day — think chicken vegetable, clam and corn chowder, chicken pot pie, and much, much more. Pair a bowl with a salad or sandwich.

Dorchester is known for its Vietnamese food, so there are quite a few great pho options around the neighborhood. Try Pho Hoa, around since the early 1990s. Part of a chain with franchises around the United States and beyond, it’s a solid spot for pho featuring various combinations of meatballs, brisket, flank steak, and more. (There’s a brand new location up in Malden, too.) Be sure to visit the adjacent sibling cafe, Reign Drink Lab, too; try the dark and stormy, which tops nitro cold brew and Vietnamese coffee with sea salt cream.