Olive Garden - MANAHAWKIN

Ah, today the service was extremely slow. I waited for 15 minutes for my chicken and salad. The server brought my water but then vanished again... and again. I tried to be patient, hoping everything would improve. On a positive note, you can substitute lasagna for eggplant or add extra chicken in the Tour of Italy for just $2.99. Definitely give it a try! The atmosphere at the restaurant is always fantastic.

The first thing that struck me was how clean the restaurant was. Unlike previous visits to various Olive Garden locations, this one was free of the familiar scent that used to linger. Given my past experiences, I was particularly attentive to the cleanliness, as that's something that can't be transferred or frozen from corporate. I was happy to see a spotless and well-maintained dining area. Now, I know that a franchise restaurant, with a menu dictated by a distant corporate headquarters, can never truly achieve five-star status. It would be great if these franchises allowed local chefs to create unique specialty items, but the menu in Manahawkin is the same as in Seattle. The ingredients are not sourced locally but shipped in frozen. That said, getting back to the experience—our service was warm, welcoming, and outstanding! From the moment we walked in, every staff member we interacted with was friendly and helpful. I appreciate that Olive Garden offers a complimentary bowl of soup, which was a welcome treat on a rainy, cold day. While the soup was a bit salty, it was also warm and comforting. We tried to limit our carb intake (yes, I know we were at an Italian chain), but we did manage to restrain ourselves with the warm breadsticks. To my surprise, we all enjoyed our entrees. They were visually appealing, served at the right temperature, and tasted great. One significant downside was the game machine at our table. I believe diners should focus on enjoying their meals and each other's company, rather than being distracted by a machine that takes up 5% of the table space—and on top of that, they charge you to play! We left feeling happy, but I noticed that the crowd waiting in the front was not as cheerful. Four staff members were gathered talking among themselves while neglecting those waiting for a table, despite there being empty ones in sight. It seemed the restaurant didn’t have enough wait staff to cover all the seating areas. Had we arrived half an hour later, my review could have easily dropped to two or even one star. Overall, the experience would have rated four stars until I considered the distractions of the game machine and the inattentiveness of the staff to those waiting.

The food at this restaurant is consistently delicious, whether for lunch or dinner. The service is just right, and the traditional ambiance adds to the cozy atmosphere, which is nice but not overly extravagant. If you're looking for a low-carb option, the Chicken Margherita is a fantastic choice—it's both satisfying and tasty!

Fast service. Tasty fresh meals and attentive servers here. We went here for lunch and it wasn't too crowded and our meals came out quickly. Ended up getting dessert to go. The portions were huge as always. We'll be back!

I was so happy to give this olive garden a better review. My daughter and Dad have always loved olive garden. So we finally got my dad out of Covid hybernation.... He had so much fun and we had a funny amazing waitress. We ordered the new shrimp appetizer it's lightly breaded shrimp, pepper and onion with spicy ranch and marinara dipping sauce. Survey says very good! Daughter and I had the endless soup, salad and bread sticks. Our favorite! My Daddio had the chicken Parm with zuppa Toscana. He really enjoyed it. I would definitely go next time before 3:00 for the lunch. The soup and salad was way so much food that I couldn't touch the appitizer.