Olive Garden

08/26/09

Watch your overcharged bill

by mris at Citysearch

Friday (8/21/09) was our first time visting Olive Garden, for a dinner.

Food quality is average, prices seem ok. We tried the neverending pasta bowl, $8.99 according to their list price. However, our final bill arrived for $11.99 each, although we didn't have any additional choices. We ended up paying it (plus tax, plus tip), as we trusted our server and didn't verify right away. A small price for a lesson well learned.

• Pros: cheap
• Cons: questionable service

03/28/09

It's good food...

by mabes32 at Citysearch

I'm so sick of all you yuppies ripping on olive garden and any chain that you label "non authentic" Of course it's not authentic. Who cares... The obvious truth is, the majority likes the food they serve better than if it were truly authentic italian. It's good consistent food at a great price. I've been all over Italy, and would take olive garden before 90% of the places I've eaten at over there. If you're looking for a good meal at a great price, choose Olive garden. If you're one of those that cant distinguish between authentic and good food, go somewhere else and quit clogging up review boards with your negative comments.

• Pros: Fast, consistent, large portions
• Cons: none

01/04/09

An Example of Poor Quality

by cutebirdie at Citysearch

This was our first visit to the Olive Garden. A garden it is! Full of bad food and high prices cultivated over time by poor management.

Our meals were mediocre at best. The chicken parmigiana was very average, the salad was drenched in dressing (cough, sputter), and my nephew's spaghetti with plain sauce was swimming in water--imagine that--not being able to get something as simple as spaghetti with sauce correct! We had to drain his dish of the extra sauce that was obviously diluted with water (sauce was barely the color of tomatoes, and very thin) during preparation. My nephew had said, "Look at me! I am eating spaghetti soup." I would not recommend anyone patronize this chain of restaurants.

• Pros: None
• Cons: Prices, Quality of Food

11/17/06

too crowded

by sdsungoddess at Citysearch

I love Olive Garden but this location is alwys packed. No matter what night we go or at what time there is always a line out the door. If you are really craving those yummy breadsticks pull up a seat at the bar. You get great service and do not have to wait 40 minutes.

12/29/05

Hot Food Bad Wine Bad Service Bad Value

by jimadcock at Citysearch

There was some confusion about where to seat our party of seven, so they sat us in front of the kitchen door. The tables and chairs from a defunct Denny's. The table location was impossibly noisy. $7 corked wine, my wife insisted I make them take back, except all of a sudden all the waiters and waitresses who were streaming past our table turned deaf, dumb and blind. I finally walked back to the hostess to send a floor manager to our table to assist us, and it still took five minutes for him to arrive. Food was hot, which rates a coup in Seattle. Seafood Portofino was served hot (good) thick white sauce (good not great) and vanishingly small quantities of mussels (6 tiny), shrimp (2 tiny) and scallops (2 teeny tiny). One ounce of seafood in total. $100 for four adults, and three kids who basically didn't eat.

• Pros: Hot Food
• Cons: Service, Wine, Value