The Olive Garden is an Italian-American restaurant chain. The establishment is dedicated to providing delicious Italian inspired food along with a warm and welcoming dining experience for all its customers. The Olive Garden prides itself in catering to families and provides casual, family-styled dining. It considers its guests as family. The menu provides a variety of options such as pasta dishes, soups, salads, and steaks. The chain experienced rapid expansion over the years and has become the largest Italian themed restaurant in the nation. The Olive Garden presently has over 800 restaurants in locations throughout the world.

The chain isn’t the only thing that has grown. The menu has also expanded over the years and is frequently updated, while keeping the customers’ favorites in mind.  The selections are constantly going through changes to ensure that there is always a new dish to experience. The establishment uses the freshest ingredients to prepare its food. The food focuses on flavor that is uniquely Italian. The chain provides exhilarating new specials as well as traditional favorites in Italian cuisine. There is a full menu of entrees, appetizers, desserts, and of course, wines. The goal of the establishment is to make each and every guest experience the feel of modern Italy.

History

The first Olive Garden was opened by General Mills, Inc. in Orlando, Florida on December 13, 1982. The chain expanded rapidly and there were 145 restaurants by 1989. The chain was very popular and became the largest chain of full service Italian-themed restaurants in the United States. Sales were huge and the establishment was considered to be a rapidly growing brand under General Mills, Inc. In 1995, Darden Restaurants branched out from General Mills, Inc. as its restaurant holdings company. The chain thus became a part of Darden. Darden Restaurants is still the owner of Olive Garden. Olive Garden is considered to be Darden’s most valuable chain.

In February 2011, Darden announced its plans to open over 200 Olive Garden locations in the upcoming years. The company had also announced its plans to expand into new international markets. In addition, Darden announced that it would commence licensing franchising partnerships. Sales had decreased sharply during that time, and Darden worked hard to reinvent the restaurant. This reinvention included a new logo, new Italian “farmhouse” inspired restaurant designs, new menus, and online ordering options. There were changes with the slogan as well, which originally was “Good Times, Great Salad, Olive Garden”. At first, this was changed to “When you’re here, you’re family”. Today, the restaurant’s slogan is “We’re all family here”.

The chain operates over 800 restaurants globally. There are numerous locations throughout the United States, which include for example: Florida, Georgia, New York, California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Arizona, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, South Carolina, Utah, and also Puerto Rico. The chain also has various locations in Canada, such as Alberta, British Columbia, Edmonton, Langley, Manitoba, and Winnipeg. There are also locations in Mexico, Peru, Brazil, El Salvador, Kuwait, Malaysia, and the United Arab Emirates.

Aside from providing Italian-American cuisine with family-styled dining, the chain prides itself on giving to those in need. Since 2003, under the Darden Harvest Program, the establishment has donated over 66 million pounds of food to help the less fortunate. The restaurant takes the time each day to prepare and store unserved or surplus food for donations to local shelters, food banks or other charitable organizations. The establishment is also a part of the Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program. The Olive Garden is indeed dedicated to serving its community staying true to its theme of family.

Review

The Olive Garden offers a wide selection of Italian-American meals on both their lunch and dinner menus. The restaurant is well known for its menu specials. Pasta of course is a main dish, so there is the “Create Your Own Pasta Bowl” option. The “Never Ending Pasta Bowl” is a popular special, priced between $9 and $10. There are also breadstick sandwich lunch duos priced between $9 and $10. Classic Italian options are generally priced between $12 and $16 on the dinner menu and $9 to $12 on the lunch menu. Some examples of these include the chicken parmigiana, ravioli di portabella, lasagna classico, and the fettuccine alfredo.

The restaurant also offers “Lighter Italian Fare”, which consists of menu items that are all under 575 calories and priced between $9 and $12. Examples of these items include garlic rosemary chicken, citrus chicken Sorrento, and herb grilled salmon. There are also options for vegetarians, including soups and salads. There is also a kids menu for children of the age of 12 and under. Appetizers are priced between $5 and $9 and include calamari, spicy shrimp scampi fritta, and bruschetta caprese. There are of course the unlimited breadsticks. Desserts are priced between $2 and $7 and include cheesecake, tiramisu, zeppoli, and dolcini.

The soups and salads are customer favorites. The garlic rosemary chicken is also highly recommended. The specials and the unlimited breadsticks are well received. Customers seem to enjoy the convenient casual family-style dining that the restaurant offers. The service depends on the location. Service is great at some locations but poor at others. The hygiene also depends on the location, as some locations are better than others. The restaurant does not take reservations and wait times can be considerably long. However, the restaurant offers an online wait list option, to allow guests to save their spot in the line before they arrive.

Hours of operation vary according to location. However, the restaurant is generally open Sunday to Thursday from 11:00 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Fridays and Saturdays from 11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Lunch is served until 4:00 p.m. on Mondays to Fridays. Dinner is served all day on Saturdays and Sundays. There is also the option of take-out and online ordering. The restaurant provides catering services upon request. The Olive Garden is indeed a popular restaurant. It is a convenient option for guests who want to experience Italian cuisine in a relaxed, casual setting. It has been highly successful over the years as is evident by its vast expansion, on both a national and global level.