Every Olive Garden Appetizer, Ranked by a Food Editor from OK to Mamma Mia

• What It Is: spinach, artichokes and cheeses, served warm with flatbread crisps
• Price: $11

This party dip is just as ubiquitous as Buffalo wings and chips with salsa when it comes to chain restos. While it was better than others I’ve tried, it tasted excessively salty to me. On the plus side, it was very thick and cheesy—not diluted or runny—and full of greens. I was also thoroughly infatuated with the flatbread chips it came with, which were freshly fried and mostly crispy, but still chewy and pliable in some spots.

• What It Is: fried Parmesan-breaded lasagna, topped with Parmesan cheese, meat sauce with pan-seared beef and Italian sausage and Alfredo sauce
• Price: $11

I really enjoyed the chewy, doughy texture of this baked pasta starter, but it was my least favorite of the three fried pasta options. It was much heavier than the others, due in part to the pool of Alfredo sauce it was plated in. Nonetheless, the meat filling was nuanced and well-seasoned.

• What It Is: marinara, Alfredo and five-cheese marinara sauces with freshly baked breadsticks
• Price: from $4.50

Olive Garden’s breadsticks are #thatgirl for a reason. They were super fresh and crisp on the outside yet fluffy inside and slicked with buttery, garlicky seasoning. As for the sauces, the marinara was bright and zesty, the Alfredo was super cheesy (and almost too salty for me) and the five cheese marinara (which I suspect could be a combination of the aforementioned others) offered the best of both worlds with its creamy texture and acidic-yet-rich flavor.

• What It Is: shrimp mixed with onions and bell peppers, hand-breaded and lightly fried, served with marinara and spicy ranch
• Price: $13

Typically, I prefer my seafood spritzed with lemon and nothing else, even when fried. But here, the marinara rounded out the very salty breading of the shrimp. They were perfectly cooked and tender, not chewy. The other dip was like a hybrid of zesty Italian dressing and ranch; I thought it offered delicious contrast to the savory breading.

• What It Is: tender calamari, breaded and fried and served with marinara sauce and spicy ranch
• Price: $12

Real talk: I thought the squid was even tastier than the shrimp. It was butter-tender, even under the notably sturdy, flavorful breading. The coating on the calamari felt more like batter than breadcrumbs, but it didn’t bog down my appetite. I loved the calamari doused in lemon, but I wouldn’t blame you for dipping your heart out instead.

• What It Is: fried mozzarella cheese with marinara sauce
• Price: $8.50

The mozzarella used for this Olive Garden appetizer is notably funky and complex, rather than mild and milky. It was salty and earthy with stellar elasticity, but still had a creamy mouthfeel that will surely scratch your itch for standard mozz sticks. Not only was the cheese pull lengthy and Insta-worthy, but the breading was also durable and impeccably crunchy.

• What It Is: lightly fried ravioli filled with seasoned beef, served with marinara sauce
• Price: $10

The first and only time I ever went to Olive Garden as a kid, my parents ordered this beef-filled appetizer. Unfortunately, I was a middle schooler trying to be a vegetarian at the time, and it took everything in me not to taste one. All these years later, I finally got to sink my teeth into this mega-savory, herbaceous, stick-to-your-ribs starter. The filling was nuanced but allowed the meat to do most of the heavy lifting flavor-wise. The pasta and breadcrumb coating were crisp and toothsome. Definitely worth the wait, IMO.

• What It Is: meatballs baked in marinara sauce, topped with melted Italian cheeses and toasted breadcrumbs
• Price: $11

When these first hit the table, I was skeptical; the meatballs looked baked to the point of dryness. But I was so wrong. They were undeniably moist and very simple with nothing but a broiled cheese crown for garnish. The meat itself was juicy and well-seasoned, but not excessively in any specific direction, so they’re not leading with garlic or oregano, for example. My favorite part of a meatball is the actual meat, so I appreciated that they weren’t drowning in marinara or a pound of melted mozz or littered with mix-ins.

• What It Is: crispy fried ziti filled with five cheeses, served with Alfredo and marinara dipping sauces
• Price: $9

I could’ve eaten three baskets and would still want more. The texture of this Olive Garden appetizer was delightfully unexpected, almost like an eggroll with a touch less crunch and a bit more chew. As for the inside, the filling was super rich and creamy, but more notably, it was funky. I’m thinking it was a mix of mild cheese, like mozzarella, and sharper, aged cheeses, like Romano and Asiago, making for a nutty, earthy, nuanced flavor that put plain ricotta to shame.