Enough memes have been made about terribly cooked spaghetti that would make any Italian person cringe. But this American host mom decided to ramp up the ante and bring her Italian exchange student to The Olive Garden.
TikTok user alessandro.salimei posted a clip that details his experience at The Olive Garden. For those unaware, Olive Garden serves American-Italian fusion food—basically, what many Italians would consider a nightmare to consume. Ready-made breadsticks, heavy cream-based Alfredo, fried ravioli—this is definitely not Italian. But that’s exactly what Alessandro was confronted with when he dined with his host mom at Olive Garden.
Alessandro was skeptical about the alfredo as a breadstick dip. But when he took a bite, he was pleasantly surprised to find out that the combination worked. He proceeded with the ravioli and was initially mortified to see it fried—but thought the experimental dish was “interesting” after a taste.
The real kicker was when he tried the calamari, finally admitting that the dishes were “good.” After a satisfying cheese pull with the mozzarella, he confessed, “This is not fair. I feel like I’m betraying Italy.”
In his perspective, Olive Garden broke the rules when it comes to Italian cooking. So how could something so sinful be so good?
Food doesn’t have to be authentic to be delicious
One user on X writes, “The trick to enjoying Olive Garden is to remind oneself that it is not really Italian. It is just… The Olive Garden.”
A TikTok user comments on the original video, “Olive Garden is like Taco Bell. It’s not authentic at all, but it’s sooooo good.”
Everyone is interested in eating the most authentic versions of every cuisine—but food doesn’t have to be faithful to tradition for it to be delicious. Panda Express can’t be called authentic to Yangzhou’s flavor profiles, but it’s still what people order for dinner after a long and busy day at work.
Fusion cuisine isn’t degeneracy—it’s just another way to appreciate, enjoy, and rediscover dishes people have long fallen in love with.
(featured image: TikTok)
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