Why You Should Avoid Ordering Wedge Salads At A Restaurant

Salads are one of those menu items we really should just be making at home — it can feel silly to pay $18 for mostly lettuce. Sure, some restaurants go all out with fancy dressings, gourmet cheese, chopped vegetables, perhaps a piece of protein, and a smattering of crispy, crunchy toppings, which is why restaurant salads often taste better than ones you make yourself. But at the end of the day, it's quite cheap and easy to make a salad at home, especially the one that takes the cake for being the worst value for its price: the wedge salad. 

While it's a steakhouse staple, the wedge salad is a befuddlement to many, even a source of anger for others. This salad is not even chopped and tossed, leaving you to do all the tough work yourself. It comes served as a large hunk of iceberg lettuce on a plate drizzled in blue cheese dressing. Since iceberg lettuce is rather flavorless, it acts mostly as a crisp base for the toppings, which tend to be quite sparse. Diced tomato, chopped bacon, red onion, chopped chives, and — if you're lucky — toasted breadcrumbs or crispy onions are the final additions to the wedge.

The reality is, that very little effort goes into making this salad. The situation becomes even worse when the kitchen takes noticeable shortcuts — the lettuce could be wilted or the dressing store-bought. It makes sense to pay for food that has been crafted with intention, but this is one of those dishes that really isn't worth it. 

We're not saying never, ever order a wedge salad at a restaurant. Instead, we simply encourage you to save your money and make it at home most of the time. If you have a go-to wedge salad at a regular restaurant of yours you really like, that's wonderful — there are certainly restaurants that have created more thoughtful versions of the original. However, ordering a wedge salad for the first time at a restaurant is always a risk. Before you do it, try to check other tables for the salad to see if you're getting the loaded version, not the sad "wilted iceberg wedge with barely a drizzle of dressing" type. 

When you make a wedge salad at home, there are so many things you can do to make this salad actually top-notch every time. And, even if you do follow the simple, original recipe, know that you're at least saving money. For starters, consider swapping out the iceberg lettuce for a more vibrant romaine. This lettuce variety brings all the crisp and crunch with more green and flavor. Plus, you can even grill the romaine for better texture and smoky depth in every bite.

Be generous with the toppings and make them bite-sized, too. With the wedge, there is already a lot of cutting involved, so you don't want to bother slicing and dicing large chunks of tomato or onion as you eat. Toppings such as olives, toasted nuts, avocado, and cucumber would work well on this salad. And finally, homemade dressing is also a must.