The Proper Placement of the Salad

The Proper Placement of the Salad



In Roanne, France, I was starting into lunch at Le Central, a restaurant of Michel Troisgros, who for over 40 years made a name for himself at a number of his Michelin-starred restaurants. I was surprised when salad came out first, just like in the States.

ME: I seem to recall from my student days in Strasbourg that salads used to be served at the end of the meal.

FRENCH TABLEMATE: When we eat at home, we always have salads at the end of the meal. In restaurants, they now come at the beginning.

ME: So things have changed. Why?

FRENCH TABLEMATE: I am not so sure…

ME: Come on. Guess.

FRENCH TABLEMATE: The American influence, I suppose.

Physiologically considered, salads make no sense at the beginning of the meal, when the leaves seem likely to form a mat of fiber to hinder digestion.

Culinarily considered, it is kind of nice to have something crispy and maybe a little sour (from vinegar) first thing…but that thing doesn’t have to be a salad. Pickles serve the purpose much more effectively.

Psychologically considered, I get it. Mothers want kids to "have their greens," so they serve the salad at the beginning of the meal, while the kids are still relatively hungry. After that, the meatloaf is served.

At home, we always have salad at the end of the meal because it makes more sense to leverage the “brooming” effects of fiber at the end of the meal. Also, it’s what I’m used to. In this regard, I’ve concluded I must have some kind of learning disability because I’m always a little surprised when, in a restaurant when I order salad, it always comes out first. I’m always expecting it at the end, like at home and, in the old days, in France. I can’t get used to having it first.

Of course, if the salad IS the meal (like the rather repulsive Cobb salad, pictured) then it makes sense to eat the leafy greens along with the proteins and carbs, and in fact, it may always make more sense to eat the leafy greens along with the proteins and carbs…in other words, maybe salad makes the most sense WITH the meal, rather than before or after.

[NOTE: the author is on record for expressing contempt for salad, and I'm still not crazy about it, but I understand its place in the diet if not entirely its place in the succession of dishes at the table]

My parents are first and second generation Canadian (of Irish and Eastern Russian descent), and our family always ate salad at the end of a meal as a palate cleanser before desert or cheese, or sometimes together with the second to last course. Salad at the start of the meal is purely an American restaurant invention. The salad course was moved to the start of a meal in place of. or combined with, a bread service to give the restaurant patron something to munch on while waiting for the appetizers to be served. It can easily be pre-made (often treated with preservatives), and can be quickly served in order to minimize customer complaints about "slow service". I can remember, as a child, my parents found the practice to be gauche, bordering on barbaric. However, it seems that Canadians have also now adopted the American practice. From a palate standpoint, serving the salad first serves no purpose. It simply fills a diner's stomach with something lighter than bread while waiting for the real dishes to be served. I have found that asking for the salad to be served (in its proper position) at the end of the meal, throws most dining rooms into chaos, especially those with automated order-entry systems. I have noticed the same issue when ordering multiple appetizers to be served separately. Often the appetizers are all made at once, then left to dry out under heat lamps until the table is ready for the second round. Someone should develop order-entry software that allows diners to plan their own service schedule. Traditional Chinese (and other Asian meals) often consist of six or seven courses served in a very specific order, with precise timing of courses including rest periods between courses meant for the consumption of tea or other beverages while the preceding dish is partially digested. The empty space between the courses becomes as significant as the time allowed for the courses themselves, a form of Gestalt dining. I have often read westerners complaining about the traditional pacing of a formal Chinese dinner, as if there is something wrong when dishes are not all served at once, smorgasbord style or when there is an elongated pause between courses. I think the concept is much too sophisticated for the American restaurant business model of get 'em in, fill 'em up and get 'em out as quickly as possible, where table turnover is the driving principle. One can't have customers occupying valuable seating space while they slowly linger over a salad and decide on their desert.

Growing up in a Polish household, we always ate salad with the meal (as a side dish). And that is still how I prefer to eat salad. I've never understood why anyone would want to eat salad first. To me, it's something to contrast with the hot meal. I have a bite of meat, a bite of potatoes, and then salad with a bit of vinegary dressing to cut some of the heaviness. That said, I'm not sure I'd like it after the main dish, either. It has to be with the main course for me.

D4v3, all POS software that I've worked on has the capability to course out however the server fires it. You simply ring the whole order and fire each course when ready. Or you can verbal fire to the kitchen if they prefer to see the whole ticket at once. The software is not at fault, it is the server (or the kitchen's) pacing.

NeroW wrote:D4v3, all POS software that I've worked on has the capability to course out however the server fires it. You simply ring the whole order and fire each course when ready. Or you can verbal fire to the kitchen if they prefer to see the whole ticket at once. The software is not at fault, it is the server (or the kitchen's) pacing.

Every time I ask a server why they can't enter multiple appetizers to come out at different times, or serve a salad with an entree, or even serve a soup and sandwich together, they blame it on the POS (and I don't mean Point of Sale) software. So if what you say is true, then a) the software is too hard to use or b) the users are too stupid or lazy to use it properly or c) the management is too lame to implement procedures to facilitate special circumstances. As a software developer, I get a little tired of user errors being blamed on the code.

Salad first fits into a very common meal progression of light to heavy. To my taste, salad at the end of a meal is pointless. It's like having appetizers last.

Salad is to be eaten with the meal. Spooned over rice, a dipping sauce for bread, to moisten kebabs and roast chicken. This concept of courses is inefficient pomp; better to serve a myriad of dishes, at once, from salads to soups to meats and breads, for everyone to share.

Binko wrote:Growing up in a Polish household, we always ate salad with the meal (as a side dish). And that is still how I prefer to eat salad. I've never understood why anyone would want to eat salad first. To me, it's something to contrast with the hot meal. I have a bite of meat, a bite of potatoes, and then salad with a bit of vinegary dressing to cut some of the heaviness. That said, I'm not sure I'd like it after the main dish, either. It has to be with the main course for me.

I agree. It irritates me when the server insists on removing my salad before the entrée arrives and I have to practically apologize and explain I'm not done with it.

zoid wrote:It irritates me when the server insists on removing my salad before the entrée arrives and I have to practically apologize and explain I'm not done with it.

When I remember to ask for the salad last, I, too, find myself adopting an apologetic tone as I get a semi-eye-roll from the server which seems to say, "Oh, and shall we start off with a big bowl of ice cream?"

What kills me is when I order a sandwich, a small salad and a cup of soup for lunch, and it is too difficult for the server to comprehend my desire to have them served all at once. Is that really such a weird request?