This Is Hands-Down The Best Olive Garden Appetizer You Can Order

Since its founding in 1982, Olive Garden has made a name for itself with all-you-can-eat breadsticks, generous hospitality, tasty pasta, and even a wide array of entrees that aren't pasta that keep customers coming back for more. In the 40+ years since its birth in Orlando, Florida, Olive Garden has not only expanded to over 900 locations, but the restaurant has also created a massive footprint in pop culture, appearing in sketches on Saturday Night Live, tongue-in-cheek punk songs, and an extended bit where Jimmy Fallon ended up owning the rights to the catchphrase "When you're here, you're family." Marketing and sheer volume of locations has a lot to do with the chain's ubiquitousness, but none of that would matter if the restaurant didn't serve some pretty good food. All good meals start with a bang, which is why we highly recommend you kick your Olive Garden meal off with the toasted ravioli appetizer.

We ranked eight of Olive Garden's appetizers and found some hits and misses. While we were incredibly disappointed with the calamari and ranked it last, the hearty and delicious toasted ravioli took the crown. The square raviolis are filled with beef, breaded, and fried then served alongside the chain's signature marinara sauce, which proves to be the perfect complementary dip. "If I had to pick just one Olive Garden app to order again, it would be this," we wrote. "Who knew finger-food ravioli could taste so good?"

Toasted ravioli was born in St. Louis and it severs as a great example of how American tastes have been applied to Italian cuisine, so it makes sense that its become a star on the menu of Olive Garden. In our review of the appetizer we found the beef filling to be the most intriguing part of the dish, so much so that our reviewer wished there was more beef-filled ravioli to be had on the menu. "It's the meat that really makes this app," we wrote. "Each bite is laced with plenty of umami, and the beef is rich."

We weren't the only ones to love the toasted ravioli. On Yelp, a reviewer took a similar tour of apps and came to the same conclusion: "I order the create a sampler appetizer. Calamari and stuffed mushrooms were good, but my favorite was the toasted beef ravioli. I'd go back for that again." On Instagram, foodies are sharing similar takes including "Toasted Ravioli at the Olive Garden are out of this world delicious," and "Wow! This is by far my favorite appetizer I've tried so far from Olive Garden."

The toasted ravioli app will get you started on the right foot, but what's a meal without a great dessert? After ranking every Olive Garden dessert, we suggest bookending those raviolis with the warm Italian doughnuts. Buon appetito!