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Where’s Your Favorite Salad?

salad.jpg

TEN VEGGIE CHOP SALAD AT TAURUS: the height of salad days.

Photo: Frank Niemeir/AJC

My review of the Shed at Glenwood in today’s Living section waxes on about chef Daniel Atwood’s fresher-than-fresh gold-and-red beet salad with Sweet Grass Dairy goat cheese, orange segments and micro greens, splashed with white Balsamic vinegar. It’s incredibly refreshing. This is such an overused combo, and yet at the Shed it’s made new again.

I had another delicious salad at Parish last week — a “sunflower” salad highlighted by sunchokes, sunflower seeds and fresh spears of baby corn. The arugula salad splashed with vinaigrette and showered with shavings of Parm at Baraonda has always been a favorite, and I love the chopped veggie salad at Taurus in Buckhead.

It’s the best time of the year for fresh salads — even if the salmonella outbreak means we have to lay off store-bought tomatoes (grape and vine-ripened tomatoes are exempt) for a while.

What restaurant makes your favorite salad?

Permalink | Comments (35) | Post your comment | Categories: Dining

Comments

By Showd

June 20, 2008 8:38 AM | Link to this

Cafe Pharr has a great salad. I love the curry chicken salad plate. Totally healthy-no mayo in the chicken salad and a fat free ginger dressing. Its the BEST!

By Mike Vick

June 20, 2008 8:39 AM | Link to this

Eyes think the best Tossed Salad eyes have ever had has been at this confined little place in Leavenworth, Kansas. Mmmm-Mmmm…. Good!

By Muffin

June 20, 2008 8:41 AM | Link to this

Feast in Decatur’s signature salad: mixed greens, pear slices, bleu cheese, mushrooms and a balsamic vinagarette. It is the BOMB. It also has sugared pecans on it but I don’t eat pecans so I move those out of the way. It is really good. That is such a great restaurant and it’s not snooty or overpriced. Just good simple food.

By Muffin's Top

June 20, 2008 8:49 AM | Link to this

Just pass those sugared pecans my way - I’ll help you eat them.

By pr

June 20, 2008 8:59 AM | Link to this

SWEET TOMATOES…..Made just the way I like it!!!!!!!!!

By beki

June 20, 2008 9:50 AM | Link to this

Houston’s house salad with the honey mustard and cheese toast MMMmmmm.

Roswell’s Teahouse house salad with green tea dressing—-tastes like summer should taste—-freshest organic ingredients. MMmmmmmmm

Chili’s blue ribbon fried chicken salad (not officially on the menu anymore but you can ask for it) Mmmmm

Doc Green’s Caesar salad. MMmmmm

My own strawberry/spinach topped with feta cheese and candied almonds on top with poppy seed and sesame seed dressing. MMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmm

By kalalu

June 20, 2008 10:10 AM | Link to this

I love Garrison’s salad! It has mixed greens, green apple bits tossed in lemon juice, dried cherries, blue cheese crumbles and toasted walnuts with raspberry vinaigrette! YUM!

By Katie

June 20, 2008 10:11 AM | Link to this

The best salad is one that is made at home.

By Trill

June 20, 2008 10:28 AM | Link to this

I’m interning in Nashville this summer, and the ivy courtyard in the office building has an awesome ranch salad that I have been eating everyday for the past two weeks for lunch. And the Russian cooks also have daily soups that go well with the salad.

By Mike

June 20, 2008 10:29 AM | Link to this

I agree with Beki - Houston’s has the best house salad. (She must go to the one on Pace’s Ferry, since I don’t think the others serve the cheese toast anymore)

It’s completely a personal thing, but the house salad at the Palm with Russian dressing really makes me feel like I’m in New York.

By JoJo

June 20, 2008 10:31 AM | Link to this

Fresh to Order (F2O) - all of their salads are the best!! Quite tasty!

By Denise

June 20, 2008 10:32 AM | Link to this

The grilled chicken ceasar at The Grape (Atlantic Station) is awesome!

By Monique

June 20, 2008 10:40 AM | Link to this

I agree with Katie! that is right.

By tkc

June 20, 2008 10:59 AM | Link to this

I agree that Houston’s house salad with honey mustard is the best. The other locations will bring you cheese toast if you ask for it.

By Edward

June 20, 2008 11:00 AM | Link to this

I vote for Houston’s, either the fried chicken salad or the Thai-influenced beef salad. Both are more than a meal on their own and my mouth waters just thinking about them.

Nostalgia makes me think of the incredibly simple but delicious house salad at the old Country Place at Colony Square. It was a simple thing of mixed greens with some fresh mushrooms and toasted sunflower seeds, but the deliciously light vinaigrette and crumbled bleu cheese just made me want to lick the plate.

By MBW

June 20, 2008 11:02 AM | Link to this

Years ago, there was an Atlanta restaurant called Cashen’s which had the most awesome house salad dressing. They are long gone, but if anyone has the recipe, I would love to have it.

