Olive Garden Is Bringing Back 2 Popular Dishes We Haven't Seen In Years
Fall 2024 is shaping up to be quite an exciting time for Olive Garden fans. Just a month after the Italian dining chain revived its wildly popular Never-Ending Pasta Bowl deal, Olive Garden has announced plans to bring two beloved dishes out of retirement.
Rick Cardenas, CEO of Olive Garden's parent company Darden Restaurants, unveiled the exciting news during a Sept. 19. earnings call about their latest quarterly results. He said the Steak Gorgonzola Alfredo and Stuffed Chicken Marsala will return to Olive Garden menus later this year, but didn't reveal an exact launch date. So, interested customers will need to stay tuned for updates on the timing of the rerelease moving forward.
The discontinued Steak Gorgonzola Alfredo consisted of fettuccine alfredo with gorgonzola cheese, grilled steak, and a drizzle of tangy balsamic glaze. Meanwhile, the Stuffed Chicken Marsala featured chicken breast stuffed with cheese and sundried tomatoes then served in a Marsala wine sauce with mashed potatoes.
Both options were discontinued during the COVID-19 pandemic, and customers have never truly recovered from the loss.
"Olive Garden no longer exists to me as long as the Stuffed Chicken Marsala is off the menu… That is all," one fan lamented on Reddit earlier this year.
"It was by far the best dish they had," another customer said in a recent Reddit discussion about the Steak Gorgonzola Alfredo. "I don't go to Olive Garden often anymore, but the last time I went I was so disappointed with the menu."
During the earnings call, Cardenas said Olive Garden's team has been working on adding more dishes like the Stuffed Chicken Marsala and Steak Gorgonzala Alfredo "to give their guests another reason to visit in the back half of this fiscal year."
"Both have been recast with higher quality ingredients and easier execution for their restaurant teams. And both fill a gap on Olive Garden's menu for center of the plate protein-forward dishes."
The return of the two discontinued dishes wasn't the only exciting Olive Garden news to be announced this week. Cardenas also revealed during the investor call that Olive Garden will soon add a new garlic herb sauce option to its Never-Ending Pasta Bowl promotion. Currently, customers who opt for the all-you-can-eat deal can choose between Olive Garden's Creamy Mushroom (860 calories), Traditional Marinara (150 calories), Five Cheese Marinara (400 calories), Traditional Meat (300 calories), and Alfredo (870 calories) sauces.
Additionally, after three consecutive quarters of same-store sales declines and a drop in customer visits year-over-year, Olive Garden is looking to attract more guests with a new on-demand delivery partnership with Uber Eats. The chain will pilot the program at select locations in late 2024 and expects to roll it out nationally by May 2025 if the test is successful.
Nutrition information has been included when available.
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