What to order · Updated July 2026
What to Order at Olive Garden: Every Item, Judged
Olive Garden is not an Italian restaurant; it's an unlimited-carbohydrate delivery system with an Italian accent. Judged on those terms, it's actually a strong value play — if you order like you understand the game. Prices are national averages.
The game: the free breadsticks and the soup-or-salad that comes with every entrée are the value engine. Entrées that cost extra on top of that engine need to earn it. Most don't.
Every item, judged
Soup, Salad & Breadsticks (unlimited)
Order itThe single best order at Olive Garden and one of the best values in casual dining, period. Unlimited Zuppa Toscana, unlimited salad, unlimited breadsticks. Everything the chain does well, bottomless, for the price of a fast-food combo.
Zuppa Toscana
Order itSausage, kale, potato, cream. The best thing the kitchen makes, and the whole unlimited-soup deal is built around it. Order any entrée that doesn't come with soup and you've made an error.
Breadsticks
Order itFree, unlimited, and engineered to be eaten warm by the basket. They're the reason people come. Asking for a fresh basket right before entrées arrive is standard practice, not greed.
Chicken Parmigiana
Order itThe most reliable entrée on the menu: two breaded cutlets, a pile of spaghetti, and portions that guarantee a lunch tomorrow. If you want an actual entrée instead of the soup game, this is the one.
Tour of Italy
DecentChicken parm, lasagna, and fettuccine alfredo on one plate. It's the greatest-hits album — nothing new, everything familiar, portion enormous. Good first-timer order. Veterans know the variety costs you on quality.
Fettuccine Alfredo
DecentThe famous one. It's a bowl of hot cream and it knows what it is — but $17 for the cheapest ingredients in the kitchen is how Olive Garden pays for your breadsticks. Add chicken and you're near $22.
Lasagna Classico
DecentSolid, dense, tastes like a good frozen lasagna executed professionally. You won't regret it; you also won't remember it. The chicken parm is the better play at the same price tier.
Shrimp Scampi
Skip itThe 'light' option that costs the most and satisfies the least. A modest portion of shrimp at steakhouse-adjacent pricing, in a restaurant whose entire soul is abundance. Order against the house's strengths and you lose.
Herb-Grilled Salmon
Skip itIt's fine salmon. It's also $23 at a breadstick emporium. If you're eating healthy at Olive Garden, get the unlimited salad and soup and save twelve dollars.
Black Tie Mousse Cake
Order itThe dessert menu's one legitimate star — four layers, properly rich, big enough to split four ways. If the table's getting dessert, this is the dessert.
Take-Home Entrée deal
Order itWhen offered: add a take-home pasta (usually alfredo or five-cheese ziti) to any entrée for about $6. It's the cheapest 'second meal' in casual dining. Always say yes.
Frequently asked
Is Olive Garden's unlimited soup, salad and breadsticks still available?
Yes — it's a lunch staple at most locations, typically $10–12, and the unlimited refills apply while you dine in. With every full-price entrée you also choose unlimited soup or salad, so factor that in before adding appetizers.
What is the best soup at Olive Garden?
Zuppa Toscana is the consensus pick — sausage, kale and potato in a creamy broth. Chicken & Gnocchi is a solid second. Pasta e Fagioli and Minestrone are the value-menu filler of the soup world.
How do I get the most food for my money at Olive Garden?
Order an entrée that comes with soup or salad, eat the free courses aggressively, box half the entrée, and take the ~$6 take-home entrée deal when it's running. One visit becomes three meals.