Olive Garden Menu & Price Increases in 2023

Olive Garden serves Italian-American cuisine serving pasta dishes and salads. Over the years, the chain has become synonymous with their “unlimited” promotions like unlimited salad and breadsticks for lunch and the “Never Ending Pasta Pass” that was trialed in 2013.

Here are the latest menu prices for Olive Garden. Like other restaurants, Olive Garden increased prices in 2023. Learn how these changes will impact you and the latest discounts / promotions to help soften the price hikes.

Full Olive Garden Menu & Prices

Olive Garden Menu Flyer.

Family Bundles Menu

Family bundles are ideal for feeding large groups.

Family-Size Pans Menu

For more selections, you can ask for their family-size pan menus with plenty of filling chicken and pasta dishes.

Appetizers

Entrees

You can’t go wrong in Olive Garden when you order any of their classic entrees.

Amazing Alfredos! Menu

Amazing Alfredos! are well-loved and popular Italian-inspired dishes served in Olive Garden. Make sure you try out these specialties.

Soups, Salad, and Breadsticks

Olive Garden’s soups, salads, breadsticks, and sauces make great side dishes for your entrees.

Lunch-Sized Favorites

For a hearty, delicious lunch, check out these delicious Olive Garden lunch favorites.

Desserts

Non-Alcoholic Beverages

ToGo Gallon Iced Teas and Raspberry Lemonade Menu

Gluten Sensitive

For people on a special gluten-free diet this menu is for you.

Kids Meals-For Children Under 12

Catering Pans

These Italian-inspired pan dishes are best shared with friends, colleagues, and family members.

Meal Combinations

Perfect Additions

Homemade Sauces

Beverages

No meal is complete without a cold beverage.

Did Olive Garden increase menu prices?

Due to a 9% increase in food and beverage costs, Darden Restaurants, the parent company of Olive Green, said that they planned to increase prices by 4% in 2022. After a few adjustments, Olive Garden increased menu prices another 5.5% to 6% in 2023. Inflation bites!

It’s important to note that Olive Garden isn’t the only restaurant that has increased its menu prices. Food prices, raw ingredients, transportation costs, oil prices, and workers’ salaries are all on the rise right now. This means every ingredient needed to make your lasagna costs more. On average, restaurants increased prices by 8.8% from March, 2022 – March, 2023 according to the National Restaurant Association.

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Here are a few external factors that impacted Olive Garden prices the past three years:

• The restaurant pays lower wages for their employees although they are planning to increase minimum wages by $12. However, the low wages are alleviated through gratuities, which the employees keep.
• During the pandemic, Olive Garden thrived with another income stream—takeout food. They did not use third-party delivery apps such as Uber Eats, Door Dash, or Post Mates, any of which would have increased service costs, which would then be passed on to customers. Instead, Olive Garden set up and provided its own takeout service. While this move was a success it did result in lower average ticket numbers since customers weren’t typically ordering drinks or alcohol.
• Gas prices increased by almost 50% from 2021 to 2022. More expensive fuel impacts food prices in a number of ways. First, when gas prices are high, it costs more to transport food from farms to grocery stores. This is because trucks and other forms of transportation use a lot of gas. The reality is most of our food is still delivered to restaurants on a large diesel guzzling truck.

There’s reason for hope we’ve seen the worst of menu prices increases though. Olive Garden says they’re taking action to simplify the menu, increase kitchen efficiency, and reduce food waste to help fight these rising input costs. The chain also utilizes low-cost and readily available ingredients such as pasta, parmesan cheese, and flour that helps to keep menu prices lower than they might be otherwise.

Olive Garden expects to end price increases by the end of this year. Olive Garden’s prices continue to be in line with other national Italian chains.

What are the best times to go to Olive Garden?

This answer depends on when you’re hungry of course. Here are some tips.

• Lunchtime is perfect if you’re on a budget because the lunch menu is cheaper than dinner.
• If you want a quieter atmosphere, dine in Olive Garden on weekdays as they tend to be less busy than on weekends.
• Avoid long wait times and crowds by going to Olive Garden early or late. Peak hours are 6 PM – 8 PM at most locations.

There’s probably an Olive Garden near you.

How many breadsticks per order at Olive Garden?

