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Olive Garden Italian Restaurant
Category: Restaurants Italian Italian
310 Strander Blvd(at W Andover Park)
Tukwila, WA 98188
(206) 241-4899
Announcement
Explore three new tastes on one plate with the new Taste of Tuscany. Choose chicken or sausage plus two extras, starting at $10.95.
Announced one week ago- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
Bob S. said: "This place is a great find, in a tucked away, hidden place that you'd never expect to discover one of the best pizza places in Seattle. There was a time when saying "The Best Pizza in Seattle" didn't really mean much, because pizza in…" read more »
73 reviews for Olive Garden Italian Restaurant
Review Highlights
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"Bread sticks here are warm, soft, and buttery." In 11 reviews -
"The pasta was amazing, and I miss it." In 23 reviews
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"...asiago-filled tortelloni in alfredo sauce with roasted red..." In 4 reviews
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73 reviews in English
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Review from Julie G.
Seattle, WA
3/5/2012 1 Check-in Here
I've always visit this Olive Garden location. The service is always awesome and food comes out hot. I find that all the servers has great personalities. Most of the time they have deals going on, it's my second time back here for the 3 course Italian dinner for 12.95.
Today I had a mediocre experience here. It was because they forgot to seat me. I went up to ask when I would be seated, after noticing a few people flew on through; and the hostess told me, he thought I was already seated. I guess he handled the situation quite nicely, he sat me down, and was very apologetic.
I'm still giving them a 4 star, since I really love the food here. The service is usually awesome too, despite my 1 bad experience. -
Review from Eric L.
Monterey Park, CA
4/3/2012
This is your typical Olive Garden. Food is OK but not great. Service was pretty good. Our server took awhile to take our drinks so the manager came over and helped us out.
We went on a Friday night at 10:00 PM and there was still a 20 minute wait. No idea why it would be so crowded this late at night but I figured this place might be crowded all the time. There's a TON of parking since it's in the parking lot of the Southcenter Mall. -
Review from Helena H.
3/28/2012 1 Check-in Here
This place is always BUSY!
Sat at the Bar to get my dinner before Leaving town.
Food came quick , service was ok.
Typical Pasta meal. Nothing Fancy.Listed in: Rain Rain…
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Review from Simer K.
Kent, WA
5/21/2012
food is hit n miss . threw up last time i ate here ....
desserts are fab though -
Review from Dylan A.
Seattle, WA
5/21/2012
Love this place! This is one of my favorite places to go to at dinner time. It is usually pretty busy but the staff is quick and friendly.
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Review from Siamen M.
Kent, WA
4/24/2012
First time I came here, I had cold water poured on my pants, and even though the food was free that day, everything is salty. Two years later thought I would give this place a chance, the food is still very salty! Oh and the salad is bland, no dressings. I am done with this place.
-
Review from Rhea P.
Seattle, WA
2/16/2012 3 photos
I've gone here a bunch of times with groups of friends or my boyfriend and for a while it was my favorite "Italian" restaurant. I'd usually come here when they have those Never Ending Pasta Bowls cause I enjoy mixing the different pastas, sauces and meats around. I thought it was fun, cheap, and my picks were usually always pretty good.
This time however, they were having their $12.95 3 course dinner meal. A starter, entree and dessert for that cheap?! Oh boy was I excited to try this special deal, so I got my boyfriend to take me here for Valentine's Day. Unfortunately... during the dinner, I was regretting my decision. I usually loved the food here but I left with so much disappointment and a new outlook on the place.
Our server was nice but I could just tell from his tone that he was being fake when he took our order. I even giggled to myself when he would try to act cheerful cause his approach was just wrong. He wasn't sincere at all but we tipped him anyways just to be "nice".
Now for the food. The salad and breadsticks were good like always, nothing to complain about. For our entree, I ordered the Creamy Parmesan Portobello Mushroom Fettucine and boyfriend ordered the Smoked Mozarella Chicken. I usually just always get spaghetti but my boyfriend encouraged me to try something new so I did. Now I wish he would have just let me stuck to my usual. The fettucine was a little on the dry side, plain, and was nothing to go "wow" over. The chicken on the other hand was much more tastier so after a few bites of the fettucine, my boyfriend was nice enough to switch plates with me. He will literally eat anything regardless if its good or bad.
