I read a couple of weeks ago that Olive Garden would be opening for lunch starting on Monday, January 22. A friend and I made plans to eat there on Tuesday for lunch, because we would both be “kid free.” I don’t know about you, but taking a 2 year old into a brand new restaurant during a peak hour is not my idea of fun.

Anyway, Olive Garden was to open at 11 a.m., so we met in the parking lot at 10:45. There was another car there waiting, but I was surprised that more people weren’t waiting to go in. I planned to get out and wait in line if one started to form, but since there was no reason to, I stayed in my truck (it was also 40 degrees that day).

While waiting for my friend to arrive, I saw an elderly lady get out of her car and go to the front door. The man with her stayed in the car, so I assumed she was going to see if the front doors were open yet. I watched her because I am 15 months pregnant, and I wasn’t sure how much longer I could go without peeing on myself. I figured if the doors were open, I would go inside early to use the restroom.

Before the lady got to the door, an employee came outside and met her halfway. They exchanged words, the lady returned to her car, and the man started to back up like he was leaving. By this time my friend had arrived, so I got out and told her I was going to go scavenge a bathroom and see what the deal was with the lady going back to her car.

As I got to the front door, I saw some signs that said Olive Garden would open for lunch on January 29. I was about to turn around, but the door was about an inch open, and an employee saw me standing there. I opened the door some more and asked if they were open for lunch on that day.

The employee (who I think was a manager, by the way she was dressed) told me that they opened the next week for lunch. I told her I was sorry and I thought it was this week, because that is what I had read.

She shook her head and told me that it was misprinted. I told her to have a nice day and went back to tell my friend about the whole fiasco. Then we sat in the parking lot for another 5 minutes trying to figure out where we wanted to eat lunch. During that time a few more people did the same thing I did. I felt bad for the employees inside. I knew that it would probably be happening all week long.

My friend and I decided to eat at Montana Mike’s instead, since they have fried zucchini and I have been wanting some ever since the whole Tejas catastrophe.

I loved the service we got at Montana Mike’s. We were greeted by a manager when we came in, and our waitress (Jennifer) was nice. My friend commented on the fact that our waitress seemed a little hurried for us being the only ones in the restaurant, but other than that – it was a really nice experience.

Except for the smell. It smelled like someone dipped my head into a wet ashtray. My friend said it didn’t smell that bad to her, but then again she smokes occasionally. I used to smoke (for many years) and I know that people who used to smoke always think the smell of smoke is stronger and worse than it really is. You have to also couple that with the fact that I am pregnant, and I have Super Smell.

I would suggest they monitor their employees for smoking after hours, or use some serious air freshener for the old smoke smell.

So, we will go to Olive Garden NEXT week. Just to give the employees there a heads up, it will be on Thursday, and we will most likely be waiting for you guys to open. Hopefully, we will beat the crowds.

Look for my blog after our Olive Garden experience, because I am really excited to see what customer service is like in a brand new restaurant with employees that were actually trained somewhat.

As for the misprint snafu, a little birdie told me that it wasn’t a misprint after all; the employees at Olive Garden just weren’t ready to open for lunch yet. Let’s hope that next week brings short lines at 11 a.m. on Thursday, and personable (ready) wait staff.

On another topic, I was wondering if anyone else is getting horrendous service (customer and internet) from Suddenlink. My internet is the most unreliable piece of rat feces I have ever had. It is always down, and when you call to get someone to talk to, they are rude and promise things that just aren’t true.

I have kept track and my internet has been down for a total of nearly 72 hours (in a 3 week period). I will be contacting Suddenlink and having my bill prorated for 3 days of service, because at this point – that is unacceptable. I was just wondering if anyone else was having problems as well. I have been reading less than flattering editorials in the Advocate.

Anyway, until next time, munch on some fried zucchini at Montana Mike’s and some Twizzlers!