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Olive Garden


Daniel

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No UE,

That is a sage butter sauce.. As I said, it was really just disgusting.. On the website they suggest these wines to be paired with the dish.. Red - Ecco Domani Merlot,White - Chateau Ste. Michelle Chardonnay or Blush - Principato Rosato.. Perhaps thats where I went wrong :biggrin:

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I can completely understand not wanting to appear snobby, but processed food is processed food, and MANY of us don't indulge in it very often, if at all. I had some pretzels last month, and bits of sugar ice cream cone topping my maple syrup flan last night, but, really, that's about it, other than my monthly hot dog about 2 weeks ago. Getting ill from this stuff is no joke, if your body isn't used to it, it's a nightmare, and your skin feels yucky, too. As though chemicals are escaping through your pores. Of course, if you're on a liquid diet for a month, and then you eat a bowl of oatmeal with an entire stick of butter enhancing it, you may experience similar results. :wink:

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I doubt the cheese is fake. To me fake cheese would be cheese not made from milk. I bet the cheese used at the Olive Garden is made from milk. It's certainly bad cheese, but not likely fake.

It all depends on the definition of "cheese". If the definition one uses is made from milk, it would certainly qualify. The same way Kraft American Cheese Slices and the grated Parmesan from the green container would qualify.

I think OG probably uses what is more commonly known as Processed Cheese, which is essentially cheese with added dyes, additives, emulsifiers and flavoring.

Arley Sasson

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Maybe. I wouldn't be so sure without some sort of factual evidence, though. There's plenty of bad cheese out there that's made from only the standard cheese ingredients. For example, if you look on the label of Polly-O supermarket mozzarella cheese, you'll find that the ingredients are "Pasteurized Milk, Vinegar, Salt, Enzymes."

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Maybe. I wouldn't be so sure without some sort of factual evidence, though. There's plenty of bad cheese out there that's made from only the standard cheese ingredients. For example, if you look on the label of Polly-O supermarket mozzarella cheese, you'll find that the ingredients are "Pasteurized Milk, Vinegar, Salt, Enzymes."

I agree. It is difficult to really say, especially since you have to be in agreement regarding what one considers "real cheese" and what is considered "cheese product" or "processed cheese". Even the lowest quality "cheese" you can find in any supermarket or convenience store has cheese (or pasteurized milk and enzymes) as part of its igredients. Either way, probably a discussion topic for another thread.

Arley Sasson

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They use crap cheese because it melts evenly.

Someone posted their desparation in making a strombolli that wasnt runny/squishy....they didnt want to use crappy cheese.

Fresh mozz and real cheddar dont melt well, as touted in the Velveeta commercial for nacho dip.

I have to say that I now want a plate of broiled Mozz with herbs and olive oil with nice crostini to spread it on.

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They use crap cheese because it melts evenly.

Does anyone know where cheese made from crap is available?

Rich Schulhoff

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The great thing about barbeque is that when you get hungry 3 hours later....you can lick your fingers

Maxine

Avoid cutting yourself while slicing vegetables by getting someone else to hold them while you chop away.

"It is the government's fault, they've eaten everything."

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Again, I really think anybody who wants to say that Olive Garden uses "fake" or "processed" cheese should present some evidence for that claim. The opinion that it tastes terrible or the observation that it melts well does not establish anything factual about the naturalness or lack thereof of the cheese. Cheese that melts evenly and easily, and tastes terrible, needn't be artificial. Pizzerias have used "low-moisture mozzarella" for ages because it melts well. Some of it is delicious, some of it tastes terrible. The low-moisture mozzarella that tastes terrible is not necessarily fake or processed or artificial -- it's just not good. Just as it's possible for a really bad cook to take great ingredients and transform them into awful dishes, it's possible to take milk and transform it into really bad cheese.

Steven A. Shaw aka "Fat Guy"
Co-founder, Society for Culinary Arts & Letters, sshaw@egstaff.org
Proud signatory to the eG Ethics code
Director, New Media Studies, International Culinary Center (take my food-blogging course)

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I googled Olive Garden and besides links to the home page and newsletter sign up I found pages about Why you should not eat at Olive Garden that led to a blog and a bulletin board about the OG. I didn't find anything about where they get their cheeses from though. So I guess I will email and ask directly.

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I found two statements on the Olive Garden website, which cover two cheeses but not the mozzarella:

One of the most popular cheeses in Italy and at Olive Garden is Pecorino Romano. This aromatic, sharply flavorful cheese is made from sheep’s milk. We import all our Pecorino Romano cheese from Italy to ensure you enjoy the best quality with the richest, most satisfying flavor. Enjoy it freshly grated by your server tableside on our garden fresh salad and pasta dishes.

and

Grana Padano is another flavorful cheese used in abundance at Olive Garden. Made from cow’s milk, Grana Padano is a hard, grainy-textured cheese that we grate over our pasta dishes, like Capellini Pomodoro Our Grana Padano is imported from Italy and aged for 18 months, which lends it a more savory, sweet and sublime flavor.

http://www.olivegarden.com/culinary/italia...ials/cheese.asp

Steven A. Shaw aka "Fat Guy"
Co-founder, Society for Culinary Arts & Letters, sshaw@egstaff.org
Proud signatory to the eG Ethics code
Director, New Media Studies, International Culinary Center (take my food-blogging course)

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  • 2 years later...

As bewildered as I am by the flocks of adoring tourists (and locals) who queue up at the Olive Garden, I guess I should remind myself that not everyone is as privileged as New Yorkers are to have one at their beck and call. And I'll bet the Olive Garden in Times Square has the best view of any Olive Garden in the world.

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Dear lord, but that sounds like the makings of a new Christopher Guest movie. I can see Parker Posey starring as the head waitress ... decked out in enormous amounts of flair ... ok, ok, I'm mixing my movie metaphors, but you get the idea.

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