RISE - Menu Monitor

Olive Garden added Pumpkin Cheesecake to its seasonal favorites menu. The dessert, topped with whipped cream, caramel
sauce and ginger cookie crumbles, is offered for $5.95. (Company Website)
Olive Garden debuted its Chicken & Gnocchi Veronese entrée. The dish features sautéed chicken with traditional Italian
dumplings and roasted red peppers in a Parmesan and ricotta cheese sauce. (Company Website)
Olive Garden premiered five new drinks for $7.75 each. Beverage additions include: • Strawberry-Limoncello Martini—Smirnoff
Citrus vodka, Caravella Limoncello and strawberries • Pomegranate Margarita Martini—Patrón Silver, Citronage orange
liqueur, pomegranate syrup and fresh juices • Mango Martini—Malibu mango rum, mango purée and citrus juices • Chocolate
Martini—Godiva chocolate liqueur, Smirnoff Vanilla Twist vodka and cream • Raspberry Sorbeto Martini—Smirnoff vodka,
Chambord black raspberry liqueur and cream, with a float of berry sorbet (Company Website)
Personnel |
Clarence, Jr. Otis, CEO
Brad Richmond, CFO
Andrew Madsen, COO
John Caron, V.P. of Marketing
News & Other |
Olive Garden reported October same-store sales grew 1%–2%. (Company Release 11/3/06)
Darden Restaurants Inc. reported for the second quarter ended November 26 net earnings increased 17% to $61.7 million
from $55.1 million for the same period last year. Revenues grew 4.5% to $1.39 billion. Same-store sales rose 2.9% at Olive
Garden and 0.7% at Red Lobster. (Company Release 12/19/06)
Darden Restaurants Inc. announced that its 1,267 Red Lobster and Olive Garden restaurants in North America will switch to a
trans fat-free frying oil. The company did not offer a timeline for when trans fats would be eliminated from breading, salad
dressings and other foods that currently contain partially hydrogenated oil. Darden also did not say whether or not its smaller
chains would make the change. Over 100 Red Lobster and Olive Garden units have already switched to the trans fat-free
frying oil. (NRN Daily NewsFax 12/14/06)
Fish and seafood items are being removed from the menu because of concerns about the sustainability of certain species.
According to a recent report in Science from leading ecologists and economists, it was theorized that the world would run out
of seafood by 2048 if declines in marine species continue at the current rate. The report said that overfishing, pollution and
other environmental factors are destroying wild fisheries and threatening the ocean’s ecological balance. The seafood industry
has said that the study is too alarmist. Many restaurants, however, are making adjustments. Darden Restaurants, which owns
Red Lobster, Olive Garden, Smokey Bones and Bahama Breeze brands, and Compass Group’s America division have both
declared changes in seafood purchasing habits based on sustainability concerns. The study also found that nearly one-third of
commercially fished species have already been depleted to the point where catches are now only 10% of historic highs. These
include bluefin tuna, Atlantic cod, Pacific salmon and Alaskan king crab. The study also says that it is not too late to reverse
the trends. Several environmental groups are working to help consumers, restaurants, distributors and retail stores make
responsible choices. (Nation’s Restaurant News 11/27/06 p1)
Olive Garden reported December same-store sales increased 1%. (Company Release 1/4/07)
Olive Garden is being sued by guests who ate at an Indiana unit where a norovirus outbreak sickened almost 400 customers.
The lawsuit alleges negligence and breach of warranty on the part of the restaurant’s owners, Darden Restaurants Inc. The
restaurant in question was closed for three days after several guests fell ill with flu-like symptoms. Three Olive Garden
employees tested positive for norovirus. (NRN Daily NewsFax 12/21/06)
Olive Garden reported January same-store sales rose 2%. (Company Release 2/1/07)
Olive Garden has achieved 50 consecutive quarters of same-store sales growth. The growth is a milestone for the restaurant
and the casual dining industry. Olive Garden is currently the leading restaurant in the Italian dining segment with more than
$2.6 billion in annual sales. (Company Release 3/22/07)
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