The U.S. State That Has The Highest Percentage Of Olive Garden Restaurants
Olive Garden: when you're there, you're family. Olive Garden is an ubiquitous restaurant chain in the United States, offering inexpensive Italian favorites and the never-ending pasta pass to families across the country. There are Olive Garden restaurants in every single U.S. state (though territories are another story — we'll get to that later); however, some states have more than others. Much more.
Among other facts about Olive Garden, if you've ever wondered which state takes the black tie mousse cake for number of Olive Gardens per capita, look no further. According to data from ScrapeHero, Texas comes out on top, with 106 Olive Gardens total: That's one OG per 273,547 people and 12% of the total Olive Gardens in the entire country. That's a sizable jump from the second-highest state, California, which only boasts 78 Olive Gardens — that's 9% of the country's total, or one restaurant for every 506,564 people.
The cities with the most Olive Gardens are Houston and San Antonio, with 11 and 10 locations respectively, within city limits.
The states that love Olive Garden
Looking at the top ten list of states with the most Olive Gardens, it's fairly easy to pinpoint a pattern. In order, the list goes as follows: Texas, California, Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina, New York, and Virginia. Almost all of these states, save for Virginia, are on the list for top ten states with the highest populations as well. It stands to reason that the more people who live in a state, the more Olive Gardens (and soup, salad, and breadsticks) are needed to feed them.
When it comes specifically to cities, though, there are some outliers. Las Vegas takes the number four spot for most Olive Gardens in a city for obvious reasons: There are plenty of casual chains in Vegas to feed the thousands of casino-goers that need fuel. Another standout with less of an explanation? Saint Paul, Minnesota, which comes in sixth on the list with four Olive Gardens within city limits.
The places you can't find Olive Garden
While every U.S. state does have at least one Olive Garden, there are a few territories on the map that, sadly, have none. Perhaps the most surprising is Washington, D.C. — the nation's capital does not have a single Olive Garden inside its borders. As a major metropolitan city, it's a little surprising that D.C. doesn't have a single Olive Garden. There's also no Red Lobster, Applebees, or many of the other casual chains you might expect.
You won't find Olive Garden in American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, or the Northern Mariana Islands either. You can, however, catch two of them in Anchorage, Alaska, as well as multiple locations throughout Puerto Rico and Hawaii. Throughout the country, you (usually) will never be too far from a location when it's the best time to eat at Olive Garden — but in Texas, your next bowl of alfredo might be closer than you think.