Here's one for DART rail riders: Get off at the West End stop and walk into the building that houses Chipotle. Instead of taking a right into the chain restaurant (we've seen you, and you don't need another burrito), take a left into La Fiesta Fruits Café. Order the chicken soup. This ain't no Campbell's canned crap; this is authentic, bones and all. About four or five bites in, you'll want to hug someone. It's only natural, with such a perfect mix of vegetables, rice, meat and an unnamed hot ingredient that sneaks up on you in a good way. The guy who owns the place is no soup Nazi. He's quite friendly. Definitely huggable.

Jerry Jones orders it every time he lunches at this charming Parkie redoubt in the shadow of the Tollway. According to owner Paula Bruton, it's become so popular that it's now a constant lunch entrée as well as a dish they'll make as an off-the-menu dinner appetizer. It sounds so, well, odd. And then you taste it. It begins as a mound of the freshest spinach salad you ever tasted, topped with tart, sweet warm bacon dressing. Then it's smothered under a load of flash-fried chicken livers. The flavors and textures combine in a way that is as uniquely enjoyable as it is difficult to describe other than as one of those things you simply must try.