Olive Garden in West Wichita, KS Gets More Than 5 Stars

Good evening, welcome to the Olive Garden, how is everyone tonight? Good, glad to hear it. I'm great, thanks for asking. My name is ___ and I will be taking great care of you this evening. Are we celebrating a special occasion or just out for a nice dinner? Great! A birthday- so nice to have you here to celebrate. In Italy, the dinner has begun when the wine is brought to the table. If I may, I would love to suggest the Principato Rosato (while presenting the wine bottle) its light bodies, semi-sweet, and our guests just love it not to mention it's my favorite. It's imported from Italy and is made especially for the Olive Garden. I would be happy to pour you a sample of this wine or any of our wines for a 25 cent donation to the United Way. No wine tonight, no problem, we also have a delicious ice cold Italian Margarita." As I watch the eyebrows rise, "ooh, what's that?" Well, it's a little more festive than a regular margarita. It has orange juice in it with a yummy orange sugar rim with a shot of amaretto on the side for mixing to your taste. It is also one of my favorites and it is to die for! Drinks are dropped, appetizers ordered, specials described and ordered (who could resist the new Lasagna Chicken Rollatini in an alfredo sauce?) and the race is on. You see, behind the scenes of Olive Garden there is a lot going on. For one, there are 2 grueling weeks of training where the servers must memorize (there are tests) and taste everything on the menu-so that we can actually tell you what it tastes like, smells like, in intelligent descriptive words. Now, you may ask-why does this mom in KS know this. Well, I just happen to work there 2 evenings a week (stop in on Sunday or Monday night if you're in town) and I can honestly say that the Olive Garden (the OG) takes very seriously their motto, when you're here you're family. From the white shirt and tie-clad servers to the table settings (wine glasses and silverware clothed in fabric napkins), you know the Olive Garden is going to be a more pleasant, family-friendly dining experience. And that is exactly what you will get at Olive Garden in New Market Square in Wichita, KS.

Compare this to "Hi, welcome to ___ the home of the ____, what can I get you to drink?" All the while they are throwing paper napkins and menus at you. Don't get me wrong- there are nights I want to just drink a cold one, eat some wings, and not be "bothered" by the server, but tonight I want to be "served", tonight I want the Olive Garden.

The Cuisine

There's no argument that Olive Garden's food is good-it's excellent. I've honestly never had anything that wasn't good; now there have been discrepancies with my taste buds but to the right person, every single thing on the menu is "just right". This could be due to many things- one, the OG is a chain which equals consistency, but I have to give big kudos to the chefs who are shipped out and trained by the Olive Garden chefs at the Culinary Institute in Tuscany, Italy (really, they are). They are very good at what they do; they are so good in fact, the food is superb. I am of the belief that any restaurant can have good food, fresh ingredients and good cooks make this possible, but where I really think the OG is a step above is in their level of service.

The Service

Picture it, they start with crisp greens topped with the signature Italian dressing (yes, they have ranch too for you ranch freaks-- *uh huh, I see you*), warm garlic-buttered breadsticks, and you're off. You devour the never-ending salad and bread sticks like its your last meal (you may have had a short wait for a table, just stop by the bar and get yourself a bud-light or long island ice tea-I promise we'll make it worth the wait), the server stops by to fill your Bellini Peach tea or ice cold coke and asks if you would like some more bread sticks and possibly some more salad (rhetorical question, we know but the minute we assume...). Just as you finish your last bite of the first salad, salad number two is there and the fresh grated Romano cheese is lavished on while the hot-out-of-the-oven bread sticks are placed and you haven't even seen your entrees yet! Just as you are starting to slow down on the salad (did I mention, never-ending) you see the server carefully balancing your piping hot entrees. Your server inquires, "would you like fresh grated Romano on your Seafood Alfredo sir?" and after dousing your dish and the cheese begins to melt, you're mouth begins to water. Its here!

Your server pre-busses the table (clears the dirty dishes) and you are off again to devour your favorite dish or maybe something new if you're feeling adventurous. Everything is perfect, the music (Light jazz on most nights), the atmosphere (no worries about dirty tables here), and of course, the drinks and food. Okay, so now I'm sure you're thinking but what does it COST?!

Cost vs. Value

Well, surprisingly it's a great price for the value. Imagine how much you spend at a buffet (mediocre food, mediocre service, most likely gross environment) and then compare that to being treated like family in a home-like environment with home-like food? Believe me, it's worth every penny. The prices are very reasonable, ranging fro $6 for soup, salad, and breadsticks for lunch to $15 for a Tour of Italy (with a nice sampling of Lasagna, Chicken Parmigianino, and creamy Fettuccine Alfredo), not too shabby. Oh ya, and we can't forget the very reasonably priced celebration cake (6-8 servings) while being serenaded by the rest of the "family" singing the Buena Festa song (or not, your choice), which means Good Fortune in Italian. What a perfect night! And that's why I give West Wichita/New Market Square Olive Garden in Wichita, KS 5 Stars. Bravo!

Employment

I can honestly say, this is one of the best jobs I have ever had and I have a bachelor's degree on top of many other trainings and jobs... The training is HARD-CORE, I'm not going to lie, only 1/3 of my training class is actually working there, but when you make the cut, I promise you will be so glad the training was so extensive, they train you to succeed. For the customers, for you, and for the company; I know several employees who are planning to keep moving on up the ladder to general manager. It may start out as a way to make some cash on the side, but I promise you will think about the future opportunities. Not to mention, the managers tell you how it is in the beginning (and stick to it- always "nice", no, fair- yes!), everyone is there to work hard while providing great service, and I love the customers! So, if you're moving to the Sunflower state and you're looking for a great part-time, full-time, whatever-time job with awesome benefits (can I say discount!), then check out the OG. It's true for the employees too.

When you're here you're family