Dessert, I had the Tirimisu and he had the Strawberry Cream Cake. They were both just okay. Nothing special. The size of the desserts were also pretty tiny, which after the first couple bites, I was happy about cause then I didn't have to feel bad about wasting cause it wasn't that great anyways.
At the end of the dinner, I whispered to my boyfriend that we're never having dinner here again. Then again, I will probably change my mind. It is afterall, my first bad experience dining here. It just sucks that it had to be on Valentine's Day. :( -
Review from Millicents F.
Seattle, WA
3/9/2012 1 photo
I love Olive Garden, but we received such horrible service from our waitress. I mean.. she was picking up our plates before we were even done!!! And handed us the check without offering dessert..
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Review from Kay N.
King, WA
1/9/2012
This is a chain restaurant, I mean your expectations can't be all that high.
What I like about Olive Garden are the bread sticks, salad, and appetizers. The entrees are just ehhh to me, not what I call "Italian." I got the new baked pasta with slices of beef and it was just alright. The beef was dry.
I always gotten pretty good service here, so I can't complain. Every time I hear someone crave Olive Garden, they always crave for the bread sticks and salad... -
Review from Katie O.
10/9/2011 1 Check-in Here
Olive Garden isn't my favorite Italian restaurant, but it will do when I'm hungry and craving big portions of pasta and yummy breadsticks.
On a recent visit, my friend and I had worked up quite an appetite with our afternoon shopping. We popped in, put our names down, and settled in for the 15-20 minute wait. That timeframe came and went as new people came in and were seated ahead of us. My name wasn't called and our beeper thing never went off. Finally, when we were the last people sitting in the lobby, my friend was about to say something to the hostess. Evidently, the hostess picked up on her error and asked "Oh, you haven't been seated yet?" Um...does it look like we've been seated? For her part, she did apologize, but come on...it was her job to make sure we were seated.
We were put at an awkward table in the middle of the restaurant, and we were not pleased. In fact, I was pretty sure I could see wisps of steam coming out of my friend's ears.
Fortunately, our server Candi showed up, bubbly and sweet as can be. She told us about the wine tasting that they were doing for charity, and we quickly jumped at the chance to try sips of light, sweet wines.
Candi chose 3 delicious options for us, including a roscotto, which I had never heard of before. She took our orders, kept the breadsticks coming, and made sure our glasses stayed full.
All in all, she made up for everything and our experience was redeemed. :o) -
Review from Chris R.
Burien, WA
12/28/2011
If I could give a half a star--I would. This place is terrible. My wife and I went there a couple of weeks ago, and we're never going back. This is the WORST "Italian" food we've ever eaten.
My wife got the Chicken Marsala. It was bland and uninspiring. Further, the marsala sauce was really creamy. Yes, creamy! Marsala wine sauce is not known to be creamy.
I had the lasagna, which had some decent flavor to it. But it's hard to taste the flavor when all you can mostly taste is salt. Massive amounts of salt is what they should've named this dish. It was pretty-much inedible. The high levels of sodium are a major clue that indicate how "fresh" there food is. High levels of salt = not fresh. This means the lasagna (and probably a lot of their food) is pre-packaged and then nuked. Understandable for a chain restaurant, but this was just too much for me. Terrible, terrible food.
It's too bad the masses that go to chain restaurants like this are fooled into believing this is "good Italian" food. They simply don't know any better.
We will never go back here again. Eater beware!!! -
Review from April F.
2/15/2012 1 Check-in Here
It's Olive Garden. Everyone has been here at least once, and they have something for everyone. I'm a fan of their food, drinks and dessert hands down. But this location is awesome, I have had great service EVERYTIME.
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Review from Julia W.
11/11/2011 1 Check-in Here
I've been to this Southcenter location of Olive Garden a few times although not for dinner in a while.
I was there for a friend's 9 year old's birthday party. We had 3 large tables in the back of the restaurant and so we were a large crowd.
Each 'table' had 2 waiters to serve since it seated 8 ppl per table. I was a little disappointed in our waitress since she forgot what orders we had and to refill our drinks. I know it was loud and crazy but it just made for a long night.
My salad came out before my soup (even though I had asked for it first). She forgot my husband's wine altogether until he asked for it when dinner was served. And then we couldn't find her to get our check when we were ready to go.
