Four stars is unusual for me. My husband claims that I am a better cook than any ol' restaurant. He can also be a penny pincher. That combo ensures dining on the cheap AT HOME is commonplace around here. So when we go out, it's often a five star experience. We read up before we head out for a meal. The reviews here are helpful. I appreciate the photos and posting the menus by other reviewers. So THANKS to them. It's a NICE, BIG, dining room. Well lit, which is not always the norm. Our server appeared to be a "lifer". Super knowledgeable but not as enthusiastic about her job as she was 90 years ago. #JK. She very carefully took our lunch orders as each person in our party of four had dietary restrictions. (We're no spring chickens either!) Our server was patient - exceedingly so - and my concern about the place was with the food itself. Particularly with the texture(s). The breadsticks were tough to chew and appeared to have sat under a warming light for two long. The house salad was delicious snd generous. The pasta? WAH! Mushy. I probably shouldn't complain about the NON Al dente pasta because I presume they could it to appease the masses. Overall, it was a 4.5 experience. read more

My food is so fresh and good and my server is quick. I like sitting at the bar to watch sports. I'm watching the Olympics. I like the Italian music and happy people around me. Thank you. read more

Olive Garden Italian Restaurant - Olive Garden soup, salad, bread sticks! - Italian Near Me - Independence, Missouri

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One of my fav Italian restaurants! I luv the food especially the Alfredo chicken an steaks. It's a bit steep but service is always welcoming I mean well becuz when your here, your like family... read more

This is not a review about the Olive Garden concept. This is a specific review for this location. The building is tired and needs renovation. When we went inside the hostess wanted to seat us at a table next to the bus boy with his loaded smelly bus tray and the quick broom behind us. She seemed confused when I tracked her down to request a different table. We arrived around 2pm, and many tables were not cleaned from the "lunch rush," however I doubt it was much of a rush and we are right back to poor service, poor hiring, lazy policies. Olive Garden has good locations, this is not one of them. Pass it by. PS - it is well more than four miles off the highway, so don't believe the signs. read more

I had a lunch date with my love on Sunday. I hadn't been to The Olive Garden in quite some time. The service from Veronica was absolutely excellent. I'm not sure if I'd ever been to this specific location. The food was delicious and so were the drinks. I had chicken fettuccine alfredo with mushrooms. I was so hungry that I forgot to take pictures. But I have included a picture of the leftovers that my girlfriend had. I had an amazing experience and I will definitely be going back!!! read more

Olive Garden Italian Restaurant - Steak gorganzola - Italian Near Me - Independence, Missouri

Where do I even begin? I can't thank these people enough for catering my wedding. They showed up when they were supposed to, and they came overly prepared. Enough though I told them I wouldn't need to-go containers, I ended up having SO MUCH LEFT OVER that if they hadn't brought containers, we would've been in a world of hurt. We had quite a few people who didn't show up, and we didn't know in time to change our catering request. This place was even amazing enough to take catering changes THE DAY OF!!!! They also had the cutest and sweetest wedding gift for us. I literally am in tears just writing this review. We will be celebrating with Olive Garden every anniversary. Thank you for making our dreams come true. read more

Trinity was GREAT very helpful good attitude polite respectful young lady!!!! Now the food the WORST part Smh, they came outside three different times to ask my name FINALLY they come with one bag should have known something was off it was missing multiple items & this meal was TERRIBLE 1/10 this is thee worst pasta dish we've ever tasted & our worst experience with Olive Garden!!!! There was no silverware & missing a whole entree chicken parmigiana & the side of fettuccine Alfredo pasta & sauce! The shrimp & chicken carbonara was missing the shrimp, we asked for well done & they burnt the chicken, the fettuccine noodles were way under cooked very hard, there was literally NO SAUCE IN IT AT ALL. We asked for a extra boat of Alfredo sauce which was $7 extra it was filled half way & this was supposed to be extra sauce to pour on top so it's not dry smh you'll need 3/4 of these because it's very dry the red peppers were undercooked as well very hard they gave us salad when we asked for chicken gnocchi soup! The bread seemed like it had been sitting out all day it was stiff & cool. The strawberry sauce you pour over the cheesecake is very watery hence the 1/10 only the cheesecake was good just wish they had better thicker sauce! This trifling over expensive meal will be returned today for a refund it's so trifling it can't even be ate this is literally GARBAGE!!! Now I have to drive 25 minutes back up there this is a waste of time, energy, & gas! I would never let anything close to this leave my restaurant I wouldn't serve this to a dog!!! These types of bad expensive experiences of dining out make you not even want to no longer eat out!!! read more

