I'm throwing it all in, quitting my job and I am going to wait tables at Olive Garden

[underpants]

Mom was in town last night so we went to the mecca of suburban Italiano ristorante'

More on the meal later but let me say this-the salad and the mints were pretty good.

The place was PACKED. Tuesday night. A restaurant tucked away on the old main drag of Richmond. The light on the 60 foot high sign wasn't even on.

There seemed to be some "regulars" at the bar too.

Everyone had kids. It looked like a daycare in there. I had read about and heard from assorted people about how a lot of people go out to eat every night (seems it is comparable in money to cooking at home now) but I have rarely seen a parking lot that full. Seriously we had to park way in the back. We had to wait for freaking 25 minutes for a table 25 minutes at an Olive Garden!! Yes sad to say I will go to my grave knowing that I waited for a table at Olive Garden.

The reason we went was really an inside joke between my wife and I. Back when we both lived in the heart of the "The Fan" in Richmond and really fine restaurants were all around my mother and her folks both mentioned "You know that's fine but I think there is an Olive Garden not too far away" and then some mention of the endless salad bowl and bread was made. This was years ago long before DU even existed. So last night we took my mom back.

I had the Beef *something or other* and Tortellini. The beef and the "portabella mushrooms" were hard to distinguish from one another in all measurable means. Similarly my mother’s Shrimp alfredo tasted pretty much the same as my beef dish did as well as the crab *whatever* that my wife had. As we usually do we tried a bit of each other’s meal and I had to find a nice way to say that I really didn’t care much for it with my mom sitting right there. MY dish was a creation of the Olive Garden institute in Tuscany and it tasted like it was shipped FROM there.

Josie got a D on behavior. Mom and my wife said it was a C but she was completely unacceptable in my terms.

Like I said the salad and the mint oh and the coffee was pretty good.

3 ½ people ate for $60. The waitress must have pulled down at least $300 last night alone.

[NC_Nurse]

1. We had to go in Florida with Granny last week...

she likes the "Chocolate Amore" drink. It's her big treat....sigh.

It was pretty full there too. I had the salad and soup thingy. It was okay.

Granny was happy so it was worth it. :-)

[Rabrrrrrr]

2. It is amazing how, even in an area with good restaurants, Olive Garden is full

The few times I've gone to dinner at one I've had to wait for a table (I sometimes eat at an Olive Garden because it's the closest thing to a restaurant near my favorite movie theater).

The food is never bad, but also never exceptional or "WOW" potential. Its just.... nice.

[Phillycat]

3. If you've ever spent a fortune on food that is exceptionally BAD

the "nice" food that you can count on and you know you won't spend a fortune on starts to look better and better.

I'm not talking about in your home town, where you should know where the good restaurants are. But if you're out of town...just sayin. :shrug:

[commander bunnypants]

4. mmm. powdered meal

you know everything comes in powdered form.

[underpants]

5. Does it really?

Do tell

[commander bunnypants]

7. as ateenager i was a short order cook

Everything comes powdered. Just add water.

After delverying for pizza slut. I swore never to eat that crap again

Like I said just add water and whisk real good

CB

[underpants]

9. WOW

:wow:

[matcom]

10. but it's TUSCAN powder!

:rofl:

[underpants]

13. Tuscan powder and my lower GI won't make nice

Control room to the Bridge

Bridge here go ahead control room

We have blockage

[Rhythm]

15. actually, very little OG stuff is more than minimally pre-processed

The biggest exceptions that i can think of are the chicken filets (pre-breaded and frozen), the beef used for your 'braised beef' entree (pre-marinated and frozen), and the obvious frozen raviolies and to-be-fried appetizers.

The kitchen staff worked themselves to death...
my still-bruised tailbone and stress-injuries are testament to that.

[Hugin]

6. Sounds like I'll be sticking to my, "Purina Poster Chow".

Thanks for the heads-up underpants.

[matcom]

8. no words.

:rofl:

[underpants]

11. Man did they push the wine

We had three people ask us, before we even got water, if we wanted some wine. They were pouring that stuff everywhere.

I guess if you get everyone drunk the filler food ain't so bad.

At LEAST 100 cars in the parking lot.

[matcom]

12. welcome to 'Murica

:eyes:

[Rhythm]

17. probably some sort of sales contest when it comes to wine...

there seems to always be something to that effect on the dry-erase board at the kitchen entrance.

[Auggie]

18. Because restaurants make more money selling you wine than food

The mark-up is much higher and there's no prep time.

[underpants]

19. Of course

booze always has a great profit to it.

[Auggie]

20. I never buy a bottle in a restaurant. I bring my own and pay corkage.

I can afford to drink better wine with dinner without getting ripped-off.

[Rhythm]

14. I worked for the OG for 6 months...

... as a cook, because only the 'pretty people' work the floor.

At the one where i worked, a wait of over an hour for a table isn't uncommon, and 1 1/2 hrs on a Saturday evening is almost a given.

Yeah, the wait staff make a fortune, even if they only handle a couple of tables a night.
They are compensated to the point where the kitchen staff HATE them with great hate. Not that the kitchen staff are hurting financially, mind you. It's just that the servers are menadering back and forth, and the kitchen staff is sweating it's collective ass off.

[underpants]

16. I can imagine

Like I said she had to have pulled down 3 bills and that was on a Tuesday night.

[commander bunnypants]

21. and here we are being civil servants

Where the frig did I go wrong.


CB

[PVnRT]

23. The pretty people do?

Not at my neighborhood Olive Garden...unless the kitchen is full of quasimodos or something.

[Rhythm]

25. wouldn't surprise me...

I found it very interesting that the direct-customer-contact positions at our location were all held by pretty know-nothings, and the kitchen was full of us more unsightly types... and on the rare occasion that someone attractive was hired for the kitchen, they were moved to the floor within a couple of weeks.

Nothing like being made to feel like a red-headed step-child to improve morale, huh?!

[kwassa]

22. I've been once, everything was drowned in olive oil

and I like olive oil, but this was really bad.

No one finished their oily roasted potatoes, out of a party of about 15 of us.

Obligatory family gathering.

[Midlodemocrat]

24. Josie? A "D"?

As. if.


:eyes:


Don't feel bad, it was my dad's favorite restaurant. Although the Alzheimer's might have had something to do with that.

[tigereye]

26. hmmm, we have family gatherings at the OG here all the time

since it's close to a lot of family members. We have waited more than an hour on many occasions. And we also have gatherings at a lot of different restaurants, small and lage, chains, and mom and pop places.

And I have to say that I have had much, much worse food. No, it's not a trattoria, not a great mom and pop place and it's not Italy. Either the one here is better than in other states, or I'm just more tolerant than a lot of people. ;)

And actually, it's good when servers rake in the cash. As a former waitress, I have to say that waitressing is very hard and I'm glad they get paid well.

[Jamastiene]

27. ...

:popcorn:

[Initech]

28. That's nothing. The OG by my house usually has a 45 - 60 minute wait.

And that's on a GOOD day. Personally, for chain Italian, I prefer the far superior Romano's up the street.