Caesar Salad prep cart at the Dal Rae
The beauty of witnessing the preparation of a Caesar Salad tableside by a master with all of the ingredients presented on a specially designed cart is without equal. Lorin Smith, co-owner of the fabulous Dal Rae restaurant in Pico Rivera, California is a true master.
Established in 1958, the Dal Rae is hands-down my favorite fine dining restaurant in Southern California. It is located in the obscure city of Pico Rivera, which is actually just 20 minutes east of downtown Los Angeles. We’ve been enjoying their cocktails, Lobster Thermidor (my choice without fail), tableside Steak Diane, and tableside Cherries Jubilee (or Bananas Foster) since 1994. But it’s their Caesar Salad that is the glory of the Dal Rae.
The Caesar Salad was invented by Caesar Cardini at his restaurant in Tijuana, Mexico in 1924. Cardini had originally operated a restaurant in San Diego, California, but relocated to Tijuana with the advent of Prohibition. Like many restaurateurs, Cardini believed a fine meal on-the-town required cocktails before dinner and wine with dinner. In Tijuana, he could offer both.
According to Caesar’s daughter Rosa, her father invented the dish when a Fourth of July 1924 rush depleted the kitchen’s supplies. Cardini made do with what he had, adding the dramatic flair of the tableside tossing “by the chef.” Whether or not this is actually the salad’s origin, the result is the most spectacular salad in the world.
Watch this 3-minute video of Lorin Smith preparing Caesar Salad tableside. Genius. Pure genius.
Peter Moruzzi's Mid-Century 
The best Ceasar of all-time! No one comes close!
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Regardless of the salad, I must say that the Dal Rae sports some attractive outdoor signage, which even more wonderfully is still functioning! The V-configured blinking lights appear to still be guiding patrons into the parking lot entrance.
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Not only does the Dal Rae have incredible Continental style cuisine, but its neon signage is spectacular. Completely original from 1958. And, yes, the arrow with the scintillating bulbs points to the generous parking lot.
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Love a tableside Caesar salad! One of my favorites is at The Sage Room at Harvey’s Lake Tahoe, which opened in 1947 in a rustic-yet-elegant Western theme and was reconstructed exactly the same inside the newer hotel tower (the bar and wood beams came from the original cabin that house Harvey’s in 1944). Their vintage salad cart has labels on the front describing the ingredients. I have a picture somewhere that I’ll have to locate and scan. They also prepare many other dishes tableside.
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Hey, wow! I didn’t know about the Sage Room. It’s been 25 years since I’ve visited Harvey’s Lake Tahoe. Now I’ve got to go.
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Great! I love the tableside salads at Hugo’s Cellar in the Four Queens as well. My favorite Vegas restuarant by far.
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Have you tried the Golden Steer on Sahara just west of the Strip? They, too, have amazing tableside Caesar as well as Dover Sole that’s deboned by the Captain tableside. Wow.
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Haven’t been there. Have to give it a try next time I’m in LV.
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