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carry out: order of lasagna, extra meatballs. i surely wanted the food as it is pictured on the menu... meat sauce and ricotta and other cheeses oozing out of the pasta layers, implying the layers are thick, meaty and cheesy. nope. no sauce on the side of meatballs (look at the menu pic!) and found a few gray pieces of ground meat with barely any sauce. is there a separate pan of lasagna for to go orders? i will not be back, spent $30 bucks and a stouffers frozen meal would have been much better. how disappointing. read more

Olive Garden Italian Restaurant - ...should have looked - Italian Near Me - Independence, Missouri

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This is a Curbside pick up review only! It was super easy to do online without an account. I ordered and set my pick up time to be later they day. Once it got close to the scheduled time, I received a text message letting me know that my order was being prepared. I'm the same text I was able to check in once I arrived. It took less than 2 mins for me to receive my order. Their ordering process is very efficient! read more

Olive Garden Italian Restaurant - Chicken & Gnocchi - Italian Near Me - Independence, Missouri

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I ord delivery tonight. I got the spaghetti with the spicy sauce. I have it 1-2's a werk but tonight it was horrible and the spaghetti had Alfredo noodles in it. It had no taste, did you change cooks or what. I will have take this into consideration for future orders if any. read more

I would do zero stars but I can't!!! We've eaten here many times but it just seems like service has gone downhill at this location. We never got acknowledged and sat there for at least 10 minutes. Plus we got sat at a table that needed wiped down. Just so sad Because I love their food!! read more

If you want to give up an hour and spend $40 to waste your time. This is the place for you. I placed my order inside prepared to wait for my food because it's decent and better than most fast food takeout. I specifically wanted the crispy chicken put in a separate container. Did they do that for both of my meals. Nope. It was all wrong. I think the only thing that was right was the breadsticks. I ended up taking it back inside and getting my money back. I used to be a regular well not anymore. I don't waste time or money yet I did both today. read more

Stopped by for lunch again and got seated right away. I ordered the lunch chicken Parmesan with spaghetti. We also had the fried shrimp appetizer as well. Both were good and cooked right and came out hot! Of course, what would a visit to Olive Garden be without the salad and breadsticks?! Always good and tasty. Damon took good care of our table. Good experience this time at the OG.... read more

Olive Garden Italian Restaurant - Salad and Breadsticks - Italian Near Me - Independence, Missouri

Short staffed, host was so nice. Waiter was impatient and rude. Breadsticks hard and dry. Chicken gnocchi soup- isn't there supposed to be actual gnocchi in it or?? The toasted ravioli was way over cooked, Tour of Italy- lasagna was disgusting, chicken parm was the only thing relatively decent to eat. Fettuccine was bland. Horrible experience. Not like it used to be. Won't be returning. Pure disappointment. read more

My husband and I ate here tonight for our date night. We were served by Sydney and she was phenomenal! Super sweet and her service all night was amazing. Poor girl had been a little busy with orders but she had a great attitude, served us very kindly. Food was also delicious read more

Tiny portions overcooked and tasteless. This experience made me lose my taste for Olive Garden and this food was not cheap!!

Just had soup salad breadstick for lunch at 2 pm. Unfortunately I'm not a vinaigrette fan so that kind of killed it for me no matter how much grated cheese they put on it. Soup was good. Warmer breadsticks would have been nice. All in all okay lunch at drive through price read more

I remember when the fettuccine Alfredo would cost around $12ish and be full of fettuccine. Now they give less fettuccine but higher the price of $16ish. Inflation really hit Olive Garden. As I was saying that in my head, and after taking 3 bites I found hair in my food. At that point I didn't care to complain to the waiter I just wanted to go home disappointed. It's like a hit or miss at this Olive Garden location. One time the Alfredo was soupy instead of a saucy lol. Meh, just go eat at home or at a local Italian restaurant. read more

Olive Garden Italian Restaurant - Fettuccine Alfredo - Italian Near Me - Independence, Missouri

Sauce tasted like it came from a can. I make better sauce then Olive Garden, What happened to their food? Maybe they need a new chef even the salad was not as good as it used to be Love the dressing tho. read more

A wait for a table on Tuesday night, waitress very friendly and helpful. Food normal for Olive Garden. Only complaint was no dressing on salad, quickly taken care of. Couldn't ask for better. read more

