Italian Garden — Restaurant in McKinney

We first ate at the Italian Garden on a rainy winter night almost 8 years ago, but we did not rediscover it until recently, which initiated this second visit. On our first visit we were visiting our kids and grands, unfamiliar with the area, and we really wanted to find an Italian restaurant. They were open, welcoming and the food was really good, but we lost the receipt in going back "home" at the time. Fast forward to this week... someone mentioned a local Italian restaurant on social media and the name sparked a memory, so we looked it up and it was the same place! We had lived within 7 miles for the past 5 years without knowing it! Today we were in at a bit of an awkward hour in the late afternoon, but the restaurant had many other patrons. We were greeted warmly, our tasty rolls, topped with parmesian, were brought promptly, and the service was attentive. We both decided to have side salads to start. They were decently sized, especially with all of the costs in food prices going up. The iceburg lettuce was crisp and fresh, the Caesar salad was well dressed, and the salad with Balsamic had the dressing brought on the side. The manicotti was baked and hot, as was the combo pasta plate my husband got. We also opted to add a side of meatballs and sausage. Each had two on a bed of their marinara which is good. It may not be my Italian aunt's, but it is tasty and thick, not runny, or tasteless, like so many chain restaurants serve. The sausages were each about 4-5 inches long and the meatballs would probably be about 1/2 measuring cup if flattened a bit. I preferred the sausage to the meatballs, and they were tender enough to cut with a fork. We opted to take most of the entrées home and get dessert. The cappuccino ice cream pie was stellar! The crust seemed to be chocolate cookie crumbs, and there was a chocolate sauce topping that was not drippy, but very chocolatey - the perfect foil for the coffee ice cream. The tiramisu is not made in house, but our server diligently checked for tree nuts due to an allergy, and since it was, "made on machinary that may contain..." we decided to opt for the strawberry cheesecake instead. I say, "we," but I was not sharing my ice cream pie, haha. Our ice tea glasses were never empty, we received the foil/paper circle take out containers promptly so we could have room for dessert. There were a steady stream of customers to dine-in, but also many people picking up takeout, and services picking up for their customers. There seem to be many "regulars" and although it is in the strip center unit near Sonic, the murals offer a homey touch. We saw babies to grandparents, and there are two dining rooms so they seem to be able to house a fair number of customers. The room you enter first had a sprinkle of older booths (we were told we could choose a booth, or table) and the rest are tables. The men's restroom was clean, which was the only one which was used. We were pleased to have rediscovered Italian Garden. We will definitely go back to try other dishes now that we are reaquainted with...

The experience was one of the worst I have ever experienced. When my girlfriend and I first walked through the door we had to walk up to the hostesses who were sitting in the back, and then after choosing where we were going to sit had 2 rolls of silver tossed on the table as the hostess walked away. Following our server who was on her first day training took very long to deliver our drinks which is ok since it was her first day but her trainer was no where in sight except for once throughout the meal, and when the drinks were brought out my girlfriends sweet tea was watered down and my sweet tea had no ice. While this was occurring the trainer came out of nowhere and cut off his trainer while she was talking to us to ask “are we all good” which was incredibly awkward for the entire table. Following the trainee had no idea about the menu other than things she liked to eat which led to me having to navigate the menu and pick something I did not like AT ALL due to lack of knowledge of what I was ordering. When our appetizer was brought out once again the same hostess threw down the calamari and walked away. When the bread came out no butter was with it. When the food came out it was terrible in my opinion and my girlfriends opinion. Then while eating we both had to wait ten minutes for our drinks to be refilled on two separate occasions. Not only was the service terrible which I attribute to the trainer failing to do his job right and the food being terrible(showed up at 8:50) there were countless disappointing things that occurred such as countless members of staff including my server on their phones, flipping chairs right next to people that were eating as well as flipping chairs on dirty tables, and the trainer was rude the one time we did see him. This was a overall terrible experience from the moment I walked in the door to the moment we left. I can’t blame our server as it was her first day serving but everyone else is completely and totally to blame and made it such a bad experience that I do not see myself going back in and I don’t think people should go in at night because as shown everything from the service to the food will be terrible. It was a waste of 45 dollars and the only money I don’t regret spending was the 10 tip for out server that was training because I felt bad that she got tossed into the fire with absolutely zero help on her first day and...

I ordered carryout of egg plant parmigiana and appetizer of fried mushrooms. CUE the disastrous experience. I opened the mushrooms and they were burnt to a crisp and the mushroom was rubbery. I called back and the young lady stated that it should not have been that way, and if I come back she would have a fresh order made and ready for me. I told her I'd return in about 30 minutes. I arrive back only to find the mushrooms were not remade and that I'd have to wait for them to cook fresh ones. I told the young lady to just refund them, as I don't want to wait anymore. Also, when I removed the mushrooms from the bag ,the sauce cup that they had put in the bottom of the bag was completely spilled in the bottom. So now I'm equally perturbed about this experience, especially since at this point there has been no apology or any type of remorse for serving sub par food. Then out from the back comes the manager/owner(Italian older guy) asking me what's the problem. And by this time I'd explained it 3 times, including calling back prior to returning. I asked him to confer with the young lady about the issue. I stated I just want a refund at this point, and do not want to wait because I was told it would be ready when I returned. I also stated that I was disappointed to see the sauce turned over in the bottom of the bag as well. Mind you, still no apology from anyone at this point. He then states you must of spilled the sauce because I packed the order. REALLY YOU INTENTIONALLY SOLD THOSE BURNT MUSHROOMS TO A CUSTOMER!!!!. I told him that I would not debate who spilled the sauce, I just want a refund. He persists in his bereding me about it was spilled by me. By this time I turned and walked out, and told him to keep the food and the money. Needless to say I'll never be a customer of this place, and will definitely tell all of my family and friends about this experience. And as a family that eats out at least 3 times a week, I do know that there are some restaurants that care about their customer's satisfaction, however I cannot say the same for Italian Garden. DO BETTER........PEOPLE HAVE CHOICES AS TO WHERE THEY SPEND THEIR MONEY. HORRIBLE FOR NO REASON..... DROP THE EGO AND SERVE YOUR CUSTOMER'S...