It's a typical Olive Garden food-wise but definitely be prepared to perhaps need to explain what you need exactly to the staff. -
Review from Reis O.
Seattle, WA
10/9/2011
Why does everyone hate on Olive Garden? I admit that their tv commercials are the worst, but as a restaurant, this place is awesome.
Our recent visit was all about killer food and great staff.
No, it's not super authentic Italian food and chain restaurants get a bad rap these days, but I'd say that Olive Garden deserves a second look from the haters. -
Review from Kitty Stephanie L.
Seattle, WA
9/18/2011
3 stars for superb service. After reading past reviews, I felt very grateful to have Michael as my server during a late Friday dinner.
We were told we'll have to wait 15minutes for a table for two, and instead, it was like 3 minutes. We didn't notice where the never-ending-pasta-bowl menu was, but Michael kindly showed us even though we haven't even asked yet. Order the fettuccine alfredo, and... there goes the other two stars. I've always loved Olive Garden when I was young, but this time, I couldn't even finish halfway. Michael noticed that I was playing with my food, so he came by with some alfredo sauce, saying that he "noticed my noodle was dry". That is extremely attentive. And I really appreciated him for trying.
Even with that, I doubt I'll be back for a while. The food is just not good enough to tempt me to ever go back. If I do go back for this one person's service, I wouldn't know what to order.
However, thanks Michael. -
Review from Justin H.
10/10/2011
We went here for my wife's b-day and I walked away in a self induced carb-coma. In addition to the salad and breadsticks, I managed to put away two servings of the never ending pasta special, I wanted to go for three but I just couldn't do it.
My first dish was angel hair with their sun dried tomato cream sauce. I really enjoyed this, though I could of used more sauce, still it was good. My second serving was the meat sauce with meatballs and penne, this was really good as well.
The service was pretty good and we got our food quickly. Also our wait wasn't too bad, about 20 mins, enough time to have a beer in the bar while we waited. -
Review from Maria N.
10/3/2011 1 Check-in Here
"Cream sauce was a bad choice!"
That statement basically sums up our experience at Olive Garden for the neverending pasta bowl. I don't eat at Olive Garden all that often, so perhaps I'd forgotten just how bad the food is--but it was pretty appalling. The alfredo sauce was rich, but not too bad. However, the meat sauce was just inedible.
I'm giving them an extra star because it was cheap and our waiter, Lia, was absolutely wonderful. -
Review from Darth V.
Bellevue, WA
5/27/2011 1 Check-in Here
You know what you're getting when you head to a big "faux fancy" chain joint like the Olive Garden. You'll receive friendly if completely disingenuous service by employees who hate their life, cuisine that is something that very vaguely resembles the ethnic genre the place is trying to pass off as (in this case, Italian), and about 3,000 calories worth of food that's entirely forgettable...aside from the fact that you're 3,000 calories heavier. It's like watching Mark Hamil do any non-Star Wars acting: You know it's going to fall flat, but the remote control is 9 feet away, you're comfortable and just want something to satiate you for a little while, and you're willing to sit through it and just hope that his hairpiece doesn't fall off and completely ruin what little respect you have left for him.
And if this Olive Garden had managed to do even that, they'd get an automatic 3 from me, because it is what it is, and you can't hold that against them too much.
But what the fuck is the idea about not giving refills on the only truly delicious thing in the establishment in the garlic breadsticks? That little basket sat empty for 80% of the meal. You walked past it 4 friggin' times, and never bothered to refill it. Dude, that's a major foul. How are we supposed to have a mini lightsaber battle without the breadsticks? And don't you dare say bring mini lightsabers. I will cut you.
I could only bring myself to order the salad, Lady Vader grabbed the soup. So at least it was cheap and we kept the calorie count at a level that would guarantee neither of us became heavier than the Millenium Falcon. Unfortunately, one bowl of the all you can eat salad was all I could muster, since the lettuce (you know, the thing that comprises over 90% of the salad) was wilted and old.
Oh well, at least you still get the Andes mints when they throw the bill on your table because you didn't spend enough for them to expect a tip large enough to even buy a cup of coffee.
2 Deathstars. -
Review from Samantha G.
