7 Store-Bought Caesar Dressings To Look Out For, And 7 You Might Want To Avoid

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Although many sources credit the creation of the Caesar salad to Italian chef and restaurateur Cesare Cardini, the BBC revealed that there could be more to this story. There's speculation that the Cardini brother, Alex (or employee, Livio Santini), may have made the original Caesar salad recipe — we may never know for sure. Either way, we're truly grateful to whoever invented what's now one of the world's most famous salads.

A simple Caesar salad features romaine lettuce, parmesan cheese, croutons, black peppers, lemon juice, and Caesar dressing. With this dish being so popular, there is now a vast market for store-bought Caesar dressings that speed up your food-making process. And since its invention in 1924, the Caesar dressing recipe has evolved — today, many variations exist. Some of these revisions are amazing, others are a disappointment, which is why we've created this guide to help you identify the best store-bought Caesar dressing brands, and the brands you should avoid.

Don't fix it if it's not broken is a saying we all know, and that's a piece of advice the Wish-Bone company should have taken. After a recent change in the product formula, reviews for the company's Creamy Caesar Dressing have tanked. Pages once flooded with praise now contain petitions from angry consumers to revert to the old product. This consumer said, "The old recipe of this was seriously my favorite dressing ever. I then went to buy it after the recipe was changed and I had convinced myself I bought the wrong one because it tasted so different. I am still sad about the recipe change."

The new Wish-Bone Creamy Caesar Dressing still contains many familiar items, including anchovies, garlic, parmesan cheese, lemon juice, eggs, and vinegar. Unfortunately, consumers criticize this product for lacking the depth of flavor for which it was once known, adding that it's too acidic and vinegary.

Another shopper shared, "I made our salads, took one bite and almost puked from the overwhelming lemon taste! It doesn't even taste like Caesar dressing anymore! ... Why change something that was so great?!?!" Unless you don't mind sour Caesar salads, it might be best to pass on this product until the company addresses this issue. Finally, this brand also has more fat and sodium than many alternatives, making it one of the least healthy salad dressings in stores. 

Daiya Dairy Free Creamy Caesar Dressing is a vegan Caesar dressing that just fails to hit the mark. The only benefit to this product is that it's clean and made using a few simple ingredients, including canola oil, white vinegar, cane sugar, chickpea protein, and onions. Therefore, it's suitable for consumers who can't have fish, gluten, dairy, or soy. It's also a low-sugar, cholesterol-free food. Unfortunately, these few benefits don't compensate for its shortcomings, as you can get better quality products offering similar benefits.

The first issue consumers have with this brand is that it doesn't taste right. One person said, "I'm a huge fan of caesar salads and this does not taste like caesar dressing at all. It has a weird sour taste that overpowers the actual greens. Wouldn't recommend." Consumers also complained that the texture of Daiya Dairy Free Creamy Caesar Dressing is too thick, so getting a smooth salad is challenging. One commenter said, it's "so thick it won't shake out of the bottle. The smell is quite rank."

Bolthouse Farm's creamy Caesar dressing has one unusual ingredient you won't see in other brands, yogurt. It also has other standard ingredients such as egg yolks, Dijon mustard, garlic, black pepper, and other natural spices that help deepen the flavor. This product is low in calories, gluten free, and low in fat, so it's generally considered a healthy choice.

With the Bolthouse Farm's Creamy Caesar, things can go either way. The yogurt gives it a tart sweetness that some might find pleasant and others consider revolting. This is why reviews for this product are usually mixed. If you don't really care for yogurt or simply want the classic caesar salad, using this brand to make your Caesar salad might be a mistake you want to avoid. One person said, "it tastes like something ... just not Caesar dressing. It's okay but not something I would buy again." Another reviewer commented, "Not gonna lie. This stuff would gag a maggot. Yuck!"

Combining aged Parmesan cheese and extra roasted garlic creates the creamy, garlicky flavor of Kraft Deluxe Bold Caesar Dressing. The roasting process also lets out the natural sweetness of garlic. This Caesar dressing brand has several other ingredients, such as egg yolks, lemon juice, and a mix of natural flavors and spices, creating a unique flavor that some consumers may find enjoyable.

What puts the Kraft Deluxe Bold Caesar Dressing on the do not buy list is its abundance of mixed reviews. While some reviewers appreciate its depth of flavor, others complain it's too sweet. One reviewer said, "Kraft you can do better! This Caesar dressing is so sweet it was inedible for me."

Another recurring consumer critique is that this brand fails to create the characteristic texture and thickness of caser dressing. This Amazon buyer wrote, "This wasn't very good. Nothing really bold about it, it's just watery and tangy. Not very caesar-like."

Sunkist Lemon Black Pepper Caesar Salad Dressing has all the crucial flavorful ingredients like Worcestershire sauce, anchovies, garlic, onions, and Parmesan cheese. This creates a prominent lemon pepper flavor that typically pairs well with fresh lettuce, cabbage, or spinach. However, this brand seems to have failed to execute the taste, as consumers aren't impressed. This product is too peppery with a super strong lemon kick which may be unbearable if you don't love so much sourness.

Here's what one reviewer said, "Really nasty dressing. Doesn't taste like a caesar dressing at all and the only thing you can taste is the pepper-overkill. The taste reminds me of a sub sauce but not something you should ever put on a salad." If you love a lot of spice on your salad, this might be okay for you, but if not, spending your money on this product might not be worth the trouble.

Dr. Will's Vegan Caesar Dressing is one of those cases where the product just fails to live up to expectations on all fronts. The ingredient list features regular items like vinegar, mustard, garlic, and black pepper. But this product also contains some things you wouldn't typically see in a Caesar dressing, like cornflour. These peculiar ingredients create a thick and lumpy mixture that has no place being on a salad. One person said this product was too thick and didn't pour well. 

But the negative reviews don't stop at its texture. Consumers have also complained about how it tastes and smells. "The smell was quite unpleasant and it didn't taste like Caesar dressing to me. Probably, a bit too earthy for my palette."

This brand uses artificial cheese flavor to compensate for the lack of dairy products, which is a problem. One disappointed consumer wrote, "The artificial cheese flavor is reminiscent of cheese puffs, which, while delicious, is not a flavor you like in the context of a salad."

Caesar dressings are typically rich in fat and sometimes contain more than 100 calories per serving. Walden Farms distinguishes itself by producing a Caesar salad dressing with zero calories. This product adds no carbohydrates, fat, sugars, or cholesterol to your salads. Therefore, the Walden Farms zero-calorie Caesar Dressing might be ideal for individuals with strict diets.

If your eating habits are not tightly regulated, there's hardly a good reason to choose this product over others, especially because it doesn't precisely replicate the zesty flavor of typical Caesar dressing. This person described its taste as "too sweet for me, not tangy enough." Another unimpressed reviewer added, "It doesn't remotely resemble a caesar dressing. It tastes like chemicals and leaves a horrible after taste."

Although this brand includes several spices like garlic, turmeric, and onions, shoppers consider it bland. It also includes other flavorful ingredients such as anchovies, white vinegar, and lemon juice — but these don't expand how it tastes.