Olive Garden Italian Restaurant — Restaurant in Owensboro

Portions Shrinking, Prices Growing

We visited the Owensboro Olive Garden last Thursday, as we have many times over the past several years. We don't eat out often, but when we do we like to redeem our Discover points for gift cards at area restaurants, and Olive Garden has historically been one of our favorites. Two notes of interest from this visit.

First, the portion sizes are obviously smaller than they were just a couple years ago. I have noticed this in the past couple visits, but figured I would mention it now since I'm going to the effort of writing a review. This is frustrating, especially since the prices are rising. I ordered the Seafood Alfredo as I frequently do, and it's gotten to the point where it barely covers the bottom of the huge plate they put it in! I ate salad, a bread stick, and my entire plate of food, and still did not feel full. A few years ago I never left OG without taking home leftovers. And believe me--this has nothing to do with my appetite or stomach, and everything to do with the serving sizes. You can shrink portions or you can increase prices, but it's really bad business to do both simultaneously.

Second, we were frustrated by the lack of communication from our server. My wife likes the fried chicken that comes on the Chicken Parmigiana, but she prefers it over Fettuccine Alfredo rather than over spaghetti. So she ordered the Chicken Parmigiana but asked to substitute Fettuccine for the spaghetti (or linguine or whatever the noodles are) and substitute Alfredo sauce for the red/marinara sauce. No big deal, right? After all, the waitress said "no problem," took our order, and that was it. Well, come check time, we got an unpleasant surprise. See our receipt attached. Not only did we get hit with an up-charge on the Alfredo sauce, we also got hit with an up-charge on the pasta substitution! No warning, no communication, just BOOM--over five bucks extra because she preferred a different sauce and pasta. Had we know this in advance, she would have simply ordered chicken Fettuccine Alfredo, and maybe asked for the fried Parmigiana chicken. In that case we would have at least known to ask what the up-charge would be! So the point is, charging over five dollars to swap out sauces and noodles is bad enough; but the real issue here is that our server gave us no indication both preferences would result in add-ons to our bill!

In conclusion, we would still recommend this restaurant to our friends. It has good food, good employees, and is beautiful and relaxing. But with the trend toward smaller amounts of food coupled with nickle-and-diming customers to death, we certainly are not as excited ourselves to return. We can get a much bigger bang for our buck at Cheddar's, Wasabi 54, or any of a number of other savory restaurants. From now on, we are much more likely to spend our hard-earned dollars at one of...

Olive Garden's "All You Can Eat Soup, Salad & Breadsticks" and "Never-Ending Pasta Bowls" are the ultimate carb-loaded, belly-filling, Italian food marathon. It's like an endless loop of comfort — the soup is so warm and cozy that it could practically be a hug in a bowl, and the breadsticks? Well, they’re just as soft and buttery as your best friend’s support system.

Start with the soup. Whether you choose the rich, creamy Zuppa Toscana or the hearty Minestrone, it's like a warm embrace for your soul — and it's just the beginning. Then, there's the salad, which is basically a bowl of greens with a side of unlimited dressing and croutons, proving that even health-conscious eaters can get their indulgent fix at Olive Garden.

But the real showstopper here is the pasta. The Never-Ending Pasta Bowl is a symphony of noodles that will make you rethink all your prior pasta commitments. There's lasagna, fettucine, spaghetti — basically, every noodle you can dream of in a sauce as comforting as a mom's kitchen. And if you finish your first bowl too quickly (which, let's face it, you probably will), they’ll bring you another one faster than you can say "I should have paced myself."

By the time you leave, you’ll have had enough pasta to fuel a marathon (though not the kind you're likely running anytime soon). You’ll also leave with the comforting knowledge that you’ve just had an experience. Not a meal — a full-on carb celebration. And if you somehow find room for dessert, well, that’s just Olive Garden laughing in the face of your limits.

In short, it’s less “dining out” and more “a very pleasant food coma that’s both affordable and...

I know what to expect. What I didn’t know is that some of the waiters don’t have a clue. I started out by informing the waiter that I have a severe allergic reaction to meat and dairy. I ordered soup and salad and breadsticks. No butter on the bread. We had three other people with us. I asked for a separate salad for myself as all of their dressings have dairy. The first salad came out with the buttered breadsticks. Then came my salad with the second three basket of breadsticks. We had a different person bring out the first tray of food. My wife got her lasagna, but my minestrone soup was covered in cheese and given to another person. About this time I started on my second plate of salad and find Italian dressing. So I immediately set it aside. The waiter asked if everything was ok. And I mentioned that the salad had dressing. He looked confused. Brought me a plain salad and the food for the rest of the table. He put cheese on everyone’s plate and held the dripping grater over my plate asking how much cheese I wanted. !?! I told him to put the plate down.

Fortunately a manager came by at that time as it was obvious that I was not eating. If anyone mentions any allergy they are supposed to be notified. they kind of made it right but three breadsticks and one bowl of soup for the price is outrageous not a good birthday. I spent the next 12 hours in pain. I could have died if I didn’t notice the dressing. It was good but not to die for good

If I ask for a manager right off the bat I hope the wait staff doesn’t...