Let’s be honest, the only thing better than a nice steak dinner is a good sandwich, and the only thing better than a good sandwich is a good salad, and the only thing better than a good sandwich, well, let’s leave that to the imagination. Add to any of those a good wine or beer and magic can happen. Although, I wouldn’t recommend beer with the sandwich; you’re just asking for a nap.

My point is this: if you haven’t been to Cafe 140 South and you live in Pasadena, you need to do so. Part of the Smith Brothers Restaurant Family, 140 offers quality food and service at a not-so-elevated price. However awesome it would be to review every dish on this menu, it just isn’t practical. However, I have visited 140 3 times in the last month and haven’t been disappointed.

Now, salads can be a tricky situation. When we visit a regular restaurant a lot of the time salads are saturated with a thick sauce that many like to call dressing. You can call it whatever you’d like; ranch, caesar, bleu cheese, but it’s all just one step away from being mayonaise, and covering your salad in it just isn’t right. However, cover a bed of mixed greens with a light balsamic vinaigrette and you’re speaking my language. Anyone can do that. Let’s get back to what makes this salad so… fantastic.

Let’s start with the ahi tuna. When the pretty waitress came back around after she served me my lunch, she asked me how I was liking my choice. I looked at her as serious as I could and told her it was delicious, but the tuna was a little undercooked. She immediately went into waitress mode and began to explain what seared means. I quickly told her I was joking and she laughed quite loudly.

Searing is my favorite when it comes to ahi tuna. It gives the fish that sashimi texture with a little bit of the grilled flavor. If you haven’t had seared tuna yet, I highly recommend it. Let’s not forget the shrimp. While tasty, they were nothing over the top, which is just right for this dish. A lot of people think you need to cover seafood in seasonings and sauces, but really less is more, that is, when you know what you’re doing.

What was very interesting with this particular salad was that it came with asparagus. Long story short, I’ve never had asparagus with a salad before. It was delightful. Again, nothing special. I assumed they simply steamed and chilled it before adding it to the salad. Along with a little bit of lemon, onions and tomatoes, this salad was complete. My restaurant experience was great, and I will expect it to be great in the future.

Hey Cafe 140 South… FANTASTIC!