Italian food should transport you straight to the cobblestone streets of Rome or the canals of Venice with each bite.
Unfortunately, many chain restaurants fall short of this promise.
We visited dozens of Italian eateries across America to find which ones left us wanting more. Some were downright disappointing while others just need some serious kitchen upgrades.
1. Olive Garden
Remember when Olive Garden’s breadsticks were actually good? Those days are long gone. Now they arrive at your table looking sad and tasting like cardboard with a hint of garlic.
The pasta dishes don’t fare much better, with overcooked noodles swimming in salty, one-dimensional sauces. Even their signature unlimited salad has lost its charm.
2. Carrabba’s Italian Grill
Carrabba’s once stood as a decent mid-tier Italian option. My recent visit revealed food that tasted like it came from the freezer section of a grocery store.
Their chicken parmesan was dry and rubbery. The marinara sauce lacked any depth or freshness.
3. Fazoli’s
Fast food Italian sounds convenient, but Fazoli’s execution leaves much to be desired. Their pasta sits under heat lamps until it transforms into a gummy, indistinguishable mass.
The breadsticks might be unlimited, but they’re also unlimitedly disappointing. Sauce options taste like they come straight from cans with extra sugar and salt added.
4. Maggiano’s Little Italy
Maggiano’s positions itself as upscale Italian dining, but the food quality doesn’t match the prices. Their family-style portions are generous but lack authentic flavor.
The chicken marsala tasted like it was made with cooking wine instead of the real thing. Pasta dishes arrived lukewarm with congealed cheese. Even their tiramisu seemed mass-produced rather than house-made.
5. Sbarro
Nobody expects gourmet pizza from a mall food court, but Sbarro still manages to disappoint. Their slices sit under heat lamps for hours, resulting in dried-out toppings and cardboard-like crusts.
The sauce lacks any fresh tomato flavor. Their pasta dishes come from warming trays where they’ve been slowly dying since morning.
6. Johnny Carino
Johnny Carino’s attempts to blend Italian cuisine with country cooking, creating a confused menu that excels at neither. Their signature dishes lack authenticity and flavor depth.
The Italian nachos feature stale chips drowning in a greasy cheese sauce. Pasta portions are enormous but taste like they were boiled hours ago.
7. Bertucci’s
Bertucci’s brick ovens should produce amazing pizzas, but something gets lost between concept and execution. Their crusts emerge either burned or undercooked with no happy medium.
Toppings slide off in one piece when you try to take a bite. Pasta dishes taste mass-produced rather than fresh.
8. Buca Di Beppo
Buca di Beppo sells itself on enormous family-style portions, but size can’t hide mediocrity. Their red sauce tastes like it came from an industrial-sized can with extra sugar added.
The chicken parmigiana features meat pounded so thin it disappears under breading. The kitsch decor can’t distract from food that lacks any hint of authenticity.
9. Romano’s Macaroni Grill
Romano’s Macaroni Grill tries to position itself as casual-but-authentic Italian dining. The reality falls far short of expectations. Their signature pasta dishes taste pre-prepared and reheated.
The lobster ravioli contains barely detectable seafood. The tableside crayon-drawn paper tablecloths provide more entertainment than the food.
10. Zio’s Italian Kitchen
They promise authentic regional Italian cooking but delivers bland Americanized versions instead. Their lasagna arrives as a shapeless mass of overcooked pasta and bland meat sauce.
The chicken alfredo features a sauce that separates into oily puddles. The complimentary bread tastes like it was baked days earlier.
11. Bravo! Italian Kitchen
Bravo! Italian Kitchen’s name suggests excitement, but their food performs like an understudy. The calamari arrives chewy and over-breaded with a marinara sauce that tastes straight from a jar.
Their pasta dishes lack any distinctive character. The chicken marsala features a sauce that’s more sweet than complex.
12. Biaggi’s Ristorante
Biaggi’s positions itself as upscale Italian dining, but the experience is utterly forgettable. Their seafood pasta features tiny shrimp and scallops lost in a sea of overcooked linguine.
The minestrone soup tastes like it came from a can. The elegant atmosphere can’t compensate for food that lacks any distinctive character.
13. East Side Mario
East Side Mario’s attempts to recreate New York-style Italian food in Canada, missing the mark on both fronts. Their pasta portions are enormous but taste like they were boiled far too long.
The garlic bread comes drenched in butter but lacks actual garlic flavor. Pizza crusts have a strange sweetness that clashes with savory toppings.
14. Spaghetti Warehouse
Spaghetti Warehouse feels like a relic from another era, and unfortunately, so does their food. Their signature 15-layer lasagna arrives as a collapsed mess with barely distinguishable layers.
The spaghetti and meatballs feature pasta cooked well beyond al dente. Their marinara sauce lacks fresh tomato flavor.
15. Old Spaghetti Factory
Old Spaghetti Factory banks on nostalgia, but their food quality has declined while prices have increased. Their mizithra cheese and browned butter pasta is one-dimensionally salty without complexity.
The minestrone soup tastes like it came from a food service can. Even their spumoni ice cream lacks the distinctive layers and flavors it should have.
16. Domino’s Italian Dishes
Domino’s ventured beyond pizza into pasta territory with their pasta bread bowls and other Italian-adjacent offerings. These dishes desperately need a complete overhaul.
The pasta arrives overcooked and drowning in sauce. With some serious recipe development and quality ingredients, these convenient Italian options could actually become respectable.
17. Papa John’s Garlic Sauce
Papa John’s signature garlic sauce has developed a cult following despite being essentially liquid margarine with garlic flavoring. This could be transformed into something truly special.
A real garlic butter sauce with fresh herbs would elevate their entire pizza experience. Their breadsticks and pizza crusts would benefit enormously from an authentic garlic sauce upgrade.
18. Panera’s Italian Sandwiches
Panera’s attempts at Italian sandwiches fall flat compared to authentic offerings. Their meatball sandwich features bland, uniform meatballs with sauce that lacks depth.
The Italian sandwich contains processed meats without the complexity of real Italian salumi. Panera could transform these mediocre offerings into legitimate Italian-inspired options worth ordering.
19. Pizza Hut’s Italian Menu
They venture beyond pizza into pasta territory have consistently underwhelmed. Their pasta dishes arrive in strange bread bowl configurations that get soggy immediately.
The sauce tastes overly processed and lacks fresh herb notes. With some serious culinary development, Pizza Hut could create pasta offerings that complement their pizza rather than feeling like sad afterthoughts on the menu.
20. Subway’s Italian Subs
Italian-style subs bear little resemblance to authentic Italian sandwiches. The meats taste processed and lack the distinctive flavors of real Italian salumi.
Their marinara sauce for meatball subs tastes suspiciously like sweetened ketchup. With better quality ingredients and authentic recipes, Subway could transform these mediocre offerings into legitimate Italian sandwich options that respect the tradition.