Olive Garden Makes Menu Change To Bring Back 'Fan Fa...

By Suzanne Blake

Reporter, Consumer & Social Trends

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Olive Garden is bringing back two “fan favorites” to its menus to last through the winter season.

The Italian American restaurant chain said they brought back the two dishes after thousands of customers requested to have the pastas back.

Why It Matters

Olive Garden is following the path of many other restaurant chains, which decided to add new menu options as a way to boost customer interest and foot traffic.

These seasonal or limited time options can spark higher sales volumes even as spending cools within the larger economy.

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What To Know

Olive Garden customers can now order the Braised Beef Tortelloni and Ravioli di Portobello until March 22.

The chain said that thousands of fans requested the two dishes return, even speaking seven Change.org petitions.

For those who signed a petition to bring back either of the dishes or contacted Olive Garden’s guest relations team about the pastas, a free entree will be available at their local restaurant.

The Braised Beef Tortelloni features slices of slow-braised beef, roasted mushrooms, and asiago-filled tortelloni tossed in creamy marsala mushroom sauce.

Newsweek reached out to Olive Garden for comment via email.

Other chains like Logan’s Roadhouse have also unveiled a new holiday menu. From now until January, customers can enjoy Prime Rib Weekends and several holiday “take-and-bake feasts.”

Other new menu options include the Blueberry & Apple Cobbler, Chocolate Layer Cake and seasonal cocktails like the Drunken Cowboy, Mango Rancher Rita and Spicy Mango Rancher Rita.

Meanwhile, fast food giant SONIC launched a Peppermint Brownie Bark Shake in the last few months, offering customers a seasonal dessert that is described as a decadent blend of creamy vanilla soft serve with chocolate chunk brownie pieces and a sprinkle of cool, crushed peppermints.

What People Are Saying

Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek: “Olive Garden's reintroduction of Braised Beef Tortelloni and Ravioli di Portobello is a reflection of a restaurant industry-wide push to introduce new menu items and return favorites in a bid to generate more business. Over the past year as inflationary pressures have weighed heavily on most households, many Americans have opted to save money by dining at home instead of frequenting restaurants.”

What Happens Next

Olive Garden likely hopes to boost sales with the buzz over once popular menu items returning for a limited time, as this can lead to increased foot traffic.

“Olive Garden is doing what other chains have done over the past few months in hoping that the reintroduction of past popular items will bring more customers back through their doors,” Beene added.

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