PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIASo who, actually, is Betty? This question has been asked a thousand times by Oxford Street pedestrians, and you, lucky reader, are about to be the annoyingly smug person who can answer it. Betty Ehrlich, now in her late ‘70s, immigrated to Australia from Romania after WWII. An impressive home cook, Betty raised her family on nourishing, made-with-love meals. After the death of her husband about 15 years ago, her children suggested she keep herself busy by starting a restaurant. Thus Betty’s Soup Kitchen was born, the name chosen as a tongue-in-cheek jab at the economic climate under the then Keating government.
Although Betty no longer cooks at the Soup Kitchen, she still visits now and then and all the food is made according to her original recipes. The menu is hearty and substantial, comfort food a la Grandma’s house. The linen napkins and mismatched china reinforce that feeling. The meals are excellent value for money, with a big plate of soup and lazy damper bread costing $7.50. On Mondays and Tuesdays you can get any soup, pie or pasta with salad for $10 and on weekends that will buy you bangers and mash. BYO is $1 per person and, with such low prices, you’ll forgive them for not accepting credit cards.
Sarah Theeboom, December 2006
