The closest I ever came to being killed was when I drove my friend home to California from Fort Campbell, Kentucky. He had just been honorably discharged from the 101st Airborne, and we were taking the long way home. Somewhere around Oklahoma the hunger began to set in, but I knew exactly how to fix it. I pulled into a shopping mall parking lot, located the first person I could find and pulled up next to him. I leaned over my friend (still in fatigues) and asked the nice gentlemen, “Do you know where we can find a salad bar and chardonnay?” My friend didn’t talk to me until Arizona.
While the thirst for chardonnay has long left me, my hunger for a good salad bar has never waned. Most of my adult life has been in pursuit of this Lego building block way of eating, and so the fact that my years of tireless research have yielded the one true local oasis that deserves to be written about is not the surprise here. The surprise here comes from the location.
Many years ago, I was the manager at Blockbuster Video in Alamo Plaza. The many food options in the plaza never left me for want, however having discovered the Excalibur of all salad bars at Round Table Pizza applied the blinders for much of my tenure and constantly astounded me at the fact it was in a pizza place.
Owner operator Pierre Nader Soltan was the man back then and he still is today. Then he was serving a pimple-faced me in khakis and blue polo and now he welcomes (near weekly) my wife, my child and myself to partake in his artistic creation.
Marvel at the fact that this table fit for kings is all but eight feet long. My years of R&D have led me to salad bars that took up 100’s of square feet that couldn’t hold this bars ladles.
Allow me to compartmentalize a visual for you. First THE VEGGIES: Always fresh, he has the standards: Broccoli, peas, avocado, mushrooms, beets, onions (red and green), baby carrots, cucumbers, bell peppers (red and green), beans (garbanzo and kidney), fresh cut jalapeños, and kalamata olives (pitted of course). Sidenote: any of Pierres toppings may change daily based on his artistic mood. Then, THE CHEESES: Shaved parmesan, feta, blue, shredded cheddar and cherry mozzarella with basil. Next, THE CRUNCHIES (which is such an integral facet of any salad bar): Crushed walnuts and peanuts, crispy Chinese noodles, sunflower seeds, croutons, and real bacon (no bits here). Now, THE MEATS: Real Cubed Chicken, bay shrimp, imitation crab meat, and cubed ham. I have seen deli sliced turkey, salami, and more on any given day. And now the Pièce de résistance, the SALAD MIXES: Marinated olives and peppers, dolmas (who does this?), potato salad, corn and bean salsa, three bean, marinated artichoke hearts, gherkin pickle and pepperoncini, macaroni salad, and roasted garlic cloves. There are always additions and subtractions in this category. Top it all with THE DRESSINGS: Eight of them! All your standards as well as Oriental and Jalapeño Ranch. I mean really, this spread is royalty.
Couple this with arguably the best pizza in the area and there really is no reason any person/family shouldn’t make a day of their visit. Luckily, on that end, Pierre has installed a very large projection screen for sporting events, created a low leather chair and coffee table setting in front of the TV and put high tables behind so there isn’t a bad seat in the house. He has also walled in a private dining room area with another large screen for private parties and has enough gaming machines to keep the kids busy.
If ever I ask if you want to get a salad, just assume we are going to Round Table in Alamo because you deserve the best!
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