Seattle, WA
Oh gosh, I used to love The Olive Garden as a kid. I love their endless salad and bread sticks here. I would purposely load up on the salad so I had leftover pasta for the next day. Normally I order their fettuccine alfredo or the unlimited pasta bowls just because they were simple and I was satisfied with those meals.
I came here recently and I haven't been to an Olive Garden since my Senior Prom or something like that...so a long time ago. I decided to check out their four Cheese Pastachettis with Italian sausage since it was one of the cheapest items on their menu for $9.95. I am not sure if my taste buds have changed over the last 8 or 9 years but this dish was the worst I've had at Olive Garden. The pastachettis (aka lasagna squares) were way overcooked so the texture was on the mushy side. It did not help that it tasted bland too...where the heck where the four cheeses?
The sausage did salvage the dish a little. I liked the sauce it was in (i believe it was sun-dried tomato and alfredo sauce?) but the sausage was so salty. My mouth felt so dehydrated after eating this. And it still felt the same way after I ate my leftovers. Avoid that dish at all costs!
Oh and the waiter ignored my table's request for a refill on the salad three different times that night. So much for endless salad. -
Review from Leslie N.
Renton, WA
4/5/2011
Soup, salad, and bread sticks for lunch!
Sunday lunch around 1PM for a group of 8 was a wait of 45 minutes.
Waitstaff Charlie and Jennifer were really attentive and helpful with our table, we were never with an empty bowl or glass for long.
Side note; I always enjoy their peach bellini iced tea. -
Review from Kevin C.
3/31/2011 1 Check-in Here
A group of us went to the bar for dinner. The bar area is small, but bearable. Food there is ok, typical Olive Garden food. However we found that the soups were a bit on the salty side. That is the only complaint.
However, everything else, the service, bottomless soup, salad, and breadsticks are great.
I ordered the eggplant dish, it was pretty good, eggplant was cooked well, and pasta was not too soft and not too firm. Just Right.
We ate so much food that we couldn't finish our beers. -
Review from Kaitlin F.
Redmond, WA
1/20/2011
I keep reading all of these comments "But it's unlimited, unlimited, unlimited". Yah know, unlimited amounts of crap still amounts to crap. Crap squared is still multiples of crap.
So i hadn't been to the olive garden in, like, 5 years. My husband and i were going down to southcenter, and we couldn't figure out what we wanted. I had just seen all the adds on tv for the unlimited pasta bowls for $10, or something like that. So, we decided, what the hell, it can't be that bad, it's pasta.
Well, suprise, yes it can.
The salad was ok, the breadsticks were, eh, alright, probably not worth the calories. The pasta was so wet they must not have strained it, and the meat sauce was runny and utterly flavorless. I was so hungry when i got there, but that pasta was so sad i couldn't get through half a bowl. I was so depressed i didn't even opt to try the other sauces even though i could have. My husband had gotten the cheesy marinara sauce (really?), which turned out to be marginally better, so i finished off some of his bowl.
For $10, i could have gone to Mayuri and had unlimited butter chicken, naan, and fruit custard. Unlimited crap, or unlimited awesome. Oh, unlimited, that is, if you can ever get a hold of your server, and if replacements get to your table in less than 30 minutes. Which didn't happen so much for us at our visit to the olive garden. -
Review from Kat G.
Bellevue, WA
11/11/2010
GAHHHHHH!!! Olive Garden I hate you so effin much. If I had any choice at all I would never eat there again but sadly we have dear friends who plan their bdays at the Olive Garden...every.single.frickin.year. So twice a year I am stuck at a table with wine I wouldn't buy at grocery store prices that somehow is priced like I'm dining at Purple.
Every year I forget how sick all their prepackaged, tastes like the plastic bag it was shipped in product (I refuse to use the word food) makes me and I try something because I am here and I am hungry and I would like to eat food. And every year me and all the other guests with tastebuds get stomache aches and leave most of our food on the plate.
I hate Olive Garden so much that I am actually grumpy that I have to go there tomorrow. I have a plan this year: stick to salad and breadsticks and stop at 5 guys on the way home. Wish me luck. -
Review from Richard T.
Bellevue, WA
3/7/2011
What can I say about my recent visit. Hmm. The meal itself was nothing spectacular or memorable and very average. The only pluses were that you get unlimited soup and salad with your meal.
