I have now grown lettuce for 3 years and I have "developed" a way to make it crisp.
Just like you the first year I was not impressed with the half limp leaves. But I found that if I pick early in the morn about 8 am and then swish it around in a BIG bowl of water to clean it then let it sit for 10 mins, lift out the lettuce onto dish towel and rinse bowl, repeat process, this is so dirt sinks to the bottom and off the leaves. At this point place a dry paper towel in a gallon size ziploc bag and place lettuce on top of it, zip closed and place in fridge until dinner time and it is nice and crispy.
This has worked for me for 3 years and my daughter now refuses to eat any store bought lettuce!

My kids only like the crisp varieties of lettuce. They don't like simpson at all (too delicate or "soft" as they say). I even treat my lettuce exactly like wohlibuli, so the simpson is not limp, it is just not crunchy lettuce.
Our favorite is romaine lettuce, variety "Little Caesar". Always crisp, not bitter.

ditto what wohlibuli said about rinsing and storing. I save the dirty water to reuse in the garden/compost.

ditto what potterhead said. I planted romaine this yr. I picked 6 leaves from both simpson and romaine yesterday for tacos...yum! Now I have to wait a few more days until I can pick more...

This is my 2nd garden and lookin good so far...yay!

Thanks for the tip about washing it. I will try that tonight and see if it works for me. I really wanted to like this lettuce cause it looks so nice growing in my flowerbed. I do really like romaine lettuce so I may give that a try. Is it very hard to grow or is it as easy as the looseleaf? I don't know too much about growing lettuce so this year is kind of experimental! So far I'm loving being able to walk out to the front garden and pick me a salad! So much fun!

Carly

Nevada forms large, loose heads. The leaves have heavier substance than most non-romaine types and are crisp. It is a Batavian type. It holds extremely well in the garden without bolting.

Jim

This is my 2nd year growing lettuce, though I've had tomatoes, peppers, and the like for several more years.

I have some Feckles Romaine that might look interesting in your flower bed. It's speckled green and sort-of maroon. It's crisper than the Black Seeded Simpson. Still not as crisp as store-bought, though tastier. I'm going to try the washing technique.

I'd really like to hear about people's favorite lettuces, as well as where they purchase the seeds.

Posted by jimster Nevada forms large, loose heads. The leaves have heavier substance than most non-romaine types and are crisp. It is a Batavian type. It holds extremely well in the garden without bolting.

Jim

A second vote for Nevada, one of my favorites. There are other Batavians. They are also called "French Crisp" which seems odd to me since Batavia is in the Netherlands and not in France. But then again, "Nevada" is . . . oh, never mind!

digitSteve

This is our first year growing lettuce. We planted two different varieties, romaine and looseleaf, both from Burpee. We have been surprised and more than happy with the results. Both give large, crisp, delicious leaves. I suppose most gardeners know this, but I was surprised to learn that by harvesting only the larger outer leaves the plant will continue to produce. The varieties we used:

52977A
Lettuce Green Ice (Looseleaf) - 1 Pkt. (750 seeds) $2.95

66662A
Lettuce Vivian (Romaine) - 1 Pkt. (500 seeds) $4.95

We prefer the looseleaf as it is milder than the romaine, which we have found to be rather strong. But for production, appearance and crispness they are both winners!

Here is a link that might be useful: Burpee Seeds

Here we're just waiting until it gets cool enough to plant a fall crop of lettuce! We enjoy both the "crisp" Romaine type lettuces and the "tender" loose head types. I got a packet of "mixed Romaine" varieties last fall and we enjoyed them all  some red leaf types, some variegated types, and some "regular" types. We also usually have a 4x4 foot bed devoted to a mesclun mix, so we also get some of the more bitter or peppery greens to add to our salads. Now it's WAY too hot here to grow lettuce, so we're waiting for fall. Not very patiently...!

I am just trying to keep my last few plants from bolting until we can get them eaten and then I will be in the same place as you mgpaquin. Waiting to plant a fall crop.
This year I tried a lot of different varieties... I like the Simpson best for sandwiches and the Little Caesar is good for a Caesar style salad and I also have a red oak leaf which has an interesting flavor.
I also tried a few asian varieties of salad greens just to have something different. I had Tat Choy, Mizuna, and Chinese red mustard plus Arugula. You can really have a spicy and tasty salad with all these. They were all a hit.

Look for "Summer Crisp" aka French Crisp or Batavia lettuce. I grew Cherokee from Johnny's Select Seeds this year, which is a red summer crisp lettuce. The texture is very crisp and the taste is great. It is also slow to bolt in my garden. It forms a loose head and is very pretty in the garden. I will definitely try one of the green varieties next year... maybe Nevada!

I bought pelleted seeds of Nevada from Johnny's this year. I had never used pelleted seed before. It works really well with lettuce. I like it.

A red equivalent of Nevada is available called Sierra. I haven't grown it.

Jim

Here is a link that might be useful: Summer Crisp

Thanks for all the wonderful suggestions. I will definitely try some of these varieties in the fall. I tried wohlibuli's suggestion and it worked. Of course the lettuce is not like a head of iceberg or anything but much more palatable texture wise and the taste is very good. I also tried some of the mesclun mix this year but I wasn't too impressed with the flavor or texture. I think I waited until the leaves were too big to pick instead of small and tender. They are all bolting now so I might try them again and pick them smaller. I can't believe the simpson hasn't bolted yet. Of course this being my first try with lettuce I wasn't sure what to expect but we are having days in the mid-90's every day now. So I am not sure how much longer we will have lettuce! I guess its time to concentrate on black-eyed peas, cucumber and okra, plus everything else already growing good in my back garden. I appreciate everyone's help and suggestions!

Carly

Tango (green) and Rubin (red) are ruffly lettuces that crisp up nicely.

I pick early in the AM, wash them, spin them and stick the spinner into the refrigerator for a while.