The History of 1905 Salad

The 1905 Salad is one of Florida’s most beloved dishes, but the name can be a little confusing. It was actually invented in the 1940s by Tony Noriega, a server who worked at Columbia Restaurant in Tampa, Florida’s Ybor district. Noriega would regularly make himself this salad as a midnight snack after work using the ingredients available to him. He then began sharing the recipe with his customers and it eventually ended up on the menu at Columbia Restaurant under the name Tony’s Salad, where it was often prepared tableside for guests. Over time, the restaurant’s chefs adapted the dish from Tony’s original recipe by phasing out certain ingredients like black olives and celery and creating a different dressing that featured umami-rich ingredients like Worcestershire sauce and minced garlic. The name of the dish was also changed to the “1905 Salad.” This was done in the 1970s because Columbia Restaurant’s third-generation owner, Cesar Gonzmart, wanted to give a nod to the restaurant’s birth year in the lead-up to the establishment’s upcoming 75th anniversary. Tony himself went on to open his own business, Tony’s Restaurant, where he served his own version of the dish in the 1950s and 1960s. Notably, Tony’s salad was likely inspired by the world around him and the immigrants who had brought their cultures with them to Tampa: the tomatoes were from Florida, the Romano cheese was a nod to Sicilian immigrants, the flavorful garlic dressing was borrowed from Cuban marinades, and the baked ham and Swiss cheese were both inspired by Cuban Sandwiches. Today, the 1905 Salad is still served at Columbia Restaurant locations in Florida and is also often made in home kitchens all over the state. Additionally, after Columbia Restaurant shared the recipe online, the 1905 Salad has become increasingly popular in other areas, too.