Ever since the inception of the Caesar salad, chefs around the world have introduced their own takes on the iconic dish. As a fanatic of the salad, I’m always on the lookout for the best version. In this column, I’ll be searching for Caesar salads worthy to be hailed. First stop: Trattoria 225, at 225 Harrison St.
Review:
The Caesar salad was placed down in front of me and my jaw dropped. It had no resemblance to what salad looks like in my mind: flat leaves in a bowl with the ingredients tossed together–although, if I’d paid more attention to the description in the menu, I probably wouldn’t have been that surprised.
On the menu, the Grilled Caesar is described as a “romaine wedge drizzled with house made Caesar dressing, toasted baguette.” There are options to get it with chicken, salmon, shrimp or anchovies. I chose the latter for mine.
The salad was a generous romaine wedge that had been charred, which left some of the leafy green edges black. It was drizzled with a thick, creamy Caesar dressing. Pieces of anchovy were scattered across the wedge with a generous dusting of parmesan. Two pieces of charred bread were placed on the side, peaking out from under the romaine wedge.
As I first cut into the wedge, I noticed the vast layers of leafy green. Yet I instantly noticed a problem: all the ingredients of the Caesar salad had been dumped on top, while the various layers of the romaine wedge were dry. The inner layers had been neglected with no dressing, no Parmesan and no anchovies. I was already suspicious of the dainty drizzling of the dressing on top, which seemed to be an unreasonably small amount for the large romaine wedge.
As I took my first bite, I appreciated the smokiness that the char imparted on the lettuce. They weren’t lying when they said “grilled” Caesar. It seemed to bring an extra crunch to the lettuce as well when contrasted nicely against the creamy, tangy dressing that I wouldn’t mind drinking straight. Alas, if only there’d been more of it because most of the salad was unfortunately dry, while I prefer my Caesar salad to have a full coating of dressing.
The pieces of anchovy imparted a briny flavor on the salad, almost overkill in saltiness when accompanied with too much Parmesan in a bite.
I was perplexed by the toasted baguette on the side, which was more charred than toasted. It left a burnt taste in my mouth, and it was just placed under the wedge, almost as an admission that it should be hidden. It added nothing to the salad. I would’ve preferred it if it had been left out.
When I could get a bite with all the ingredients together, it was delicious. Unfortunately, the empty layers of the romaine wedge mellowed the flavors on the top, more often than not, making it more like just eating grilled lettuce.
I gave this Caesar salad a weak bow.
