r/StupidFood • u/Ezgru • 2d ago

Pretentious AF This 3 Leaf Caesar Salad

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Dressing made table-side. Slothed into three leaves, with a crouton crust bread. I think I was being punk’d in this steakhouse tonight.

2.1k Upvotes

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153

u/TerrorKingA 2d ago

I’m pretty sure this is how the original Caesar Salad was, OP.

The restaurant is hitting you with the “uhm actually” as they take your money lol

-43

u/YouSmeel 2d ago

If you think anyone is here for any type of reasoning or facts, even one that is snarkily agreeing with them, you're completely out of touch

40

u/meowmeowgiggle 2d ago

Just because it's "traditional" doesn't mean it belongs, unannounced, in modern cuisine and dining.

29

u/Sungodatemychildren 2d ago

Caesar salad is modern cuisine, it was invented in the 1920s. The shitty thing about OPs meal is the paltry amount and the terrible excuse for a crouton.

-34

u/meowmeowgiggle 2d ago

In what world do you live where "modern cuisine" is a hundred years old??

Modern cuisine is influenced by classical cuisine, that's why we still have Caesar salads.

16

u/Sungodatemychildren 2d ago

In the world where dishes like Caesars salad can be found on the menus of tons of restaurants without it being "retro" or whatever. If I see Caesar salad on a menu without additions, I expect dressed lettuce and croutons, aka a non-shitty version of what OP got.

Would you consider corn dogs, Reuben sandwiches, Vichyssoise, Banh Mi, or Chicago deep dish to be non-modern foods?

-27

u/meowmeowgiggle 2d ago

To quote myself, since I guess you missed it:

Modern cuisine is influenced by classical cuisine, that's why we still have Caesar salads.

The traditional presentation evolves and becomes modern. If it doesn't evolve, it is colloquially "classic."

Everything you listed has indeed been modernized to the point that if you made any of them traditionally, from scratch, they would be palatably unrecognizable to most people (notably for reduced salt and sugar). Nevermind the flavor differences in all of those foods as we have dramatically modified plant crops and dramatically fattened/otherwise modified livestock.

What the OP was given was a traditional Caesar salad. However, even when listed as such, the commoner expects the lettuce chopped. Were I making the menu, I would include "whole-leaf romaine" in some way in the description.

It's not about "akshually" and all about operating a restaurant that the customer can interact with as smoothly as possible and have proper expectations of what they're ordering. (Personally I think descriptions are far more important than names. I skip names, go straight for "WTF is it?" If there's no description, they're forcing me to make the wait staff answer extra dumb questions that could be printed on the menu.)

3

u/depraved-dreamer 2d ago

I'm trying to determine if you're trolling but the modern era was long ago

-12

u/meowmeowgiggle 2d ago

Modern literally means new or recent past.

"Modern art" and "Post-modern art" are indeed older than what is typically "modern," but that's an error in naming.

"Modern Cuisine" is an older book title, applicable at the time of its writing.

Modern cuisine, as it is today, is heavily influenced by items that were "modern" at the time of their introductory popularity, and have been further modernized to today's palates.

3

u/depraved-dreamer 2d ago

Actually, the modern era is stratified across all fields. Sorry if that offends you.

-3

u/meowmeowgiggle 2d ago

It's really weird that you think I would be offended by a conversation of categorization. That's weird. Do you get offended by stuff like that? I think it's weird that you're offended that I said traditional Caesar salad is not "modern."

There is no such thing as "modern cuisine" as a category of food. There is Modernist cuisine, which is, put flippantly, "gadgets and gastronomy." At best, you can find a couple blogs that conflate "Modern" and "Modernist."

"Modern cuisine" is a phrase composed of "modern" (of the present or recent past) and "cuisine" (foods). It is not some actual culinary category, and I invite you to provide anything to refute that.

Thus, modern cuisine expects that a "Caesar salad" will be chopped, and it should be noted in a menu if it will be unchopped, as it is not something that is expected or, by the looks of this comment section, tolerated.

There's no offense if you disagree. There's just nothing to support your argument that hundred year old recipes are "modern."

3

u/depraved-dreamer 2d ago

The phrase you're looking for is contemporary.

4

u/meowmeowgiggle 2d ago

This is English, more than one word can mean things.

I employed research on my answer. Have you actually tried googling "modern cuisine* and seeing what comes up?

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