Italian Garden — Restaurant in Lindale

Myself and 2 children decided to have dinner here. Place was fairly busy and we had to wait for a table to be cleaned off before we could be seated. Waitress brings bread out and we were delighted. There was no butter or oil so we scarfed it down dry. We all grouched there was no butter. We started looking around and everyone else had butter. The next round the lady included some butter. I didn't complain, trying to stay positive. We ordered some mozzarella sticks. There were 6 to the order for over 10 bucks. Not a good value. Tasted alot like the cheesesticks you can get at the dollar store for 1 dollar a box of 6. Son ordered the 3 pasta sampler. He was unimpressed but ate it all. Daughter ordered chicken Primavera. Only ate half of it and complained the chicken "wasn't real". We examined it and it was more like albacore tuna, but I'm faily sure it was indeed chicken. I ordered a pizza for everyone to share with 4 meats. The crust was the only thing we liked about it. The toppings are all kibble like you can get at any fast food pizza place. Certainly not restaurant worthy. I ordered a meatball sandwich. It was not anything to write home about, taste was very bland. But edible. The bread was the best part of the sandwich. The roll was perfect. Would be good dipped in some sort of soup I'm sure. We all got a canoli. Probably the best thing we had. Chocolate syrup was Hersheys like you can get at the grocery. All in all it cost us 100.00 bucks for the meal. Didn't feel it was a good value. No idea how this place has a 4.7 rating. I saw people drinking wine. Maybe that is the appeal. Atmosphere is...

Wonderful! Please give it a try. I am a big fan of veal and more often than not when I order it at restaurants, it is below par. IG is the best I have ever had and i have ordered it there at least 3 times. The service is great. The pizza also can't be beat and we love that it is BYOB. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is due to the atmosphere. The building is beautiful and very clean however, it is loud and bright. To the owner, if you could work on (if only on weekend evening nights) making it more of a "date night" atmosphere it would be perfect. Dim the lights, turn on some music and actually light the candles that I see sitting around everywhere that are rarely ever lit. It's a big place, so maybe just one half of the restaurant could be dedicated to a quieter more adult like, romantic, atmosphere. If that were the case, we could all stay in Lindale when we want to enjoy a nice, relaxed, meal. The sister or brother restaurant on Lake Hawkins has a much more romantic feel, so maybe try elevate the atmosphere in Lindale a bit. I actually suggested this directly to the owner once when I was in there but it was so loud, she...

We moved to Lindale from Rockwall six months ago. We love the country, but the culinary offerings are a bit limited, except that they have a gem known as The Italian Garden. The first time we visited, they asked us if we had dined with the before. Then they told us that everything, except the soup, is cooked the minute you order it, so you can order it just the way you like it. I did and they delivered! Oh my, what wonderful food!! We eat there at least once every week, sometimes more....if i can get my husband to go out. And the service is great too. The waitresses are so nice and very good at their jobs. Out food is perfect every time and people are so very pleasant.

I gave the atmosphere only 4 stars. It is always very clean and welcoming there, but a touch cold (temp wise) for my liking.

Oh,,,, and it is called Italian Garden because of their herb garden behind the restaurant from which they pull fresh herbs to make those delish dishes. YUM! Makes me hungry just thinking about it, but I will have to wait until tomorrow as they are...