Iceberg and Ice Cream

Post 25 | PC Lite | A Personal Story

[This week I’m taking a break from heavy topics with this light piece]

A recent dinner out at the Old Spaghetti Factory in Toronto after more than 15 years, was inspired by spumoni ice cream paired with a need for some nostalgia.

It dates back to growing up in a large family where we rarely ate out unless you count twice per summer visits to Dairy Queen when we were each allowed a small cone, or occasional stops at A&W for root beer floats served on a car window tray. And where most family vacations involved cramming seven of us into a crank-up trailer at a campground near home.

So, taking a trip from our Sault Ste. Marie hometown to the big city of Toronto in the late ‘70s was a highlight itself, even though we still towed that darned trailer. But to then eat out at a fancy restaurant in downtown Toronto was like hitting the lottery. I remember little of the trip except vague recollections of a dinner at the Old Spaghetti Factory, where we gorged on piles of spaghetti and meatballs - and feeling in awe.

After moving near Toronto later in life, my wife and I visited the restaurant a handful of times. The kitschy décor with huge light fixtures, merry go round and streetcar inside are part of the appeal, but for a guy whose death row meal would be Caesar salad, a bowl of spaghetti and meatballs plus ice cream for dessert – I can’t pass up their combo deal. And though food quality won’t rival many Italian restaurants, there’s just something about the place that makes me happy, so we visited once again.

Ever since learning to make a Caesar salad while waitering during high school I lean toward that option at restaurants, despite my home version usually being better. So, it was uncharacteristic to instead order the house salad along with my pasta – leading to a small epiphany. After years of eating mesclun, micro greens, spinach, romaine and more – the humble iceberg salad was fantastic.

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The iceberg name was apparently inspired around the 1920s, when these compact and durable heads of California lettuce would be sent by train to the east coast covered in mountains of ice to maintain freshness during the journey.

But iceberg lettuce has been maligned for years, scowled at for its limited nutritional creds and diner heritage, notwithstanding a brief period of stardom during the ‘70s when wedge salads were popular at steakhouses. It doesn’t pack the health punch of its popular romaine cousin or dark leafy exotic relatives, but iceberg still offers some vitamins and minerals. Meanwhile, its survival rate in the fridge far outlasts fancy leaf mixes that quickly turn slimy in their plastic tubs. And with it being layered into sandwiches and burgers, used as wraps around tasty bits, or shredded into countless handheld foods it displays surprising versatility.

Since that dinner outing I am a renewed fan of iceberg enjoying its crunchiness, fit with any dressing, and upgradability with additions to the bowl. So, while I’ll continue healthfully noshing dark leafy greens, iceberg now has a spot in my salad rotation.

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Coming back to spumoni that prompted our Old Spaghetti Factory visit…

I don’t eat it often, but do love a bowl of good ice cream. And while rarely venturing beyond chocolate or vanilla - spumoni can shoulder its way onto my list when available.

Spumoni (based on Italian spuma meaning foam) is traditionally an Italian dessert layered with pistachio, cherry and chocolate gelato along with cream, candied peel and nuts. Spumoni ice cream inspired by this delicacy more commonly mixes pistachio, chocolate and vanilla, but is a hard find at most grocery stores.

So, after a throwback Old Spaghetti Factory iceberg salad and a meh plate of spaghetti and meatballs, my soul was satisfied with spumoni ice cream served in a metal dish to finish the meal. The waitress was even kind enough to bring me a second.

I know what I’m cooking this weekend…

Stay tuned and stay pragmatic.