The only reason I give it three stars is because of the service by the waitresses due to them being attentive and asking to see how everything was going.
The price of the meal I think is overly priced for some noodles, but oh well that's what you usually get for going out to eat isn't it? Main reason going is because we were celebrating a birthday in our party and there was a coupon in the Sunday paper. -
Review from Brad A.
Seattle, WA
1/24/2011
DID YOU KNOW THE OLIVE GARDENS ARE ALL THE SAME? We even could predict where the bathrooms were located.
PARKING & LOCATION: In the Tukwila area, on the southend of the South Center grounds (Westfield Mall). Plenty of parking.
QUALITY: Not bad. It's predictable.
COST: I like to get the Spaghetti with Meatballs, and it's always about $11+.
SERVICE: We got seated right away. The place is big, and they were attentive. (Cute waiters btw always a plus :) -
Review from JR P.
Seattle, WA
4/1/2011 2 Check-ins Here
This place is one of my favs. The line is usually ridiculous during dinner times unless you're 21 and can sit in the bar...thank god!
I usually just get something off their "specials" menu, but if you can't decide then get the Touf of Italy. Can't beat endless salad and breadsticks. I can never finish and always have lunch for the next day!
Full bar with beers on tap so thats always good!
Great quick and friendly service. -
Review from Rose B.
Auburn, WA
3/5/2011 2 Check-ins Here
I'm not a huge Olive Garden fan. I like their soups and I like their salad. Their pasta seems over priced for what you get.
Their drinks are pretty good (alcoholic and non-alcoholic). Their service tends to be good too. -
Review from Diane B.
Tacoma, WA
11/7/2011
As far as the Olive Garden chain goes...this is the best Olive Garden I've been to. Although the food is the same Americanized Italian as any other Olive Garden, the service at this location has been very good. This location always seems to be packed, but even with the overflow of people congregated inside and outside the entrance waiting to be seated, we have been seated quickly. Sitting in the bar is also a good option as the Olive Garden is a 'family restaurant' and it can get really noisy in the restaurant. Not a bad place to go after an evening of shopping with the girls. Any other Olive Garden location would get 2 stars.
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Review from Amanda K.
Mercer Island, WA
8/16/2010
When you're here, you're family.
We've all seen those 'endless salad and bread sticks' commercials before right? As well as the 'never ending pasta bowls'. Olive Garden is a decently popular Italian restaurant among the young crowd. It's the type of place you'd go to for a nice dinner with your fam, or a night out with the girls. It wouldn't be a bad idea to come here before a school dance either.
I seem to always come here prior to picking up one of my parents after they come back from Taiwan because Sea Tac is located not too far from here. The place can get pretty crowded around lunch and dinner time, but thankfully I have not had the experience of a dreadfully long wait.
You can't go wrong with the pasta here. Although, my favorite pasta, the Tuscan garlic chicken pasta is no longer served here. I think it's because it was a seasonal pasta, and the season ended? The pasta was amazing, and I miss it. A lot. The Tuscan chicken pasta is curly fettucine tossed in a garlic cream sauce. There are two tender pieces of juicy chicken served on top, with spinach and bell peppers throughout the pasta.
Another pasta that I really like here is the gnocchi. It comes tossed in a cheese sauce with multiple types of cheeses. The stuffed chicken marsala is also yummy. It is stuffed oven roasted chicken breast with Italian cheeses, sun dried tomatoes, and topped with mushrooms, marsala sauce, and served with garlic parmesan mashed potatoes.
I've also tried their chianti braised short ribs, not a bad choice either. the short ribs are fall of the bone tender, and the sauce is delicious.
The chicken scampi here is good here too, chicken breast tenderloins sauteed with bell peppers, roasted garlic, and onions with angel hair tossed in a garlic cream sauce. It's thick, creamy, delicious, and the ultimate comfort food.
They really do mean it when they say 'endless salad and bread sticks'. You're able to ask for as much salad and bread sticks as you want! The salad here is basically lettuce, banana peppers, red onions, tomatoes, olives, and parmesan cheese. It's pretty refreshing, and I love banana peppers! Bread sticks here are warm, soft, and buttery.
