The Original Caesar Salad Wasn’t Named for a Roman Dictator, But an Italian-American Restaurateur

Nope, Caesar salad was not named after Julius Caesar, contrary to popular belief. But it does have an Italian connection. Or rather, an Italian-American connection. Better still, an Italy-Americas connection.  

It was named after its creator, Caesar Cardini, an Italian who emigrated from Piedmont to the United States in 1913 and worked in a restaurant in California before opening his own place in Tijuana, Mexico, known as Caesar’s.

Cardini’s restaurant catered to Ho