The Reason Olive Garden's Signature Salad Dressing Isn't Really Italian
By C.A. Pinkham
It may surprise you to learn Olive Garden is not authentically Italian. Not only is their Italian dressing not Italian but there's nothing like it on an Italian menu.
Italians typically consume light vinaigrette dressings consisting of olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. The idea is that the dressing shouldn't overpower the salad.
Olive Garden's dressing, meanwhile, consists of multiple ingredients, including soybean oil, distilled white vinegar, Romano cheese, salt, black pepper, and dehydrated garlic.
Other than salt and pepper, the two don't share a single ingredient since Olive Garden's version doesn't even use the right kind of vinegar — or, ironically, olive oil.