Another Different Night in Little Italy
By: Daniel Son
Unlimited bread-sticks, unlimited salad, unlimited soup, and a heavenly dinner entree! What more could you ask for from an Italian restaurant? Along with all that, Olive Garden provides a very homey atmosphere for large groups of friends and families to arrive and enjoy their meal. Olive Garden began in 1982 by a the largest casual dining restaurant in the world, Darden Restaurants. Some of Darden Restaurants' other chains include: Bahama Breeze, Smokey Bones, Rocky River Grill House, LongHorn Steakhouse and many more. Olive Garden has its own cooking school in Italy called the Culinary Institute of Tuscany where hundreds of Olive Garden's team members travel to learn more about and experience the real Italy. The main purpose of Olive Garden is to provide a genuine Italian dining experience which is why I dine there to this day.
Olive Garden is not your typical restaurant with TV's lined across the rooms. Instead Olive Garden does not have any TV's, but all the room you need for your friends and family. This restaurant is more about coming together as a family. Just like the Olive Garden commercials on TV, there are always large groups of people who are eating, drinking, and talking to have a good time with each other. The waiters and waitresses engage and interact with all the customers adding to the familiarity of the atmosphere. Most Olive Gardens have been built with stucco walls with usage of foilage throughout the whole restaurant to replicate the old-world Italian style, a little Italy. I've noticed that the Olive Garden in Louisville plays some Michael Buble and Frank Sinatra who are two of my favorite artists. Although I had been accustomed to the environment of Olive Garden and been there many times, I was not going to let that bias my review.
The only way to evaluate this restaurant was to have a clear and new mind, forgetful of what I had experienced before and only open to what I was about to encounter. Only through this would I successfully achieve an unbiased review of Olive Garden. Food quality plays the most important role when reviewing a restaurant because customers aren't going for the service;they are going for the food. Which then leads into the service of how the customers are met and how the customers are treated and etc. Any customer would not want to be treated in a ugly manner.
Luckily I was the first to arrive which gave me the chance to see how they would treat a college student by himself. I grabbed the aluminum handle of the door anxiously as I peered to look in to take a gander on the amount of people. Fortunately there was only one group waiting. The young blond hostess looked up from what she was previously doing, gave me a warm smile, and asked, "How many in your party tonight?" I was mesmerized by her beauty, but then remembered the goal of my night and replied, "Three please." So far the service was ample for the night. I only waited for about four minutes before I was led to my table. My parents hadn't even arrived yet and I was seated at Olive Garden. I sat down looking around to see how the other customers were spending their night.
The first thing I noticed, which I hadn't noticed before, was how casual this restaurant really was. People were dressed in sweatpants and sweatshirts, whereas some would even be semi-formally dressed as well. This was a restaurant where everybody was family no matter where you came from. Olive Garden seemed to be living up to its motto: "When you're here, you're Family."
Finally my parents arrived and it was time to order. The waitress introduced herself very vibrantly and conversed with us as if she knew us which was welcoming. I usually order chicken parmigiana, but tonight while looking around at everyone's order, I desired everything. There is only one item on the menu with a variety of Italian dishes: The Tour of Italy~ The Tour of Italy consists of homemade lasagna, lightly breaded chicken parmigiana, and creamy fettuccine alfredo. This would also give me the chance to try the main Italian dishes of Olive Garden instead of one specific dish. My father ordered the Steak Toscano because he orders steak everywhere he goes. My mother on the other hand ordered the Grilled Shrimp Caprese. As the waitress took our orders she double checked our orders and left with a smile stretching across her face.
Before long our waitress returned with a jumbo bowl full of lettuce, tomatoes, onions, cheese, croutons, and Italian sauce for me and my father, a bowl of cream of tomato and basil soup for my mother, and bread-sticks for all. There is never a need to waste money on appetizers because the complimentary salad, soup, and bread-sticks easily complete the job. As my family and I slowly finished feasting on the salad and soup, we had time to converse and have some serious "family" time. As soon as my father was about to give me another lecture on the journey of life, I saw our waitress emerging through the doors with a huge platter on her hands.
The service was very efficient and the food was finished just before my father was about to begin his never-ending lecture. The waitress placed my plate in front of me warning me about the hot temperature of the plate. I thanked the Lord for my food and gazed upon the chicken parmigiana, homemade lasagna, and creamy fettuccine alfredo just waiting for me to devour it. I took a bite of the chicken parmigiana and it was just as I had imagined it. The bite was filled with the original chicken flavor everybody knows topped with some stringy parmesan cheese. I then took a bite of the creamy fettuccine alfredo and I was speechless. I forgot how creamy the white alfredo sauce tastes with some noodles. The lasagna however, was quite disappointing. The lasagna did not taste homemade at all, but more microwave-made. It had the frozen taste of being microwaved. If only the lasagna had been better, that night would have been perfect.
My father loved his meal and so did my mother. The waitress noticed I had some leftover lasagna, and asked me if I needed a box. I politely said yes and took some bread-sticks home as well. As we were waiting for the food to digest, the waitress asked if we wanted any desserts and all three of us replied, "NO." As we waited for the check, my mother brought up some embarrassing childhood memories of me beginning another chapter of laughter and conversation.
Overall the service is indescribable because it has no flaws. The staff is warm and welcoming and the service is quick and precise. The restaurant takes care of you as soon as you walk through the front doors till your outside in the parking lot. I would recommend the Steak Toscano, the Shrimp Caprese, and Tour of Italy, but only if you would not mind some imperfect lasagna. Besides the lasagna, the cuisines are delicious filled with Italian flavor. Usually the nights are packed with customers waiting outside the doors, but as long as your willing to go on a weeknight, you'll be fine. The environment Olive Garden provides is perfect for families to come together and talk for hours and hours forgetting about the issues of the world, leaving reality, and adventuring into a little Italy.
Olive Garden
★★★★
★★★★
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