[stands2reason]

Call the Waahhh-mbulance!!

Seriously though, I've always thought those commercials were stupid.

[j.havenfarm]

And the food is wretched.

[breakem]

whine

[stands2reason]

Could you fix my spelling mistake? I don't want to mess up any searches with that "Garrden".

[mhking]

[jjm2111]

I live in NJ and I'm an Italian-American and I don't know a signle wop who frequents the Olive Garden. My friends who aren't Italian love to go there, but the food is so bland and mediocre it isn't funny.

[nutmeg]

Seriously though, I've always thought those commercials were stupid.

I agree. Nothing I've had at Olive Garden remotely resembles the fine food I've enjoyed on past trips to Italy!

[SunStar]

I'd be mad too. Those commercials are insulting. Imagine any other restaurant chain claiming that they represent an entire ethnic group. It's ridiculous.

[jae471]

I'm Irish-German. Can I complain about Bennigans and Busch Gardens?

[nutmeg]

So... what you YOU think? :-)

[Fedupwithit]

Olive Garden and Red Lobster?

Why the heck would I go to either of these places? Next door to me is a lobster comapny who brings them in fresh every day, and if you want good Italian food, the North End in Boston takes all comers, hands down!

Man, NOW I'm hungry!! : )

[weikel]

I love Italians they never get behind the jerks who want to whine about the stereotypes they think their funny( as they always say nah Im not in the mob but my uncle on the other hand...).

[E. Pluribus Unum]

They are called "commercials." They are not meant to be true pictures of anything. They are produced and broadcast by advertisers for the sole purpose of getting consemers to buy their product. If the commercials fails, the advertiser stops making them. If the commercial succeeds, the advertiser makes more of them.

I guess Olive Garden's commercials must be succeeding in getting people to go to Olive Garden restaurants.

Maybe the Italians who are so offended by this should declare a fatwah or a jihad or something.

[stainlessbanner]

nonmacaroni sense, and cheesy décor

I think the author used an Olive Garden Menu to write his article.

[Grig]

I've only been there once, but I like the food. I would think italians would be more upset about commercials for East Side Mario's, THOSE are stupid (and annoying) commercials.

[lelio]

Our waitress, Nancy, couldn't have been more friendly.
That's the clincher: this place is as far from Italy as you can get.

[mdittmar]

Now if Olive Garden used this with their motto,that would be funny.

>
"When you're here, you're family."

[BunnySlippers]

If I remember correctly, the Olive Garden is under the corporate umbrella of General Mills ... not exactly "Italian". In fact, the company runs a number of "theme" restaurants like "Tahitian Luau"-type and Mexican. None of which have any claim to authentic food.

[southern rock]

Well, if these ethnic Italians don't like the "Americanization" of their culture, maybe they would be happy with a one-way ticket back to Italy.

Sheesh! Like many ethnic groups, a large number of Italians pay lip service to assimilation, but for some reason enjoy living in neighborhhods amongst large groups of their own kind, speaking their native language, and eating their "authentic" ethnic food. Get over it already!

[Billthedrill]

the "Tour of Italy," consisting of lasagna, chicken parmigiana and fettuccine alfredo--exactly not what you would have if you actually toured Italy.

Well, of course not. They have McDonald's in Italy!

Me, I'll opt for some of that genuine Eye-talian food...like pizza.

[kidd]

But how bad can it really be? I recently went to the Olive Garden in Toms River, N.J. The line to get in was out the door and around the corner

Yeah, nobody eats there...its too crowded.

The guy who wrote this is a snob. He spends 17 paragraphs describing what a menace the Olive Garden is. But in one paragraph he actually tried the food and didn't think it was half bad.