Esta sopa está muy rica.

They are two different words:

• esta = this
• está = is (from the verb estar)

The written accent matters a lot here:

• esta sopa = this soup
• está muy rica = is very tasty

So the sentence is built as:

• Esta sopa = subject
• está muy rica = what is being said about it

Because they are different words with different stress patterns.

• esta (no accent) is stressed on the first syllable: ES-ta
• está (with accent) is stressed on the second syllable: es-TÁ

The accent mark shows both pronunciation and meaning. Without it, está would be the wrong word.

In Spanish, estar is commonly used to describe how food tastes or seems at a particular moment.

So:

• La sopa está rica = the soup tastes good / is tasty
• La sopa está fría = the soup is cold

For food, estar + adjective is very natural when talking about the result, condition, or how it tastes right now.

A learner should usually remember:

• estar rico/a = to taste good / be tasty

Using ser here would usually sound less natural if you are simply praising the soup you are eating.

Not in the English money sense, and not usually in the heavy, creamy, rich food sense either.

Here rica means:

• tasty
• delicious
• really good

This is a very common use of rico/a with food in Spanish.

So Está muy rica is a very natural way to say that something tastes very good.

Because rica has to agree with sopa.

• sopa is feminine singular
• so the adjective must also be feminine singular: rica

Compare:

• Este pastel está muy rico
• Esta sopa está muy rica

So the ending changes to match the noun.

Because muy is used before adjectives and adverbs.

Here, rica is an adjective, so you say:

• muy rica = very tasty

Not:

• mucho rica ❌

A simple rule:

• muy
  • adjective/adverb
• mucho/a/os/as
  • noun, or as a quantity word

Examples:

• muy buena
• muy caliente
• mucha sopa
• mucho pan

In this context, está muy rica is the most natural choice if you mean the soup tastes delicious right now.

Es muy rica can sometimes sound like:

• it is rich
• it is rich in something
• it has a generally rich quality

For a learner, the safest and most natural phrase for praising food is:

• Está muy rico/a

So with soup:

• Esta sopa está muy rica ✅

Esta means this, referring to something near the speaker.

• esta sopa = this soup
• esa sopa = that soup

So if the soup is right in front of you, being served to you, or you are pointing to it nearby, esta is the natural choice.

Yes, very often.

With food, rico/a is one of the most common everyday adjectives for saying something tastes good.

Examples:

• El café está rico
• La tortilla está rica
• Qué rico
• Qué rica

It can also have other meanings in other contexts, such as wealthy or rich, but with food it very commonly means tasty/delicious.

Yes. Then you get:

• Esta sopa está rica

That still means the soup tastes good. Adding muy just makes it stronger:

• está rica = it’s tasty
• está muy rica = it’s very tasty

Roughly like this:

ES-ta SO-pa es-TA muy RI-ca

A few useful points:

• esta: stress on the first syllable
• está: stress on the second syllable
• muy sounds roughly like mwee
• rica in Spain has a normal r sound, not a strong rolled rr

So the contrast between esta and está is important both in writing and in pronunciation.