Già Pronto hosts salad competition for students

A new option will appear on Già Pronto’s salad menu this week thanks to the culinary creation of Penn’s very own College sophomore Julia Brownstein.

Già Pronto did not grant such a privilege to just any salad extraordinaire. Last night, 18 participants gathered at Già Pronto to compete in the salad making contest hosted by the Penn Gastronomy Club. With over 40 ingredient options to top four different types of lettuce, most competitors had much to consider while crafting their dish. For some, however, the process was quite simple.

“I’m going to enter my usual … sticking with Italian tradition — it’s always spring mix with fresh mozzarella, grilled portabello mushrooms and rosemary balsamic dressing. You just can’t get that dressing anywhere else,” Wharton and College senior Ashley Etemadi said just minutes before the competition.

Participants such as Etemadi had a theme in mind, while others, like College senior Zach Propert tried to “change it up.” He used a unique combination of ingredients including chickpeas, corn, raisins, roasted red peppers, sesame seeds and mozzarella in his salad.

Marco Lentini, Già Pronto owner and 1996 Wharton MBA graduate, explained the secret behind the interesting flavors available to his customers. “Here, it’s more than just having fresh ingredients,” he said, “It’s about sourcing the best possible ingredients in everything we do, then creating a unique menu is easy.”

Creativity was just one of the factors that the three judges considered while tasting the salads. They favored Brownstein’s winning salad because of its complex array of toppings, including mangoes and onions, and its appealing flavor. Lentini judged the contest with the aid of guest judges Dana Tom, College junior and Executive Editor of The Daily Pennsylvanian, and Tucker Johns, College senior and 34th Street Food Editor.

Lentini expressed his excitement about the competition. “This is just a fun event,” he said as his wife, director of Human Resources and Business Development of the restaurant Paolo Lentini, and three children entered the restaurant to show their support.

This is not the first time that Lentini has opened his restaurants to PGC for collaboration events.

“We have had many events with Marco before … and this is a fun way for us and students to get involved with restaurants around campus,” College sophomore and PGC marketing director Daisy Daeschler said.

“And who doesn’t want free food?” she said. “Free good food, more importantly.”

As the brain behind the winning salad, Brownstein not only gets to add her finished product to the store’s menu, but she and a lucky friend also get free lunch at Già for an entire week.

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