Olive Garden, an Italian American casual dining restaurant chain, is planning to open a new location in Rosemead at 3518 Rosemead Boulevard.
Darden Restaurants, Inc. recently submitted a liquor license application for the location at Rosemead Plaza, which will replace TGI Fridays. No official opening date has been announced. Customers can expect Olive Garden’s menu of Italian American dishes, including its freshly baked breadsticks, garden salad, soups, and sauces.
Olive Garden was founded in 1982 in Orlando, Florida, according to the company’s website. The restaurant chain is part of Darden Restaurants, Inc., which operates Olive Garden as one of its restaurant concepts. The company’s website states that Olive Garden has more than 900 restaurants nationwide.
The Rosemead location will add another Olive Garden restaurant to the chain’s presence in Southern California. According to the company, Olive Garden has sent more than 5,000 managers to Italy since 1999 as part of its approach to Italian food and culture. The company also says that its restaurants serve approximately 216 million customers each year.
Olive Garden’s menu includes a selection of soups, salads, pasta, and other Italian American dishes. The restaurant is known for its unlimited servings of freshly baked breadsticks and garden salad, along with homemade soups and sauces. The company also offers menu items and specials through its EClub.
The company also operates a food donation program through its Harvest program, which was established in 2003. Restaurants collect surplus food and prepare it for weekly donation to local nonprofit organizations, according to Olive Garden. The company says its restaurants have donated more than 49 million pounds of food through the program over more than 20 years.
