And the consensus is.................................different strokes for different folks. ^ ^

That is good.

im all about the haute salad, with 5 leaves and a drizzle of sauce ^

Interesting thread! ^

Without a shadow of a doubt - especially for all you lucky people living stateside - the best salad dressing I have EVER tasted anywhere in the world is:

Olive Garden House Salad Dressing. It hasn't changed for years which is a good thing. It is absolutely fabulous! Especially as they do bottles to take away.....mmmmmmm :) You would have to be mad when you dine there and they ask "Soup or Salad" to go for the Soup. Salad everytime. :) ^

I don't. Just some fresh lemon juice with some oil, pepper and salt work great.

La Bonne Soupe in Midtown NYC has an absolutely scrumptious house dressing, a lightly garlicky vinaigrette with just the right tang of Dijon mustard and emulsified to creaminess. I can never resist mopping up the last drops with French bread. I've never bought a bottle (sold only at the restaurant) but the the label lists chicken broth as an ingredient, which sounds pretty strange but must add richness.

For actually dressing a salad, I'll take Ken's ranch, Marie's Creamy Italian Garlic, or a good Caesars.

But just as water is the universal solvent and O- blood is the universal donor, I also believe that ranch dressing is the universal dip.

Raw veggies - celery, carrots, broccoli. Fried mushrooms. Mozzarella sticks. Chicken wings (despite what the purists in the other thread say). Potato skins. Some may be better in blue cheese or marinara, but in a pinch, you can dip anything in ranch.

I was once visiting my then-girlfriend in St Louis, and even dipped my t-ravs in ranch. She was aghast (it may be part of why she eventually dumped me), but I thought it was pretty tasty.

I went to Paris at 19 to do a traineeship and brush up the language. One of my first lessons was learned when attending dinner at family friends: Salad really means only a few leaves with homemade vinaigrette, after the main.

Of course, now I toss at least one chopped Jalapeno and red onion into the lot. Too much minimalism doesn't seem right either...

In Augusta there use to be a nice place called the Green Jacket. They have a outstand oil and vinegar dressing that I finally got the recipe for. It is the best I have ever tasted. No the rest. didn't go out of biz, they sold to those who can make more money off of it during the golf tourney than the entire year since it as across the street from the Augusta National.

I'm a bleu cheese and oil/vinegar eater...

I usually make a salad at least once a day with romaine, spinach, cilantro, feta, dried tomatoes and oil/vinegar with a little pepper.

Not a big bottled dressing fan, but...

If you live in Texas or can shop at Central Market or HEB, I love their house brand "Texas Twist" dressings. Especially the Balsamic Bleu Cheese with Pecans! Creamy balsamic...yummy!!

Also in the line - Mango Margarita, Roasted Poblano Ceasar, Spicy Peanut Jalapeno. and an avocado something-or-other whose name eludes me.

Ranch!
 

Amen! My friends and I use ranch for everything, not just fries, veggies, but sandwiches, burritos, burgers, pizza, rice, fried chicken, etc...

One time, my friends and I were at El Torito and when our food came, we asked for several cups of ranch. Well, we never lifted a fork because we had no ranch to eat it with yet. The manager noticed us just sitting there and asked us if there was anything wrong. We mentioned the ranch to him and he went and got us our ranch. Then the eating finally started!:p

What's odd is that I don't like ranch on salad, but prefer 1000 island.

Steve

Ranch dressing is one of the most unhealthy foods you can eat -- 90% fat, high in sodium, high in calories, no nutrition value -- eat that with fries and other junk food, and you're making a cardiologist very rich....

I recently got into making super delicious salads, and so naturally I began exploring my taste buds and trying different salad dressings. I love bleu cheese, but sometimes its too heavy, so I go with a raspberry vinaigrette, especially if I have strawberries or apples in my salad. But, when in doubt, lemon juice and olive oil, you can't go wrong with a classic.

For all you Ranch fans out there---try Marie's Jalapeno Ranch. It's especially good if you have avocados & cilantro in your salad. It also makes a great dip.
My other favorite is a sesame dressing that they sell at Costco.

Greek Olive Oil (EV) and aged Balsamic vinegar.