Salad: Before, after or with main course?
 

When my partner and I were in New Zealand, we noticed that if salad came with a meal but was served separately (e.g., a salad bar) the locals would wait until their main course was served before going up to help themselves to salad. In North America, it's standard to start with the salad bar and then wait for your main course.

Which is the more normal? In Argentina, I noticed that a salad ordered separately will show up with the main course and will be eaten after (similarly observed in France). Do all Latin cultures (mainly Spanish, Italian, French) view salads as a palate cleanser eaten after the main course?

It's down to personal preference.
It also depends on the food you're eating. For example, it's a lot easier/more intuitive to eat salad together with a steak as opposed to eating it with a Carbonara!

Thats true, it all comes down to personal preference. In fact, salad is my main course.

I'd say it also depends on the number of courses being served. Sometimes it'll be served before the main dish, sometimes with, and sometimes it is the main course (the one I dislike the most:p)

AS has several different variations... on mid-range flights, they now serve the salad with the main course, and on trans-con flights it becomes a separate dish.

I've never traveled internationally yet (except for walking across the boarder into Mexico once) so I have limited experience with different cultures...it is weird that salad would be eaten last.

In my family we always had salad after the main course. It served as a palate cleanser, though as a kid I sure didn't think in those terms.

Now I'll often order an interesting salad as a lighter appetizer, but it always feels a little odd to start the meal with a salad.

Me personally, I grew up on salad being the appetizer...my girlfriend's family has it with the main course. +1 to whatever you feel like doing, unless there's some kind of protocol you don't know about, in which case - shut up and deal with it.

Personally, I like to have salad right after the main course when I'm eating at home, as I don't like seeing a hot entree cool while I'm eating my greens.

That said, it seems like salads are customarily served first in the states.

The only place I have been served salad separately (other than as a specific course - such as a Caesar Salad or Salad Niscoise) is the US - I find it distinctly odd...

I grew up eating salad last in Italy. I still try to do this at home, but if I ask for this at a restaurant, I just get weird looks. So I eat salads first in the US.

I can't remember the last time I saw a place with a salad bar. I thought it was just Harvesters that still did them?

I'd always have salad as part of one of the courses, be it starter or main, but usually served with the other food. Too many plates just get irritating.

That's my reason as well ^

In Australia (and presumable New Zealand) salad is served with a main meal, rather that as a separate course. Some more traditional venues like pubs or bistros offer a choice of sides- "do you want chips, veges, or salad" with your steak :) (Aussie chips are thick fried chipped potato, btw)

In Switzerland, salad is usually served as an appetizer in restaurants (salade verte or mixte or whatever you order), unless the salad is the main course. But I've also seen it served together with the main course. I just eat whatever comes first without thinking about it.

But when I'm eating home, I always eat my salad last for some reason.

Whenever it is given to me.

I'm indifferent as to timing, as long as it isn't touching warm food! I prefer it on a separate plate.