For those who know me, I am a Caesar Salad enthusiast. If I had to pick one meal that I would eat for the rest of my life, it would easily, without a doubt be a Caesar Salad. Two summers ago, my family and I traveled around Europe for almost five weeks. It was one of the most incredible experiences I have ever had, and of course, I was curious as to how Caesar Salad's differed around the world. Embarking on this journey, I had to come up with an easy rubric so that by the end of the five weeks, I could easily define a winner. I decided that I would rate the salad out of five, based on both overall taste and presentation.
First Stop: Queensferry, Scotland
For this particular salad, I expected better than what I received. The presentation was nice, and it looked aesthetically pleasing with a nice VSCO filter; however, the lettuce was too wet, and the dressing was extremely salty (probably too many anchovies). I also was not a fan of the ham bits that they added. Overall Rating: 1.5
Stop Two: Amsterdam, Netherlands
At first glance, one would say that this is absolutely not a Caesar Salad. It did not include parmesan cheese, nor your typical Caesar dressing. However, this is what the restaurant's typical Ceasar salad is. I thoroughly enjoyed eating it, as I got a nice balance of greens and colorful veggies. Overall Rating: 3
Third Stop: Berlin, Germany
I am not gonna lie, this salad really disappointed me. It looked very delicious and was really excited to eat it. The chicken tasted gross and the dressing was too creamy. However, the bread on the side was tasty. Overall Rating: 2
Fourth Stop: Prague, Czech Republic
I was indeed a fan of this salad. I liked the amount of parmesan cheese that was added, and the dressing was not too creamy, nor too salty. I also enjoyed the piece of ham that they placed in the middle of it. Overall Rating: 4
Fifth Stop: Interlaken, Switzerland
I found this salad to be very interesting. I had never had a Caesar Salad that included both cucumbers, raspberries, and strawberries. While the display was quite lovely, the chicken was not done right and the dressing was very watery. Overall Rating: 2
Sixth Stop: Hotel in Vienna, Austria
While this Caesar Salad may look boring, and as it was room service in the middle of the night, it was one of the best. The salad dressing was done just right, and the bacon was crisp. Overall Rating: 3
Seventh Stop: Florence, Italy
You may be asking me, "Zoe, why would you get a Caesar Salad when you could be eating delicious pasta as well??" Trust me, I had both. This salad was not your typical Ceasar. Instead of romaine, spinach was used, and the dressing on top strangely tasted like Ranch. Overall Rating: 2
Stop Eight: Sorrento, Italy
This salad was quite good. The cheese was 10/10 but had too much dressing. Notice the hand sanitizer to the left, as I was trying to fight the beginning of a cold. Overall Rating: 4
Ninth Stop: Tuscany, Italy
I am sorry, but this salad was terrible. Overall Rating: 1
The Winner: Prague, Czech Republic
For my second stop in Prague, I fell in love with this particular Caesar Salad. Not only was the layout pretty, but everything about this salad was perfect. I really liked the tomatoes and the salad dressing was "perfektní." Overall Rating: 5
What I learned:
That it is not always about presentation. At first glance, some of the prettiest salads tasted the worst, while the plainest salads were the most delicious. It was interesting to see how different countries represent Ceasar Salads, and I am excited to continue my Ceasar Salad taste test.
