By Megan Kelley

Review Writer

Few things are better on a chilly fall day than a warm bowl of homemade soup. This, of course, is something husband and wife duo Karen and Todd Messer, owners of Professor Soups, already know very well.

Professor Soups opened its doors earlier this year after Karen, who had been an English professor, decided to turn her focus toward her passion: cooking.

“I’d been an English professor for a while and COVID (happened) and then a bicycling accident kind of made me re-think some things in my life, and cooking has always been my number one passion,” Karen said. “I love teaching. I miss it, but I changed the plot twist in my life.”

Karen started cooking soups out of her home kitchen part-time while teaching and delivering to Crittenton Hospital and to friends in Clarkston. Before long, the volume of soup coming out of the kitchen was so much that the Messer family decided the next move forward was to find a store front or food truck with a kitchen of its own.

Todd and Karen are not new to food service either, having been Little Caesars franchisees for 35 years.

Even though Karen loves to cook and bake all kinds of things, the plan of a strictly soup menu is one that seemed to just fall into place with the help of her husband.

“When you go out and drive around and look for a healthy food product, where do you go? There’s no options to get healthy food, or a lunch, and so that’s why I thought this would be a great idea because it’s a healthy option,” Todd said.

At any given time, Professor Soups’ menu is loaded with 17 homemade soups full of fresh ingredients.

Professor Soups is one of the only, if not the only, soup-only carryout restaurants in the area, Todd speculated, with Karen adding that Todd’s motto is “do one thing and do it well.”

“That’s my point of view as far as not having salads or sandwiches; we want to focus on one thing and do it well,” said Todd.

Karen and Todd are no strangers to Lake Orion either, both are graduates from Lake Orion High School and now live in Clarkston.

“Of the important things to say, I would really want to, so far, thank our hometown for welcoming us and supporting us and I’m just thankful that I’m doing this in my hometown,” Karen said.

The Messers are looking forward to possibly holding a grand opening ceremony and hiring some employees to extend their current hours.

Professor Soups is located at 664 S. Lapeer Rd in Lake Orion and are open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

To view their full menu visit www.professorsoups.com.