Olive Garden - statistics & facts

Olive Garden is one of the top casual dining restaurant chains based in the United States specializing in Italian cuisine. A casual dining restaurant comes under the full service dining category and is typically described as an establishment that offers table service and moderately priced food in a casual environment. It was first founded in Florida in 1982 under the General Mills company and became one of their fastest-growing restaurants nationwide over the following decade. In 1995, General Mills created a second company exclusively for its restaurant holdings called Darden Restaurants, under which Olive Garden still operated in 2022. The casual Italian chain first expanded into the global market in 2011 and has restaurants in North America as well as Latin America. As of 2022 there were 908 Olive Garden restaurants operating globally.

Is Olive Garden the largest FSR chain in the United States?

In the 2010s, Olive Garden became one of the largest and most profitable full service restaurants (FSRs) in the United States. During that same decade, the FSR industry was also undergoing growth. The number of FSRs in the U.S. gradually increased from 2013 to 2023, with nearly 33,240 establishments forecasted to be operating by 2023. Olive Garden has proved to be an industry leader in recent years in both sales and number of establishments. In a ranking of the biggest casual dining chains in the U.S. by sales, Olive Garden was the top ranked casual dining restaurant in the country. The chain ranked just ahead of its competitor Applebee’s, with over four billion U.S. dollars in sales. In a similar ranking of the biggest casual dining chains in the U.S. by units, Olive Garden came in fourth place with 866 establishments, solidifying its place in the FSR industry.

Where are Olive Garden's biggest markets?

Given that Olive Garden was founded in the U.S. and remains headquartered there, it is no surprise that the country still maintained the highest number of Olive Garden restaurants in North America in 2022. That year, the company made 5.1 million U.S. dollars in its home country in average annual sales. Since 2011, Olive Garden has opened restaurants outside the U.S. and entered the global market. Though the country with the most Olive Garden establishments in 2022 was still the U.S., there were eight restaurants operating in Canada during that year. When looking at Olive Garden’s average check per person worldwide, diners at the casual Italian chain could expect to pay an average of 21 U.S. dollars in 2022. This figure has increased since 2016, suggesting that Olive Garden has maintained its value-based menu throughout its expansion.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Statista Research Department, Mar 1, 2024

Key insights

Total assets of Olive Garden in the U.S.
2.83bn USD
Olive Garden's total sales in the U.S.
4.5bn USD
Olive Garden's restaurant and marketing expenses in the U.S.
3.51bn USD
Get more insights

Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Average annual sales of Olive Garden in the United States from 2016 to 2023 (in million U.S. dollars)

Full-Service Retaurants

Olive Garden's average annual sales in the U.S. 2016-2023

Number of Olive Garden restaurants worldwide from 2020 to 2023, by region

Full-Service Retaurants

Olive Garden: number of restaurants worldwide by region 2020-2023

Total assets of Olive Garden in the United States from 2017 to 2023 (in million U.S. dollars)

Full-Service Retaurants

Olive Garden's total assets in the U.S. 2017-2023

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