Olive Garden Italian Restaurant — Restaurant in Tucson

I have waited a day to write this review so that I could collect my thoughts and make sure that I wasn't overreacting about my experience. I realize that a negative review could potentially impact someones decision and I do not take this lightly. A part of me does not want to do this but I feel that my money was wasted and my family was disrespected so completely that I have no choice. My family and I have NEVER had a poor experience at Olive Garden before. It has consistently been a great experience. Yesterday we visited this Olive Garden at 3:45, an late lunch/early dinner. We did not have to wait to be seated, as they were not remotely busy. Our waitress was friendly but seemed overburdened. She took our orders right away and brought our drinks within a reasonable amount of time. This was the last thing that happened well during our visit. My wife ordered a glass of wine, which she did not receive until we asked 3 times for it. Our salad came 20 minutes later, with no dressing. We didn't receive any breadsticks for a further 10 minutes. The excuse that was given was that they were "slammed" and were not expecting to be so busy on a Saturday (Really?? Come one now). While waiting, my wife decided that she would like to have another drink so we ordered it, and of course did not receive this drink until we reminded our waitress 4 times to get it. She was very polite but was either completely forgetful, or inept. An hour passed before we received our food. This claim that it was "busy" was not supported by the empty tables in our section or the customers that were seated after us and left before us being served by different waitresses. Our food...here is the part that really has upset me. The food that was placed on our table was disgusting! As I said before, we eat here often and have never had a poor experience. This food was left under a heat lamp far too long. It was old, dry, and completely unacceptable. I had three bites of mine and sent it back. Our daughter had two bites of hers and sent it back. Our son, being the sweet boy that he is, ate a third of his meal and didn't say anything because he was afraid that I would be upset if he didn't like his meal, revealed to me on the ride home that he didn't think his food tasted right and complained of a sore belly for the remainder of the night. The manager came to our table after I sent back my plate and made a light joke to break the ice (inappropriate) and then tried to convince me to let them make it again. No where in there was an apology for submitting such low par food. I waited over an hour to get this garbage, what makes me think that sending it back was going to yield anything but a similar response. The meal was taken off of my check and we waited for our waitress to return so that we could pay. Once they finally removed the meal from the check, which took a further 10 minutes, we paid and left. An elderly couple that was sitting next to us had a similar experience and I am frankly surprised that they waited to pay. We talked with them for 20 minutes while they waited for the waitress to bring back their card and they relayed to us that they had the same experience (and the same waitress). I am an understanding and patient man, despite what you have read here. I am so disappointed in Olive Garden. That food should never have come to our table. Someone should have seen that it was sitting under lamps for as long as it was, or should have seen the state of it before it was put on a tray and stopped it. The manager should have come to us and explained that the food was not up to standard and that it was being remade. I would have understood that and appreciated the attention to product. I work too hard to spend my money somewhere it is not respected and that's how I feel my family and I were treated. We will NOT be returning to Olive Garden...

The American chain restaurant industry has a long track record of providing at least some form of consistency but normally, never anything that really stands out much... So, with that being said, whenever I find a location that actually DOES, I take note. Just as with all Olive Garden locations, this one adheres to the usual building layout which has your typical Italian-inspired design hints and low, ambient lighting. However, this location has taken obvious care to ensure that everything remains spotless, warm, and comfortable from the very moment you walk through the doors. My partner and I arrived for dinner and even though it was fairly busy, we were seated right away. As I said before, it's hard to find a place like this that stands out and where this location has gone far above and beyond is their impeccable service and attention to detail. Absolutely everyone we had the pleasure of interacting with was friendly, helpful, attentive, and made us feel as though we were the only customers there, even though they were busy. Our server, Kelsey was at our table almost instantly and catered to our every need and answered any questions we had. She ensured that our bread and drinks were never empty, our food arrived hot and fresh, and above all else, she always had a kind smile and an energy that made our experience so much more relaxing and enjoyable. The food (which arrived faster than we could've ever imagined) was pleasantly far above the level of quality we were expecting. I prefer to go with old fashioned Italian classics, so I got the spaghetti and meat sauce with Italian sausage and it was pretty much perfect. Warm, simple, straightforward, and satisfying. Just as any plate of spaghetti should be. I have reviewed Italian restaurants (I won't say names) here in Tucson who charged me three times as much money for less than half the quality of this food and service. We also ordered the Italian Margarita which Kelsey recommended and we were glad that we took her advice. It was a fun twist on a bar mainstay and it was very refreshing. Even as we were paying before we left, she was there making sure that everything was to our liking and checking to see if we needed anything else. It's times such as this that make me glad I looked beyond the stereotype associated with certain restaurants and simply take a chance on them. This was a dining experience that I will most definitely be back to enjoy again and I absolutely recommend...

Our recent visit to this Olive Garden location was extremely disappointing from start to finish. We were seated in the far left-hand corner of the restaurant and felt completely forgotten by the staff. Service was a significant issue. I received only one water refill during our entire meal, despite a long wait. We were promised a second basket of breadsticks, but they never arrived. Instead of bringing the promised food, the server brought us the check and takeout containers, making it clear we were being rushed out and felt like a hindrance. The food quality was inconsistent and poor. My fettuccine alfredo was noticeably small, resembling a child's or lunch portion rather than a standard dinner size, especially in comparison to the large plate my father received. My husband’s eggplant parmesan was burned black on top but mushy and undercooked on the inside, making it inedible. The most shocking part of the meal was the coffee. My stepmother’s coffee was served with what appeared to be curdled milk—there were visible, chunky particles floating on top. When she politely requested water instead, the staff repeatedly tried to push more coffee on her. After she declined multiple times and took only two sips of the curdled coffee, they finally agreed to bring her water. To add insult to injury, we were still charged for that undrinkable coffee. The combination of inattentive service, poor food quality, and a complete lack of concern for a customer's health and satisfaction makes this a restaurant I would strongly advise against. I would not recommend this location and will not...