Olive Garden’s never ending pasta returned for the second year after being on hiatus during the pandemic. For $13.99 diners can have unlimited pasta, soup/salad, and breadsticks. Patrons seeking a more filling dinner, for an additional $4.99, can have endless meat toppings on the pasta.
Guests have a fair number of combinations that they can make. There are four options of pasta- rigatoni, fettuccine, angel hair, and spaghetti. Along with five sauce options- alfredo, five cheese marinara, traditional marinara, meat sauce, and creamy mushroom. Finally, to top it all off, there are three meat options- crispy chicken fritta, Italian sausage, and meatballs.
Periscope staffers Myana Brown, Jillian Grimes, Lyric Koch, Hannah Stoner, and guests Sarah and Elizabeth Forrester tested out the different sauces and meats and decide if the never ending pasta deal is worth it or if it is impossible to get your money’s worth. All Olive Garden Pasta Dishes ring in at $16.99 or above, meaning this could be a good money saver.
When asking our server if it is something she would order for herself, she said, “Yes because the price is cheaper than a normal pasta bowl.” She added that her “(G)o to pasta, any day, is rigatoni, creamy mushroom [sauce], and chicken.” Our server also informed us that “about half of my tables” order the never ending pasta during a typical shift for her.
As the pasta keeps coming, the portions get smaller. The first bowl was a normal sized portion of pasta, whereas the second was the exact same size as a soup bowl from the restaurant. Olive Garden likely does this in order to reduce the possible food waste and makes it feel like the customer is eating more than they are. We are not sure if the portions continue to get smaller after the second bowl, because we were not offered a third round.
The group tried all of the offered pasta types and sauces. We only tried one meat, the chicken, and it was determined by Periscope editor Hannah Stoner that although the chicken was good, the meat topping is not worth it for the price unless more than two bowls are ordered. The Alfredo sauce was the favorite sauce of the group and rigatoni was the most ordered pasta shape.
After the first bowl, we felt full, but five out of the six people made it to their second bowl. This is definitely a fulfilling meal and if another customer were to give it a try, planning is a must. To maximize pasta bowls, we recommend not eating much soup/salad or bread sticks. Especially the bread, which will quickly fill you up and not allow you to get your money’s worth in pasta.
The deal runs through November 19. For those interested in checking out the deal for themselves, the nearest Olive Garden is located in the Silver Spring Commons along the Carlisle Pike in Mechanicsburg. Our server reassured us that she thinks the deal will return to being an annual promotion.
