World's Greatest Caesar In Brooklyn
It's ... beyond!
A lot has changed since Leo first opened its doors, but their iconic, infallible, exquisite Caesar salad has been on the menu since Day One. I crave it more than any other Caesar in the land, and am proud to award it this extremely official and scientific designation: THE WORLD’S GREATEST CAESAR SALAD IN BROOKLYN1. I wouldn’t dare eat at Leo without ordering it, and am frankly flabbergasted that co-owner Mike Fadem prefers their Chopped Salad.
Leo opened pre-pandemic as a “pizza restaurant with fun vegetables and salads,” says Mike. From the jump, having a Caesar on the roster was a “no brainer,” says chef/owner Joey Scalabrino, unfazed by the sheer volume of Caesars served on what feels like every block in every borough. He was obviously right to include it. Not only has it improved my quality of life, Leo sells more Caesars than any other salad they offer.
If you went to Leo when they first opened, everything was counter service: you would order your pizza and wine from the bar and then grab a seat. When the pandemic hit, having this service model in place helped Leo transition to a take-out/delivery spot, which sustained them during the shutdown.
When the world opened back up, Leo ditched the walk-up concept in favor of standard table service. They still serve banging pizzas and excellent vegetables (you must order the butter beans), but they’ve also introduced a shortlist of exquisite pastas and an ever-evolving selection of entrees that are designed to make it possible for you to eat there twice a week without getting bored. When they added a ribeye steak au poivre a few months ago, it attracted a stream of Tiktokers who probably had no idea that Leo was originally a pizza joint. For Mike and Joey, that’s just fine: Leo is a home for the food they love and want to eat, whether that leans Italian or not. Sensing an opening, I pushed hard for them to get to work on a chicken Caesar wrap; no word on that just yet.
Definitely explore all the menu offerings, but if you don’t get the Caesar, we can’t be friends. Sorry. It is, to me, unimpeachable. In place of romaine, Joey uses a 50/50 mix of Little Gems and radicchio (or campo rosso when it’s in the market). These leaves offer sturdiness—they can be generously coated in dressing without sagging under the pressure. Joey likes to dress his salads “heavier and juicier” than your typical Cae Sal, which is good by me since I could eat the dressing by the spoon. More dressing, more happy! Radicchio, a bitter green, is a classic pairing with anchovy and lemon; it makes sense that it’s in here even if it’s not typical. Having two lettuces instead of one makes it more fun to eat, and pretty to look at.
More about the dressing, please: this is a balanced, emulsified masterpiece starring all the requisite players: egg, garlic, anchovy, Parm, lots of black pepper, and a mix of neutral oil and extra-virgin olive oils. There are surprises, too—red wine vinegar is part of the base, and the lemon juice is always squeezed directly onto the leaves, rather than aging in the bottle. Its flavor is super bright and fresh and cuts through the richness, the salt, and the funk.
Time for salad architecture. Once dressed, the leaves are stacked, cup side up, alternating between Little Gem and radicchio, until a wide but tall salad tower rises from the bowl. Toasted breadcrumbs, which Joey says “eat nicer” than croutons, are tucked over and between the lettuce’s balcony overhangs. This is blanketed under Parm shavings and finally the salad is adorned with a few more fat anchovies.
If ever there was a hand salad, this is it. I like to disengage individual leaves from the tower by pulling them out with my fingertips and eating them like the vegetable boats that they are. If you're in Brooklyn, you’re going to Leo. Until then, make their Caesar at home.
