Big Changes Coming to Olive Garden and Minnesotans Aren’t Happy

The head of Olive Garden's parent company is serving up a decision that's leaving Minnesota customers with a sour taste in their mouths.

It's no secret that restaurants are struggling nationwide as more and more people choose to stay home to save money.

Because of this, many chain restaurants like Applebee's and McDonald's have started to actually discount their menu items as a way to encourage their customers to come back, according to CNN Business.

However, Olive Garden, owned by Darden Restaurants, is not following suit and in fact, has the opposite strategy.

Also See: America's Worst Fast Food Chain Has 41 Minnesota Locations.

Darden's CEO, Rick Cardenas, has firmly rejected this price drop strategy, saying Olive Garden will NOT do that. Announcing they will instead be raising prices...again.

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In the most recent quarter, Olive Garden raised prices by 1%. That change hurt dollar sales, but "kept restaurant traffic strong." Prior to that, they hiked prices by 3.5% in 2023, according to CNN Business.

So, what can we expect to see at our 10 Minnesota Olive Garden locations?

Another increase is on the horizon, but they claim it will be a small increase. Not announcing exactly how much of an increase to expect, just that they will continue to raise the prices.

They did say the increases will put Olive Garden "more or less on par with most sit-down restaurants in the US."

What other restaurants are owned by Darden? 

- LongHorn Steakhouse
- Yard House
- Ruth's Chris Steak House
- Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen
- The Capital Grille
- Seasons 52
- Eddie V's
- Bahama Breeze

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