There are often 6 to 12 breadsticks in a basket depending on your order. With their unlimited offer, you can enjoy an unlimited number of breadsticks until you ask the waiter to stop. This offer is still available right now.

Can you bring your own bottle of wine to Olive Garden?

You can bring your own bottle of wine to Olive Garden. But do keep in mind the corkage fee between $7 – $10 per bottle. It probably goes without saying but the bottle will need to be unopened and you could be prepared to present a valid ID proving you are 21 years of age or older.

Does Olive Garden still do free wine samples?

You can get free wine samples at Olive Garden. All you need to do is ask your server. You can sample up to 3 different wines per visit. While each sample pour will vary in size, the standard pour is 3 ounces. So if you aren’t sure what to order, try a few different options.

Olive Garden used to have a “Taste of Tuscany” promo wherein they offer complimentary wine samples as well. This promo was usually held in the fall. In recent years, Olive Garden hasn’t offered this particular promotion.

Related Reading: Raising Cane’s Menu Prices & Cheapest Menu Hacks 

Ways to Save at Olive Garden 

Want to save money at Olive Garden? I highly suggest signing up for their eClub right here. You’ll get a coupon for a free appetizer immediately upon signing up. But the best incentive is yet to come. If you remain subscribed and open those emails you could find coupons for 10% – 15% off your ticket. There’s a new coupon sent out each month so this is one email list you’ll want to white list for future deals.

Since Olive Garden is owned by the parent company Darden Restaurants, you can also sign up for coupons from chains like Yard House, LongHorn Steakhouse, and Bahama Breeze to name a few.

If that wasn’t reason enough to join the eClub, you’ll also get a free dessert on your birthday if you dine there. This offer is valid for 21 days.

Here are a few more money saving tips for Olive Garden.

• Take advantage of lunch, early dinner, and other specials that are frequently offered.
• Olive Garden often offers promotions, coupons, and gift cards so you can save money when you enjoy a meal there.
• Ask for free wine samples if you are 21 years of age or older.
• You get unlimited breadsticks with all orders. Feel free to ask for another basket if that’s what you want to do.
• Water is always a free beverage at Olive Garden. You can get unlimited refills and a lemon wedge with it if you want to make things a little fancier.
• You can order off the 12 and under kids menu if you’re ordering takeout. Don’t worry, they won’t ask for ID.

Another overlooked way to save money at Olive Garden is to get a job there. Not only will you make money each time you work, but you’ll get 50% off the regular menu prices following each shift. This sounds like one of the most delicious jobs on the planet.

Olive Garden used to have a rewards program that allows diners to earn points on purchases from Olive Garden. Those points can be used to redeem menu items, discounts, and other freebies. However, that program has been discontinued.

Do you get free soup refills at Olive Garden?

Soup refills don’t cost extra for dine-in customers who order the “Soup, Salad, and Breadsticks” deal. Some entrees may come with a soup as a side dish, can be refilled for a small charge. Note that the policy of free soup refills may vary by location.

Is lunch cheaper than dinner at Olive Garden?

Yes, lunch is typically cheaper at Olive Garden than dinner. This is because Olive Garden offers a number of lunch specials that are not available at dinner.

For example, you can get a pasta dish with soup or salad for $9.99 at lunch, but the same dish would cost you $13.99 at dinner. Of course, the portion sizes are also larger during dinner so it’s not an exact comparison.

The Parmigiana looks fantastic.

One of the most popular lunch options is the Never Ending Soup, Salad & Breadsticks. You can choose from four homemade soups, a garden fresh salad, and unlimited breadsticks for just $9.99 with this option.

Can you order half sizes at Olive Garden?

Contrary to what you may have heard, you can’t order half sizes at Olive Garden. However, you can order kiddie meals for a smaller portion. The lunch menu is also an option if you’re looking for smaller portions.

Who is Olive Garden’s biggest competitor?

Similar concepts include Carrabba’s Italian Grill, Buca di Beppo, Maggiano’s Little Italy, and other casual dining Italian restaurant chains.

Olive Garden has a number of strengths that help it compete with other casual Italian restaurants. These strengths include a strong brand name, loyal customer base, regularly updated menu, and more than 800 locations.

Olive Garden is known for its unlimited-food promos. For example, their original slogan “Good Times, Great Salad, Olive Garden” was used to advertise their unlimited salad. They later changed their slogan to “When you’re here, you’re family.”