Why America Is Addicted to Olive Garden

Employees, he says, need to believe that serving meals and cleaning tables and cooking pasta in a hot kitchen is meaningful. "It's very difficult for the experience of the guests to exceed the experience of the staff," Pickens says. "We put the two together."

I've had 4 different friends who have worked at various Olive Gardens (3 for longer than 2-3 years). All of them hated it.