Being of Italian decent and self-publishing my own Italian cookbook a couple of yrs. ago, I can say that in our home we have Antipasto with all the meats, cheese, olives & artichokes etc. before the actual Entree with crispy Italian bread. To ans. the OP ques., I do not eat my entire salad at that time because I won't be able to eat anything else, I save it to eat with my Pasta. In a lot of Regions in Italy salad is served after the Entree. Usually because everyone is full dessert is just a memory.