My most clear memory of this restaurant is when my dad and I came here for dinner. There had been some commotion in the kitchen, so the wait for our meal was longer than anticipated. Our waiter apologized, and offered a free dessert of our choice. We couldn't say no to that, so we ordered a white chocolate raspberry cheesecake. It was sweet, fruity, and chocolatey. The perfect end to a nice Italian meal.
They have new items every so often on their menu, usually a couple pastas or a meat dish. Recently, they got new desserts: dolcini, apple crostata, and triple chocolate tartata.
The next time I come here, I want to try their seafood brodetto, stuffed mushrooms, chicken and gnocchi soup, eggplant parmigiana, pumpkin cheesecake, and zeppoli all sound fantastic! -
Review from Alyson L.
Seattle, WA
3/3/2008
This review is for To Go orders only.
Yeah, I said it - To Go. I refuse to step foot in this place since I refuse to wait 20 minutes or more to be seated at a chain restaurant regardless of how hungry I may be. Chain-Loving Ma had a craving for the OG, so I decided to check out their menu for take-out possibilities - hey, if Wild Ginger can do it, so can Olive Garden.
We decided on our order, called in to a prompt and pleasant order-taker person who then told us they would have it ready in 10 to 15 minutes. YES, 10 to 15 minutes....Faster than you'll be seated in this hell hole of a restaurant.
The food was decent if not a little cool by the time we reached our place, but easy to heat up and fug, I am addicted to those silly breadsticks. Also, it's easier to share an entree at home and much more comfortable eating it at home than being surrounded by SouthCenterites.
Is it great Italian? No.
Is it decent pasta? Kinda.
Is it way more fun to eat fresh Olive Garden at home watching a movie than in a restaurant filled with crazies? Yes.
P.S. I have a recipe for Zuppa Toscana that you can make at home and tastes 100 times better than theirs.....Just sayin'.Listed in: *EAT AT JOE'S*, Chain, chain, chain....Chain…
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Review from Kiki M.
4/22/2009
You've been to one Olive Garden you've been to them all. Plain and simple. Some of you diners with your refined and sophisticated tastes may turn your nose up to chain restaurants but sometimes I want generic food and Olive Garden is a place to get it.
On a recent trip I was delighted with my portobello stuffed ravioli. Now, I won't go so far as to say this is the best pasta but it works for being part of a cooperate chain. The orange sauce that the ravioli swam in was great and my lemon cream cake was insanely tasty. Lemon, cream, sweet, good. How can you go wrong? Its cake, people!
You may shun me for my lack if discerning taste but damn it I like Olive Garden and I am not ashamed to admit it! -
Review from Alison V.
6/2/2009 3 Check-ins Here
So it's an Olive Garden. You know the drill. Standard bread sticks, the same salad at each and every one. Same choices, same menu, etc.
However, I've never had bad service at this Olive Garden. The waiters and waitresses are really attentive and though they go through their little "would you like to try this wine" routine, they really aren't super pushy about it.
I come here sometimes with picky out of town guests. I also come here because they may put some sort of addictive substance in their bread sticks. Really, I can see an Olive Garden commercial and I'm drooling until I get the chance to pop in here.
And though it's a chain, I've never had bad food here (for what it is). I usually get the chicken parmesan and take half home (with some bread sticks) and enjoy it again the next day. I wouldn't complain a bit about this place. -
Review from Delilah R.
Seattle, WA
12/21/2008
I have cravings for their stuffed mushrooms.
That is all. The rest is sub par. Capiche!? -
Review from Belmar S.
Honolulu, HI
4/7/2009
So my friends tell me that Olive Garden has the "BEST" pasta they EVER tasted. I flew up to Washington to visit friends and we ate there.
I told them that all my friends say it's the "BEST" pasta they've had but the Washington natives say "your friends are retarded" and i agree.
The atmosphere is like any other family restaurant and the food was mediocre. I haven't found the best pasta place YET but this place was like any other pasta joint. I had the "Tour of italy" and everything was just plain jane. It wasn't making my mouth go crazy and break dance so as it is, it get's my two stars. -
Review from Kat F.
2/19/2009
I am ashamed.
I recently had the portabello ravioli - pasta filled with basically ground up mushrooms in a sun-dried tomato cream sauce.
I can't stop thinking about it. I want to eat it for every meal. It was one of the most amazing things I have ever tasted.
