"Its insistent zaniness makes Soul Kitchen very different in spirit from Mr. Akin's two previous films, Head-On and The Edge of Heaven, which established him as a major European filmmaker," writes the NY Times' Stephen Holden. "Seriously silly, it evokes the same high-spirited, pan-European multiculturalism in which people of all ages and backgrounds blithely traverse national borders as they aggressively pursue their destinies." It's a film, adds Movieline, "whose dance steps are determined by any number of mishaps and misfortunes; like the dance floor of a great club on a good night, it's gorgeous, unruly and exhilarating all at once."