First time at Olive Garden

As a kid, I've yearned to eat at Olive Garden after each Olive Garden commercial on TV. I was wildly impressed with their claim to have sent chefs to Italy to learn how to cook Italian food. Of course, skeptics have questioned whether this is true. CNN verified that they do have a shared ownership of a cooking institute in Italy. And now my dream is alive.

After the failed attempt to get seating last year (we were told the wait was >2 hours! waiting that long for food when you're starved is bleh), we tried once more. While there was still a line, we were seated within 30 minutes.

At last! I was eating at Olive Garden! My husband was probably amused by my excitement. After having eaten at authentic Italian restaurants Italy, I was still giddy about Olive Garden! This goes to say that one is often brimmed with excitement as childhood dreams are fulfilled.  Our waiter, a young man named Marvin, seated us and took our order. We determined that he deserved at least 20% tip for being so courteous.

While we cook vegetarian at home, we tend to order seafood and chicken while eating out.

penne di mare

chocolate mousse--not too sweet--definitely delicious!

With unlimited soup, salad and bread, the dinner was worth every penny. We were stuffed. After all those years of wanting but failing to go to Olive Garden, I was thoroughly happy with my experience. It was more special  because I shared this experience with someone so dear.