Olive Garden Italian Restaurant

Love Olive Garden. Good, service, music, table, choices... Everything was fantastic. Glad there is one near me. Reservations made in advance guaranteed us a table with no wait.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

I've been twice I'm the last month and the service has went downhill. The food is still great but the service absolutely sucks. I wanted to report to the manager but I wouldn't want anyone to lose their job when I know it's hard out here for ppl now. But people please do better. If you don't like your job try to find something else. Your tips are better if your nice to ppl.

Atmosphere: 2

Food: 5

Service: 1

Went for a nice lunch with my boyfriend. We were helped for the most part by a manager named Joe, and he was PHENOMENAL. He made the experience 10/10 and was very attentive. We were both very impressed with the service he provided and he was very kind.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

I love olive garden! Hib took me there for my birthday and it was still excellent service and food and atmosphere. Our waitress Kelly was adorable. I will say the hostess, heavy set, who worked on 12/30/25 around 1230 to 130 needed some training on etiquette. Playing with your hair at a food service place just does not cut it. She did not acknowledge us until I spoke first and was told a 10 minute wait. That was fine. She was frumpy and really did not knowledge of greeting people.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

I ordered the unlimited soup salad and breadsticks, got my one soup, and then the server came out and asked if we needed a box. I asked for another soup and she said they were out, so I asked to order the donuts and apparently they were out of those too. She didn’t give us a lid or a straw for the to go cup and no chocolate mints. The only saving grace tonight was Noah, who so graciously got us a lid and straw and mints! Sad my tip went to my server and not Noah.

It was great

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Salad and Breadsticks, Chicken Parmesan, Eggplant Parmigiana, Stuffed Mushrooms, Shrimp Alfredo Fettuccine Alfredo Tossed with Sautéed Shrimp

I went here with my girlfriends. It was a wonderful dinner together. My friend ordered steak cooked to rare, but her steak was overcooked. She asked for a different steak, they brought her another steak and side. This time her steak was cooked exactly to her liking. They made it right! She also got free dessert for her birthday, as a special treat. They treated her really well and were very polite about it.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

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My family and I had dinner last night at my daughter’s request after her Christmas concert. We were greeted by the host, who asked how many were in our party. I replied, “Three and a baby.” She asked if we needed a swing for the car seat, and we said yes, unaware that swings were not allowed at booths. When we requested a booth, she responded, “We can’t put swings at booths.” While the policy was understandable, her tone came across as abrupt and dismissive.

After returning the swing, she picked up the menus and placed them on the booth next to us rather abruptly, which added to the unwelcoming interaction. My husband and I exchanged confused looks, unsure if we had upset her in some way.

Fortunately, our server, Ainsley, was wonderful—friendly, attentive, and pleasant—which made up for the negative first impression. The food and service overall were great, and we had no complaints there.

As someone who works in the service industry, I believe the host plays a crucial role in setting the tone of the dining experience. Guests should feel welcomed, especially during the brief interaction it takes to be seated. While she may have been having a rough day, it’s important to treat guests with the same courtesy we expect in return.

We were able to speak with the manager on duty, Kingston, who was calm, understanding, and professional. He listened to our concerns, apologized, made us feel welcomed, and even offered a complimentary appetizer.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

I never write reviews for restaurants, but this one was just bad I ordered spaghetti and meat sauce and the artichoke dip the artichoke dip itself was pretty good, but the pita chips were way overcooked and had to send them back, and my spaghetti had three types of pasta in it and the sauce tasted like ketchup with garlic there is no acidity or even attempt to season the sauce I have storebrand spaghetti sauce in a can that had more flavor not to mention it was lukewarm at best, the service was very nice and that’s the only good thing. I really have to say about it

Atmosphere: 2

Food: 1

Service: 4

Ordered the chicken alfredo grilled with broccoli and soup

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Chicken Alfredo, Salad and Breadsticks

Drinks, appetizers, and entrees are almost always at its best, tonight was definitely review worthy in every way! Our server Fayth was awesome too!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Visited this restaurant last night for a Veterans Day dinner with the family and enjoyed ourselves. They did offer veterans a free meal from a selected choice along with the neverending salad, soup and bread sticks with beverages and dessert being extra. The vets had the spaghetti and meatballs and chicken parm and my non vet wife having the chicken Marsala, all being delicious. Very nice atmosphere, attentive and polite wait staff made for an enjoyable evening. Plentiful free parking. Will come back again

Soup was not hot. The service was exceptional!

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 2

Service: 5

1 Star – Olive Garden, Aberdeen, NC

We’ve been to this location twice this year.

During our first visit, I ordered the salmon. It wasn’t cooked all the way through, so I had them take it back — but the second plate came out the same way. I didn’t order anything else after that. The bathroom floor was wet, and the host who seated us wasn’t personable at all.

Fast forward to November 1, 2025 which is today - we came again for a family member’s birthday. I decided not to order salmon this time, but another family member did. When it came out, it looked nicely cooked at first. However, halfway through, she showed me the inside — a very noticeable difference between the thin, fully cooked edge and the large, undercooked reddish center. She showed the waiter, who offered to cook another one or let her choose something else. She declined and they removed it from the bill, but still — unacceptable for a dish that should be properly cooked the first time.

While we were sitting there, I also noticed the air vent above our table was covered in dust. It was the only vent on that side of tables at the restaurant, and none of the others looked like that — which was concerning. No other table on that side had a vent above it. The other tables on that side were opened so why would the staff seat us there? We were seated near artwork of a white bike, construction/manufacturing art, and blue and purple grapes.

To top it off, there was a knife lying on the
floor just outside the kitchen that several people seemed to overlook. And as we were leaving, a worker kicked a piece of ice across the floor — it slid right into the walkway as one of my family members was passing by. I looked at him without saying a word, looked at the ice on the floor for a significant moment and looked back at him. He hesitated, and quietly said, “Sorry.”

That about sums up this location — careless, unprofessional, and lacking attention to detail.

We’ve eaten at the Olive Garden in Cary many times and always had great experiences there. Unfortunately, the Aberdeen/Southern Pines location is the complete opposite. I definitely won’t be back.

We are experiencing coughing, sneezing and nasal discomfort now. 8:35PM. Two individuals at the table have asthma.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

Ordered the chicken Alfredo. The chicken was a little over cooked and I requested for extra sauce and as you can see the pasta was dry as day. I normally go often and order to go but I will be taking a break. VERY disappointed $30 wasted!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 1

Service: 5