YBOR CITY — Over half a million bowls are served annually across Florida, but locals insist it tastes best at its birthplace in Tampa’s historic Latin quarter.
The Columbia’s 1905 Salad has transcended its humble beginnings to become one of Tampa Bay’s most recognizable culinary exports, so beloved that the restaurant sells more Worcestershire sauce than any establishment worldwide.
“It’s definitely one of Tampa’s signature dishes,” said Andy Huse, author and Florida studies curator at the University of South Florida’s libraries. “Any city worth its salt has its own sandwich… but how many cities have their own salad?”
As the Columbia Restaurant celebrates its 120th anniversary this year, the story behind its famous salad reveals the improvised genius that has become Tampa food lore.
The iconic dish traces its origins not to 1905, but to a hungry server’s late-night kitchen raid decades later. Tony Noriega, who worked at several Ybor City establishments including the Columbia during the 1940s, created what would become Tampa’s most famous salad almost by accident.
“Tony says the salad originated at midnight in his own kitchen, when he returned home after a big evening and was starved for a salad,” wrote a Tampa Tribune food editor in 1955. “Like Dagwood, he piled all of the dishes from the refrigerator in his arm, tossed all of the foods together, and liked the results.”
Noriega’s creation – initially known as “Tony’s Special” – featured lettuce, ham, Swiss cheese, and a variety of additions including green peppers, chopped eggs, and black olives. The dish proved so popular that Noriega shared it with customers, and it soon appeared on menus across Ybor City’s Latin restaurants.
“The Tony Salad was a big deal,” said Huse, who authored a book on the Columbia Restaurant’s history. “It’s sort of a Cuban sandwich-ish creation, you know, but in salad form.”
Noriega eventually opened his own restaurant on South Dale Mabry Highway, serving his specialty throughout the 1950s and ’60s. Meanwhile, the Columbia continued refining the recipe, eventually renaming it the “1905 Salad” in the 1970s to commemorate the restaurant’s 75th anniversary.
The modern version follows a precise architecture. Sturdy iceberg lettuce forms the foundation, topped with julienned ham and Swiss cheese cut to exact specifications. Spanish olives and tomato wedges complete the preparation before the tableside performance begins.
“There’s a specific kind of width to it,” said Jeff Houck, vice president of marketing at the 1905 Family of Restaurants. “There’s an architecture to the salad that really helps you enjoy it.”
The theatrical finish is what makes the 1905 Salad legendary. Tuxedoed servers wheel the pre-assembled bowls tableside and add the restaurant’s signature dressing – a blend of Spanish olive oil, garlic, oregano and white wine vinegar. Then comes the distinctive flourish: a generous squeeze of lemon and dramatic swirls of Worcestershire sauce.
“People make it and are quick to serve it. You have to allow the ingredients all to merge and blend together,” said Richard Gonzmart, fourth-generation “caretaker” of the Columbia Restaurant Group. “The garlic has to be fresh, the garlic has to be crushed, and then you blend it all together.”
The salad has become so emblematic of Tampa cuisine that USA Today once named it one of the top ten salads in America worth making a meal of. The dish has appeared on television food programs, spawned countless social media recreations, and even inspired imitators – one Disney Springs restaurant offers a “1981 Salad” with artichokes.
For all its storied history and precise preparation, the 1905 Salad remains surprisingly adaptable. The Columbia happily substitutes turkey or shrimp for ham, and customers can order a “1903 Salad” without tomatoes – a reference to the Hernandez family’s first Ybor City establishment that predated the Columbia.
What hasn’t changed is the salad’s cultural significance. In the 1980s, the Columbia served a free 1905 side salad with every entrée until they calculated they were “losing a million dollars in olives alone” across their Florida locations. The restaurant quickly made it à la carte.
Now as the Columbia marks 120 years of operation, Gonzmart understands what makes the salad special: “There’s the sangria, the paella, the Cuban sandwiches… but if you took the salad away, there would be a problem.”
“Now people are discovering Tampa’s cool and delicious,” added Houck. “Bring ’em. We’ll feed them salad.”