45 main menu choices, 39 are food. No dessert menu. Waitress calls everyone honey then disappears for 15 minutes. That must be the 15 minutes we had to wait when entering, which wasn't exactly 15 minutes, like the doorman said. It was only 9 minutes. Horrors of horrors, I ordered bruschetta. I like bruschetta. When I see it I order it. My mom got soup and salad. I ordered extra bread sticks for my son. Out comes the soup and salad, which, infact, my mom had to wait over 9 minutes for. (Really, at this point, we considered going to Applebees. ) The waitress then tells me, "I'm sorry, your bruschetta will be right out." Which I expected. I watched, as my mom finished her salad, then almost finish her soup. I'm not a salad or soup person, and don't eat any. I watched as the people around me, in the other booth got and finished their food. I watched while the people in the booth behind me got their food. Finally, I spoke up. "Where's my bruschetta?" "It'll be right out." After that, magically, it appeared. It was good, if just a bit basic. It tasted fresh, and the bread was pretty good. The tomatoes were obviously fresh, with fresh basil and olive oil. I like it, and ate about 1/2 of it, but my mom was done! I enjoyed the freshness, especially coming from Olive Garden. So, we asked for the check, and a box. We waited, and finally were given a box, and the waitress remembered the bread sticks, but didn't charge me extra. That was a nice gesture. I was going to try some dessert, but decided against it. I work from home, and needed to get back to my job. After all that waiting, I didn't want to wait any longer. Olive Garden is immensely popular, and always busy. Granted, it is the only restaurant in this 5 mile vicinity, except Applebees, that is decent, and that is why it is busy. It's not the greatest, nor is it clean. The service is slow, and gets slower each visit. The service kind of sucks. I can't say I'll not be back, cause I probably will. But I will wait a while, between visits. Just like I had to wait and wait for my food today. read more

Olive Garden Italian Restaurant - Italian Near Me - Independence, Missouri

The food is REALLY good best Olive Garden food I have had and I have been to a lot of Olive Gardens this one was by far my favorite. Our waiter was actually one of the best I will probably ever have. Inside the restaurant was very kind, sweet, and relaxing. read more

I think my problem was handled very poorly. I was nice about the situation and just wanted a solution. Sounds silly to complain, but if the situation was handled a bit better I would not be making this review. Will not be coming back. read more

Olive Garden Italian Restaurant - Italian Near Me - Independence, Missouri

After being seated we quickly realized that the table next to us was playing two different videos on devices for their little children to watch. We tried to discreetly ask an employee if they could find our host to move us tables, as we were feeling some sensory overload in this section. That staff member found our waitress who discussed with a host who eventually got a manager. These conversations were not quite/discrete. I don't know where we went wrong to anger the manager because he walked us past a quiet section and instead offered us a table next to another family playing videos for their children. We asked if there were any other tables they could move us where we wouldn't have to listen to videos being played and could just enjoy our meal. We were told "this is a family restaurant". I clarified we specifically wanted to be away from videos being played, we of course understand it's a family restaurant and weren't asking to be in some non existent adult only section, but they just repeated "this is a family restaurant." I apologized and said I don't think we'll be able to stay here then. On the way out we passed two more sections without videos playing, but people were seated so I know they weren't closed sections, and there was an entire other half of the restaurant we didn't pass through. Those quite sections we passed through made it easy to hear the staff talking about us as we left. Completely unacceptable service, and disrespectful staff. read more

