Olive Garden
When You're Here, You're Family
Message from Olive Garden
Olive Garden is a family of local restaurants focused on delighting every guest with a genuine Italian dining experience. We are proud to serve fresh, simple, delicious Italian food, complemented by a great glass of wine, served in a comfortable, home-like Italian setting where everyone is welcomed as family and friends. Olive Garden's menu features a variety of Italian specialties, including classic and filled pastas, chicken, seafood and beef. Enjoy our freshly baked garlic breadsticks and your choice of homemade soup or garden-fresh salad with any entree. All menu items are available for take-out, and our Parties To Go! menu offers generous family-sized meals for your next family gathering or office party.
Editorial by Citysearch
In ShortEstablished in 1982, this chain gained a following for its laid-back atmosphere and generous portions. Patrons settle into comfortable booths and tables in dining rooms with plants, artwork and décor reminiscient of the villas in the Tuscan countryside. Starters include scampi, sausage or pepperoni pizza, and several soup choices, as well as a signature seafood dip (crab, shrimp, cheese and marinara). Entrees include classics like lasagna, fettuccine Alfredo and chicken parmigiana. There are also "Garden Fare" options, which promise 30 percent fewer calories.
Key Points
- Fresh, delicious Italian food
- Variety of wine and beverages
- To Go ordering available
The Inside Scoop
- What to Drink - What's spaghetti and meatballs without a glass of wine? You'll find vintages here from Italy, Australia, California and Washington.
Insider Pages Reviews for Olive Garden
Every time I eat at the Olive Garden I get a headache and all anxious. Neither of which ever happen to me unless I eat Chinese food. I ate twice at Olive Garden and it happened both times. Both times had Salad + bread + chicken + pasta. Once I had the Gnocchi soup
Posted 07/28/09 | Report Abuse
Was this review helpful to you?
looking for generic msg filled Italian food? this is the spot. Enjoy the great service from the poor people hate working at the olive garden. Are you boring enough to eat here?
Posted 07/03/09 | Report Abuse
Was this review helpful to you?
This is one of my favorite resturants I love there chicken parm. The salads and breadsticks are free and a perfect addition to your meal. It's a romantic atmosphere great place to bring a date the service is fast and friendly. And they have very decent prices.
Christy
Posted 07/26/05 | Report Abuse
Was this review helpful to you?
Olive Garden is a casual, family oriented Italian restaurant. The menue appeals to all age groups. The food is simple with no frills. The servings are generous, and is served at just the perfect temperature. The pre-meal servings of salad and breadsticks nearly make a meal of itself! The breadsticks are piping hot, and the salad is refrigerator cold! The service is fast, friendly, and efficient. The prices are modest.
Posted 06/13/05 | Report Abuse
Was this review helpful to you?
Latest reviews from Citysearch.
marge
by margemike
If you want the all you can eat salad and bread sticks but better Italian food try the Olive Tree in Aberdeen, Md. They have larger servings and the food is great especially the crab alfredo. The put in large amounts of lump crab meat and it is delicios. If you have tried the Olive Garden and then go to Olive tree you will never mix them up.
Pros: inexpensive, Good Parking, Plenty of room
Posted 05/03/04
The McDonald's of Itilian food
by samsam9999
Olive Garden is the McDonald's of Itilian food.
If you want real Itilian food, there is a little place next the Carrousel Hotel in Ocean City Maryland call Anna Maria's. Anna retired recently, but she past down all of the traditions to her son, who now runs the place with the same pride as his mother did. The food is great and they know how to serve correctly.
Enjoy!
Posted 02/09/03
Mediocrity at its finest . . .
by wingnutt5
With all the fantastic restaurants in Baltimore's Little Italy, laziness is the only excuse for visiting the Olive Garden. On several "lazy" nights, I have visited two suburban locations. The Columbia location was especially busy some nights, and the quality of the food has been unreliable. For a chain, it's passable, but I wouldn't waste my time seeking out a location to visit.
Pros: Reasonable prices, Good salad
Cons: Crowded, Uninspired menu, Unreliable quality
Posted 01/16/03
Where's the Waiter?
by j_sands
The service was the worst I have ever recieved. I felt like I was at the doctor's office. The food was not very good. The sauce was flavorless and the pasta was overcooked.
Pros: Cheap
Cons: Crowded, Neglectful, Poor Service
Posted 12/09/02
Not even close...
by michele817
Olicce Garden is definitely NOT one of the top 10 Italian restaurants to eat at in the U.S., let alone the area. Obviously you haven't had the opportunity to visit Timpano's in Rockville. NOW that's true Italian. Check it out sometime...I promise you won't be disappointed.
Pros: Inexpensive, Close to home
Cons: Poor value, Crowded
Posted 11/20/02
Wonderful!
by mstine67
Despite all the bad reviews here, I love the olive garden. The food is great. Maybe it isn't "authentic Italian" but who ever said it was. I eat there regularly. Great atmosphere, service and food. All reasonably priced.
Pros: Inexpensive, great food, good parking
Cons: can be crowded
Posted 11/13/02
Faux-Italian fools non-Italians
by lindro
Olive Garden is NOT Italian. It is Americanized Italian food. Although some of the soups are good and salad is abundant, the sauces and dressings need a real Italian chef's recipes. In a city with a "Little Italy" of its own, it's a wonder that Olive Garden could make it into a list like this. That tells me that most of its patrons are internet users. The real gourmets don't vote.
Pros: mushroom ravioli, tuscan soup, pour yourself wine
Cons: salad dressing, tomato sauce, soft dry bread sticks
Posted 09/11/02
good example
by michaelowens
The Olive Garden is a good example of Americans love of fair with horrible food that they eat because they know what kind of food they are going to eat. Good Italian kitchens use fresh produce and meats not frozen or processed food like Olive Garden.
Pros: consistant food quali, same kitchy decore, can find in any shopp
Cons: poor food quality, bad quality drinks, no value for the cost
Posted 08/29/02
Good on the taste buds and the wallet!
by majkhnds4u
Great food, great prices and a great value. This is a good place for the whole family.
Posted 08/14/02
YOUR KIDDING ME!!!
by jomax77
when i saw this restaurant on the BEST ITALIAN site, i had to write in. um, the food may be good, but this is NOT ITALIAN. this is GROSS AND DISGUSTING AND PROCESSED. the breadsticks are great you say? they come in a freakin' package you can buy at the grocery store. GROW UP and GET SOME TASTE. you want italian? take a trip down to little italy and stop by amicci's restaurant. thats italian. i bite my tongue...the olive garden. ouch.
Cons: processed, unoriginal, NOT ITALIAN
Posted 08/12/02
Best Italian Food in B-More
by Icey_Niki
I love the Olive Garden. I strongly recommend the Chicken Marsalis. (I think that is how you spell it.) I saw it on an Olive Garden commercial, and it looked good. So I purposely went to the restaurant to try it. (It was also my first time there.) It was so good that the next week, I went back and ordered it for carry-out.
Pros: Inexpensive, Good parking, Carry-Out
Cons: Tables too close
Posted 08/07/02
enjoyed the steak
by tedwpx1
Enjoyed wine, salad, and bread sticks while waiting for the meal. The steak I ordered was good, but cooked medium instead of medium rare
Pros: friendly, good food, resonable
Cons: steak over cooked
Posted 08/01/02
a garden of delights
by thelindaj
wonderful food, extra large portions = doggie bags & a completely enjoyable lunch the next day. Food service, price all top drawer
Pros: Good parking, excellant value
Posted 07/27/02