What the hell? It's from the friggin' Olive Garden! No chef lovingly crafted that in the kitchen as a one-time genius special- they took it out of a package and nuked it! I could get it an any Olive Garden in the country and it would be just as delicious! Is there crack in their recipe? Is something wrong with me? Are my tastebuds failing? Is the hot sauce finally doing damages to my brain?
I can barely remember the rest of the experience - I think the waiter was friendly. He poured me a standard-sized glass of wine and when I gave him The Eyes he added more to the glass. Salad and breadsticks are good, like everyone says.
I was considering licking my plate clean of excess sauce but the old lady across the aisle was glaring at me. I'm pretty sure she knows what I did with the rest of that weekend. -
Review from Gavin N.
3/12/2008
Olive Garden is to Italian what PF Changs is to Chinese food. That being said, true die hard Italian snobs are gonna hate it, and other people who just want a clean comfortably environment with decent enough food are going to love it. This Olive Garden has pretty bad wait times during peak hours/days. But for the eaters like me..when the never ending pasta bowl special is going on..you'll wait.
Anyway the prices at Olive Garden are just okay $10-15 per pasta, and the pasta is okay, but definitely nothing is made from scratch. Meaning it's still delicious, but you know it's not fresh. For the same price (considering I live in Bellevue) i'd rather eat at Firenze, but if I lived closeby or was just craving pasta and was in South Center mall..I could see Olive Garden and a good option..and their soup, salad, breadstick lunch is always a good value.
This particular chain doesn't do anything to stand out as extremely good or bad, so 3 stars.
~G -
Review from Gary T.
Sanford, FL
2/28/2008
I really like Olive Garden and this is the location where the love affair first began. It's the only location where I've been able to get my pasta with crawfish. It's damn delish. I've checked at two other Olive Garden locations, both in California, but no luck. Must be a Washington only thing, or maybe they don't even do it there anymore, I don't know.
I visited this location several times and never had a bad meal. Whether it was just my wife and I or a large group, we were always seated promptly and had great service. On one occasion the kitchen was out of something my sister ordered but other than that, they never had a problem and our food was always delightful. -
Review from Ken L.
3.5 stars. I visit Olive Garden here maybe once a month when I crave for simple pasta dishes, fresh tossed green salad, and the pretty alright soups. The service seems to vary quite a bit though as some are very good at keeping our water glasses full while others act like they are bothered when you ask them for something like food. I like their unlimited soups for lunch and scampi style selections with angel hair (chicken or shrimp).
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Review from Julian H.
Seattle, WA
Updated - 6/11/2009
I know... the food is probably made in an industrial kitchen in some warehouse somewhere. I know... it's probably heated up in a microwave/convection oven/magic rehydrator machine. I know... I'm supposed to be snooty and sophisticated and pan the Olive Garden.
But there's more to dining than locally-sourced, freshly prepared, cooked-to-order, regionally-accurate food (sorry, Tony B.). And for everything but the food (which isn't bad), Olive Garden is a very good dining experience.
For the second time, we had decent food and very good service, at a very affordable price. It's family-friendly, but not overly loud. And hey, at least the salad is fresh.
Don't go in expecting authentic anything and you'll have a good time.1 Previous Review: Show all »
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3/2/2009
I was shocked and delighted. For a corporate chain restaurant I was very impressed.
Wait time was not… Read more »
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Review from Amy B.
4/20/2007
I agree wholeheartedly with Niko and Jean - the Olive Garden is Fine. For the life of me, I really don't understand why people wait for two hours for the privilege of all-you-can-eat iceberg lettuce. What's up with that.
What might bother me most about the OG is the lack of seating in the lobby. It is roughly as crowded at the bullet train during rush-hour. It is almost impossible to even get in the door to put your name on the list. Very frustrating!
I do appreciate that they give you one of those buzzer things so you can walk around a bit and not feel tethered.
Every entree comes with bottomless salad and bread-sticks. The salad is iceberg with a few tomatoes, olives, and onions thrown in for good measure along with a heap of Italian dressing. For the crowning glory, they will put as much parm on top as you want (although I've never really tested to see if they *really* will keep going... The bread-sticks are surprisingly bad considering that they are encased in butter. Usually butter makes everything better.
The entrees are fine and unoffensive, nothing too spicy or exciting that might scare someone off.