I haven't had Olive Garden for a long time, so when I got a chance to eat here in Independence, MO, it was a pretty awesome thing, especially when you're running a half marathon the next morning. It was a Friday evening at around 6:15PM on a recent October 2017 visit when I friend of mine and I arrived here from Overland Park, KS. It was a short 30 minute drive and found the place to be quite busy on this evening of 13.1 or 26.2 dreams, whichever you fancy. It seems like a lot of people who were running the marathon or half marathon in Kansas City the next morning are eating here, myself and my friend included. The parking situation seemed busy and packed as usual, but we found parking quickly and probably lucky in the process. For me, it was the simple things that make this visit worth the effort. Like most Olive Garden restaurants, the smells and the ambiance made me love Olive Garden a lot, but like many other Italian restaurants, they tend to be overpriced, especially for pasta dishes. It's the kind of stuff you can make at home, but choose not to because for various reasons. Just keep it real for the pasta loving peeps. The overall experience here at this Olive Garden at Independence, MO was pretty good and average at the same time. While it was underwhelming and your typical evening out, it was uneventful and my friend and I had a nice time here with good service. The restaurant was hopping and I did like the decor. Ambiance was pretty good and didn't notice that they may or may not have free wifi for guests. It wasn't loud, but yet it was not quiet either. For the most part though, I had a nice time and the food of choice was good. This Olive Garden is located at 10310 E US Hwy 40 in Independence, right off i-70. Like many restaurants, they accept major credit cards and cash, so that's a good thing! They have that pay at the table gadget thing, so it was a treat seeing my friend pay the tab with the machine. It was funny. Parking here is plentiful, but usually you would need to get here early to secure your premium parking spot. It's in a shopping complex, so these parking spaces are great for guests and everyone. For me though, I ended up getting the eggplant parmigiana, which is what I usually get when I do dine in Olive Garden during my travels. It's subtle and quick for me, since I know I love eggplant when it's prepared the right way and probably slaughtered in some seriously delicious sauce or spice. I did enjoy this sample of eggplant, marinated in some awesomeness on a bed of pasta. The overall meal was good and yet surprisingly okay. I did enjoy the salad though. All you can eat salad was pretty much top notch here and I Enjoyed the fresh taste of the lettuce and the salad dressing they put on it. I actually got a blue moon, if I remember correctly, with my meal. Beer with any pasta dish is always a fun and delicious compliment. While I know that Olive Garden is almost everywhere around the USA, I think it may be a good dining option for anyone who wants something alternative to your fast food stuffs and other restaurant choices. While it can be a little pricey, pasta is nice and the ambiance is cozy. 3.5 stars for the overall experience. 4.0 stars for the food. 3.5 stars for the service. Recommended if you are in the area, but I thought it was average for the price. Support local! C+ read more

Olive Garden Italian Restaurant - Italian Near Me - Independence, Missouri

Got food for take out and the shrimp fettuccine and chicken fettuccine had the sauce in a bowl on the side and the noodles were dry and inedible. The shrimp were flavorless . The salad was wilted and had like butt ends of a tomato and one black olive. This experience made me lose my taste for Olive Garden and this food was not cheap!! read more

Me experience was not a good one. This was my first time back to any Olive Garden. Since being pregnant(2 years ago), I could not eat their food. Any who, they sat me in a section with one waitress who was so occupied with her "big" table that we were forgotten. Not a great place for dining. read more

Very fast service. Great food. Waiter and manager were extremely nice and friendly. Overall great experience!

This restaurant is an easy go to for dinner or lunch when I don't know what I want or don't want to cook. It's convenient, fast and cheap while its tasty and satisfying. You simply cannot go wrong with their salads. read more

Worst service ever. We tend to avoid this location because in the past service has been poor. Today topped every single visit as the absolutely worst. We arrived around 1:30 and were seated in the bar area. Waited nearly 10 minutes to be greeted after walking past our table multiple times helping other guests. Waited 10 minutes to receive a coke and a water. The young gentleman was apparently serving all 4 booths and a couple at a high top table. We ordered food, and never saw him again until he brought salad and breadsticks out 10 minutes later. I had forgotten to ask for a side of Alfredo and again after waiting for our server to return, I ordered a side on the table device. 30 minutes later he comes to the table with our meals and the side of Alfredo asking if we ordered it. My boyfriends food was good, however my cheese ravioli was dried out and chewy. The server returned about 20 min later and we asked for to go boxes and a small cup for the Alfredo. He immediately returned with boxes and said he would get some Alfredo to go. Another 15 min go by and there's no sign of him. I paid on the table device. Asked the bartender for a bag, and we left without ever seeing our server again. The restaurant was NOT busy at all during this time so it's very disappointing that this is the service we received. In the future it may be helpful to place somebody in the bar area that can handle multiple tables. In addition, the couple at the high top table were extremely frustrated with their service as well. This was our last straw, and we will not be returning. read more

I ordered on the website for carside togo. I got there at my designated pick up time. I was greeted within the first minute that I pulled in, however now the fiasco begins. She asked my name. I told her. She went inside. There were two other cars there before me. They get their orders and she comes over to me empty handed. Again she asks my name, I tell her. Another young lady comes out and asks my name. Now Im suspicious! What in the world is going on? Where is my food? Finally she comes out with my food and says "We found your order" Wait. What? Where was my order? I will not be coming back to this location or any location. They have dropped the ball for the final time. And my food was cold. Shame! read more

Excellent Curbside Service! They included salad and breadsticks with my order! #UnExpected Food was HOT and ready! read more

