Olive Garden Italian Restaurant — Restaurant in Livonia

My family was told by the Olive Garden employee that the wait would be 1.5 hours. The restaurant was almost empty. We were added to a waitlist and to burn some time, my family and I drove over to a nearby shopping center across the street. Got a text within 37 minutes saying that our table was ready. We were not expecting the text so quick, and quickly purchased our items from the store that we were in and headed back to the restaurant. When we got to the restaurant we were told that it’s been over 10 minutes and our reservation was cancelled. The employee who spoke with us when we got back to the restaurant, who seemed like a manager, was very rude about it, and kept repeating that we arrived after the 10 minutes. They need to change their text system then because all the text said was the table was ready it never said we had ten minutes to get back. Also THEY initially told us that it would be a 1.5 hour wait, not a 37 minute wait. Otherwise we would’ve just stayed and wait at the restaurant. At this point it was either to add us back to the wait list or get a table, there was no need to keep repeating it as if she’s trying to scold us. It seems like she was the manager, not sure, but she had a very nasty attitude. The restaurant was almost empty and they were complaining that they’re so busy….. sure We were finally seated after the rude employee told another employee where to seat us. She kept rolling and cutting her eyes at us, with a stank face. We’re coming to this restaurant to spend our money, correct? The unprofessionalism was uncalled for. She needs to go back to the training class because that’s just not it. I only stayed because my family was visiting and wanted to eat at Olive Garden but as for me, y’all have lost a customer. The waitress then came over with water and had the biggest attitude. She didn’t even ask us first what we wanted to drink. Had to ask her to bring lemons and other drinks, when she should’ve asked us first what we wanted. She brought a very negative aura to our table with an attitude and lack of service. She was rude and short with us the entire time. I ordered a meal and asked for the soup as my side. when I was finished with my first soup she picked up the bowl and while I waited for a refilled bowl, well that never came. When I asked her if the soup is a refill because I would like another one, she walked away while rudely while saying “you have to ask me”. Why do I need to ask her? It’s unlimited soup and she should bring out a new bowl the second I’m finished with the previous one, or at least ask if I would like another bowl. She didn’t ask us anything besides “you ready to order?” She’s the waitress and was not fulfilling her job title. We were walking on eggshells to ask her for anything else that we needed. We also had to ask her about refilling our water and lemonades. She had a very very nasty attitude. She was very dismissive when we asked for anything and kept walking away while saying things. She didn’t even ask if we wanted to get the $5 take home meal which we did, but just opt out of since she didn’t ask and seems like she was rushing us to leave. I overheard her tell another younger employee (after they seated new customers in her section) to make sure that they ask her if she’s ready for another table of customers before ever bringing back people again….she then walked over to our table, turned the mini tablet on the table towards us and said “there’s your bill” while walking away. She never thanked us for coming in nor did she say goodbye. We overheard and saw how other waiters conversed and interacted with their table and we wished we had them and not her. The waiters/waitresses have to realize that their attitude matters and can make or break a customers experience. I will never return to this location again. She’s very lucky that my...

If I had to guess, it had been about three years since I had been to an Olive Garden location and after recently stopping by and eating at this one, I now know why.

With that being said, this particular location is conveniently located right off of the freeway, so it makes it incredibly easy to get to and from. If you're familiar with the area, then you already know how busy and congested it can get at various times, so really that's your only hurdle you'll face when trying to dine here.

I am almost certain that most, if not all Olive Garden locations are identical design wise and also serve the same fare. It would seem that location size may be the only variable, but even then all of the ones that I have been to, seemed to be very comparable in size. So pretty much, if you've been to one Olive Garden, you've basically been to them all.

To be completely upfront and honest, when I think of good, hearty, and delicious Italian food, Olive Garden is not typically a place that comes to mind. I actually wound up here this time because it was my son's birthday, and this is where he chose to eat. So we ate.

It was a Sunday, and despite the parking lot looking quite full, we were able to get a table right away because it was just the two of us. When you walk in you will see as I mentioned previously that this location in fact looks just like every other Olive Garden you've been to. It's also quite clean, and the staff you meet after walking in the door is polite, friendly, and efficient. Once we reached our table it took a few mins for our waiter to come by, because it was pretty busy and there was also a large party in one of the rooms near where we were sitting, but once we got things going with him, it didn't take long to get our drinks and whatnot.

Our waiter ended up being very accommodating and great when it came to my son's order (he's a bit too big for the kids menu, and a bit too small for the adult portions)—so he essentially just doubled the size of the kids order and priced it out accordingly. Something that he definitely did not have to do, and I was very appreciative of this. It did take us a while to eventually get our food but honestly it wasn't that big of a deal because our waiter was dealing with quite a few different customers at once.

To be completely honest, our experience was great until I received my food (my son's was fine). I am not sure if the food quality has just completely taken a turn for the worst at all Olive Garden locations or if this one location has just gotten particularly bad. To make an already long story shorter, basically it was as though my $18 pasta dish was of no higher quality than your basic run of the mill freezer dinner you might find at your grocery store. If we weren't here celebrating my son's birthday, I immediately would have said something, but based on the situation I sucked it up and ate some of it, and took the rest to go.

A disappointment would be considered an understatement here. I am not sure what was going on in the kitchen, but our waiter was great which also added to me not wanting to make a big deal about it. There is nothing worse than leaving a restaurant feeling like you didn't get anywhere near your moneys worth.

When all was said and done there were a few things we didn't get charged for which made me think the waiter himself may have even felt bad, but I am not really sure. It did lessen the blow though, and all is well that ends well, and things ended fine—they just weren't what I was expecting for $18. I myself just won't be back here to eat (unless it's this time next year and my son wants to eat here again). If that's the case, maybe I'll take my chances and order a couple things off...

Last weekend we came here after my son’s dance recital to celebrate. He really wanted to eat at Olive Garden although the last few trips here the food was not great and also overpriced. We came in about 4pm on Saturday May 31st. It was not crowded or busy. The hostess sat us at a table in front of the bar. I didn’t like it and thought it was a strange place to seat a family with two young kids. I had asked for a booth and was told none were available even though I saw several open: It was almost 15 minutes before our waitress approached us. She took our drink order and I asked for a sangria. She asked for my id which shocked me because at 44 I can’t even remember the last time I was carded. I couldn’t find mine the night before and told her so. She said okay and walked away. We waited another 20 minutes before she took our food order and still no drinks. She finally brought them and I asked how much longer for my sangria. She said she couldn’t serve me because I didn’t have my id! Are you serious? I understand it’s not her fault I didn’t have it on me but for heaven’s sake I look way over 21! I told her then you should have told me that from the start. She then said she had to talk to her manager first and she had “just talked to him” yeah right! What she should’ve said was I am sorry I have to check with my manager first before we can decide to serve you. But instead she just walked away and probably was hoping I wouldn’t say anything and just forgot about it. First of all it’s insulting at my age to be carded! I do not look anything close to 21! I am going to assume they got busted serving someone underage recently. My id ended up being in my car console however I still think it’s ridiculous to card anyone that looks over 35 especially if they are dining with their husband and kids! I am over these chain restaurants! The service is crappy everywhere and so is the food. They have dramatically increased prices since Covid. People aren’t falling for it anymore. Hey Bea next time you choose not to serve someone alcohol over 21 make sure you properly explain to them why instead of just letting them hang there! Part of good customer service is good communication! Get some...