By truthfully

June 20, 2008 11:03 AM | Link to this

napa vally salad at Bailiey in kennesaw is good. also the spinach salad at wolf gang puck express. both have carmalized walnuts, nd granny smith apples and craisins. the baileys one comes with chicken

By em2

June 20, 2008 11:07 AM | Link to this

Hands down Dressed in Midtown. Custom order your salad with so many toppings and dressings to choose from. Served with pita bread.They also have awesome soups. Huge portions and inexpensive. Definitely try the chipotle aioli dressing!!!! www.dressedsalads.com

By em2

June 20, 2008 11:09 AM | Link to this

Hands down Dressed in Midtown. Custom order your salad with so many toppings and dressings to choose from. Served with pita bread.They also have awesome soups. Huge portions and inexpensive. Definitely try the chipotle aioli dressing!!!! www.dressedsalads.com

By em2

June 20, 2008 11:10 AM | Link to this

Hands down Dressed in Midtown. Custom order your salad with so many toppings and dressings to choose from. Served with pita bread.They also have awesome soups. Huge portions and inexpensive. Definitely try the chipotle aioli dressing!!!! www.dressedsalads.com

By AJ

June 20, 2008 11:10 AM | Link to this

A couple of things:

First, Meredith SHAME ON YOU for the tomato misinformation. ALL GA grown tomatoes are safe. The people who got sick in GA ate out of state tomatoes.

Second, I can make a salad at home, but that helps no one here unless I open my home to all reading this article. It’s such a lame response, yet every time a question is asked about which RESTAURANT has the best , someone has to say “The best is the one I make at home and it’s cheaper too.”

If I were to pick places with good salads, I’d say Cheesecake Factory and Mimi’s Cafe’ because both places put tons of things in the salad. I can’t stand getting a big plate of lettuce and a couple of tomatoes, cukes, and carrots.

By scott

June 20, 2008 11:17 AM | Link to this

everybody’s pizza

By Becky

June 20, 2008 11:32 AM | Link to this

Thank you AJ..I hate it when people post that response..The blog doesn’t ask who makes the best ??? at home..I haven’t tried a lot of the places mentioned due to location, but some of them sound like they are worth the drive..

By Salad Shooter

June 20, 2008 11:33 AM | Link to this

AJ - Thank you, thank you, thank you for pointing out lame “the one I make at home is best” commenter! This person lurks on all the food blogs and DRIVES ME CRAZY! But then, today is supposed to be the happiest day of the year, so I’ll just calm down and go to my happy place.

By JJack

June 20, 2008 12:24 PM | Link to this

Everybody’s pizza has incredible salads. Dressings are the best!

By mayretter local

June 20, 2008 1:42 PM | Link to this

Cherokee Cattle Company’s Chicken Finger Salad w/ House Dressing (bacon drippings+ honey mustard)

By zale

June 20, 2008 1:48 PM | Link to this

Kyma’s Country Greek Salad is great - and it doesn’t have lettuce, just fresh veggies and feta cheese.

By A. Teesman

June 20, 2008 1:59 PM | Link to this

The spinach salad with hot bacon viniagrette at Baby Doe’s is righteous, man.

By Bobbi Rogers

June 20, 2008 2:07 PM | Link to this

Yeah, the house dressing at Cashin’s was great. I think Jack Cashin is still around. Wish the restaurant was still in business. I used to love to shop at Perimeter Mall and top it off with a meal there.

By Meridith Ford

June 20, 2008 2:10 PM | Link to this

AJ: Thanks for setting me straight on tomatoes. did a little checking with our food reporter, Liz Lee, and she has this to say: “FDA is looking at central and southern Florida and Mexico, other than the Baja California region, in their investigation. Georgia tomatoes weren’t in production at the time the outbreak began. They, along with almost every other state in the U.S. , Puerto Rico and several foriegn countries have been cleared of involvement.” You can find more under Liz’s blog http://www.ajc.com/blogs/content/shared-blogs/ajc/smarteating/entries/2008/06/20/tomatoesarebackareyou_biti.html

By A. Teesman

June 20, 2008 2:10 PM | Link to this

I forgot to mention – even though it’s fast food – that new D’Lites chain has some pretty rad salads, too.

By FCM

June 20, 2008 2:45 PM | Link to this

Sweet Tomatoes special made salads are good…they have a wild rice chicken salad that is incredible.

Houston’s Caesar salad is out of this world…not keen on the cheese toast though.

The Blue Ribbon at Chili’s is very good with the ranch and italian dressings mixed over it.

I am not a Thai salad fan…I am not big on peanut dressing.

The Esperanza dressing at Mellow Mushroom makes any salad great.

By Koffie

June 20, 2008 3:59 PM | Link to this

Without a doubt, the beets with goat’s milk cheese at Bacchanalia.

By Julie

June 23, 2008 4:01 PM | Link to this

My favorite is the “Hacked Chicken Salad” (horrible name) at Houston’s. I CRAVE it all the time! The fried chicken and house salads there are great too. The folks who like Everybody’s Pizza salads are right on the money -YUM -and California Pizza Kitchen’s salads are really good -particularly the Asian or Chinese Chicken salad.

By E

June 24, 2008 9:51 AM | Link to this

Mick’s Southwestern Chicken Caesar Salad! Mick’s - hurry up and finish already!!! I’m going to need a twelve step program…

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