Do NOT go here if you have a gluten sensitivity or wheat allergy! They cook their gluten free rotini in with the regular pasta! I had several spaghetti noodles in with my gluten free pasta. Our server heard me say I couldn't eat my food and she got snarky with me asking why not. I explained I have a wheat allergy and can DIE eating it. She had the manager come over. The manager asked what was wrong. After I told her she said " well if we know you have an allergy, we will try to cook kit differently. I tried explaining that people with gluten sensitivity are getting glutened when they eat pasta that's been cooked in with the other pasta. She told me that wasn't really the case but "if we know it's because of an actual allergy we will TRY to cook it differently". They offered to bring me a new rotini dish but I refused because I didn't know for sure they'd cook it in fresh water. And when they brought out my zuppa soup, I didn't even have a spoon to eat it with. They never brought one to me so when my husband got finished eating his soup, he gave me his spoon. I even asked for it twice. My son ordered a drink from the bar which he didn't even get until half way through the meal and after asking for it twice. Really disappointing. read more

This restaurant is Nasty and Filthy it's very dirty and it's obvious they don't do any cleaning Never again so disappointed that a restaurant like this would be so disgusting read more

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I am not an Olive Garden fan. My dad, however, has recently become obsessed with this place. This week he and Mom dragged me along. A friend suggested I try their shrimp when I expressed my dismay about having to eat there. I ordered an appetizer of spicy shrimp...it had chili oil and citrus. The shrimp were nice fried...not all breading, which was nice. The waitress had warned me of the heat of the spice, but it was just right for me. Don't blame her for the warning because it might be too spicy for others. I usually get bruschetta... it was fine although seemed like it may have been sitting around almost too long. It was a bit watery and wilted. Waitress was LOUD and OBNOXIOUS. She sat at our table several times and just was obtrusive to our family meal together. She talked and talked and talked so much that we finally had to ask her to leave us alone because we weren't there to learn about her life. Well, of course our service was terrible from that point forward. We had to beg for refill and a take out box. We had a gift card to pay for part of our order and she spent 5 minutes reading all the fine print... IT WAS JUST A NORMAL GIFT CARD. I understand making sure it valid, but you don't have to stand over our table doing that like we are criminals or something. If there is a problem, come back to our table and explain it later. Geez. read more

We did the 'Get in Line' portion on their website to hopefully avoid a wait. The website said 20 minute wait currently, we arrived within 15 minutes, checked in, and ward told it would be a 25 minute wait. Why use the feature on the website, if you sfull have to wait. Once seated we were taken care of quickly, food was mediocre at best, and daughter in laws pasta was delivered after everyone else. The one good thing, is we're asked for the 2 year olds food to be put in first and it did arrive before everyone else's so he could eat before getting hangry. read more

I used to really love Olive Garden, but today left much to be desired. As soon as we walked in we saw five young adults horsing around. Two were hostesses and three were waiters. When I got to the hostess stand, I looked down to see two phones open with Facebook and Instagram! And then we were seated. Our waitress was go, go, go! She was quick to keep suggesting... We had a glass of wine and it was wonderful. I got the soup and my friend got the salad. Then our waitress tried putting cheese on my soup! Then I ordered angel hair pasta with classic marinara. It was good, but I was quick to get out. I do like other OG locations, but Independence doesn't cut it. read more

I had the pleasure of attending a Yelp event at OG's OPK location to sample their new menu. The food was just as good here and it looks like they've updated this location too! The level of service was great. From the time we walked until we left. Our waitress was cool too. She was down to earth but, still very professional. There's a new self ordering kiosk at the tables now. You can order drinks, food and even play games. Although it's a neat concept, I wonder how it will change the dining experience in the future. It was easy to use and it looks like you have the option to use Samsung Pay. They should look into adding Apple Pay too. read more

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The food was good. Nice and warm. I order to-go and it was very well packaged. When i got home (15-20 min drive), the food was still warm and fresh. The only down fall was the slow service. But it's fine. Maybe it was just that day. read more

Gluten-free pasta and a soup and salad combo was the perfect bite to eat as we headed into Kansas City. This location seem to be shortstaffed, but just like most restaurants right now that's a common situation. I am not a gluten-free pasta fan, but when I sampled my wife's dinner, I just kept sampling as it was really good. I was also impressed with the chicken gnocchi soup. It was delicious! Olive Garden is what it is. It's not a super fancy, or authentic Italian place, but if you know what you're going in for and expect but you know they have, it's a lot better than any fast food option. read more