Olive Garden's Never Ending Pasta Bowl Returns Without Inflation

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, we've seen inflation hit economies all around the world. Rising prices have really been hurting our wallets around mealtime. Loading up your grocery cart these days has become about 20% more expensive in the last four years, according to Consumer Price Index data. It hasn't been easy dining out, either, with restaurants raising menu prices to deal with inflation. And a survey by Restaurant365 found that 61% of restaurants still expect menu price hikes this year. However, Olive Garden is bucking the trend by bringing back a popular promotion without bumping up the cost.

According to a statement shared with Mashed, Olive Garden's Never Ending Pasta Bowl is back, and it's on the menu starting at $13.99 (unlimited toppings are $4.99), which is the same price it's been the last couple of years. That means diners can load up on all-you-can-eat pasta servings as well as bottomless refills of Olive Garden's tasty breadsticks for less than $20. Endless soup and salad to boot make the meal likely one of the better deals you'll find in restaurants this year.

If you're already following Olive Garden on social media or part of the eClub, you can get early access to the Never Ending Pasta Bowl offer on August 19. The promotion will roll out for everyone else on August 26. Since this isn't a never-ending pasta deal, it will run until November 17.

As for the menu, diners can choose from four of Olive Garden's pastas: spaghetti, angel hair, rigatoni, and (of course) fettuccine. They have the option to ramp up the richness with sauces like creamy mushroom or Alfredo, or stick with classics like marinara, meat sauce, and five-cheese marinara. Everyone's invited to the pasta party, as all of the sauces aside from the meat sauce are suitable for vegetarians, and the traditional marinara is vegan. If you opt for toppings, this promotion includes crispy chicken fritta, meatballs, and Italian sausage — those are endless, too.

Considering that breadsticks, soup, and salad are some of Olive Garden's most popular menu items, this deal could attract a lot of hungry diners who are looking for affordable Italian fare. In fact, when the chain brought the promotion back in 2022 at the same price, it saw a bigger surge in sales than expected. Although, if Olive Garden isn't really your thing or you'd rather just stay home, you could always make your own fettuccine Alfredo. But don't say we didn't give you the scoop on this bottomless pasta bonanza.