The short answer is that it is NOT. If your Italian restaurant meal is too salty, it probably means that the chef is a heavy smoker. Don’t go back to that establishment, obviously. When you start with fresh whole foods, whether meat or vegetables, adding salt while cooking does wonders for bringing out the natural flavor. And this type of salting is self-limiting. None of us like food that’s TOO salty, and so we’ll naturally only add what tastes good.