"olive garden" news and stories

When it comes to picking a favorite casual-dining restaurant, customers look to experience, convenience and food quality. But what restaurants make the grade?

According to a survey done by Boulder, Colo.-based Market Force, customers put The Cheesecake Factory on top, Nation's Restaurant News reported.

The Cheesecake Factory earned 6 percent of the favorite-restaurant vote, but when weighted for number of locations per chain, the tally rose to 13 percent, making it the clear winner. Market Force surveyed 5,000 people between 18 and 72 years old, 76 percent of which were women, NRN reported.

Americans will do crazy things for free food; it's part of our national character. We'll dress up like a cow for a free chicken sandwich (at last month's "Cow Appreciation Day" at Chick-fil-A), stand for hours in a Soviet-style bread line just for a free cup of frozen yogurt in New York, or, at truck stops like the Big Texan outside of Amarillo, attempt to eat a 72 oz. steak in an hour.

We like a challenge -- or, at least, some of us do. The rest of us just like to watch as a guy who probably spent $30 to dress head-to-hoof as a cow relishes his free Chargrilled Chicken Club -- a sandwich that normally sells for $4.

Which is why it's somewhat disappointing to see free food given away so, well, freely.

Case in point: Whataburger celebrated its 60th anniversary on Tuesday with a free burger giveaway. And what silly, Flickr-worthy stunt did customers have to do in order to take advantage of the offer? Wear orange.

On Dec. 24, Owasso, Okla.-based National Steak and Poultry initiated a voluntary recall of 248,000 lbs. or 124 tons of steak that had been distributed to popular chain restaurants nationwide over fears of E. coli contamination.

Now, at least five restaurants -- Olive Garden, Applebee's Neighborhood Grill and Bar, Moe's Southwest Grill, Carino's Italian and 54th Street Grill & Bar -- are included on a list of establishments affected by the late December recall, Nation's Restaurant News reports.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed 21 people in 16 states have been infected with the E. coli bacteria.

Kendra Wilkinson, one of Hugh Hefner's girlfriends, is a huge fan of Olive Garden. Playboy tells us that in her hundreds of visits there she concluded that, "The waitresses are often as hot as the food." She decided to run a search to find the "Girls of Olive Garden." The winners will get to model for Playboy.

The Playboy website specifically states that this contest is not affiliated with Olive Garden. It doesn't strike me as a match with Olive Garden's image as a "comfortable, home-like Italian setting where everyone is welcomed as family and friends." Does your Grandma cook up and serve her spaghetti in the nude?

[via Gut Check]

I've been posting about pasta a lot here lately. Just in one of those moods. Now comes National Fettuccine Alfredo Day!

Here are several recipes from AllRecipes, and here's one from Epicurious. Or maybe you like the Olive Garden's Fettuccine Alfredo and want to make it at home (I have no idea if this tastes exactly like the restaurant version or not, but if you're familiar with it, try it out).

And yes, as you can see above, you can even buy a T-shirt to celebrate the day.