Olive Garden Italian Restaurants Restaurant Manager Interview Questions | Glassdoor
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    Olive Garden Italian Restaurants Restaurant Manager Interview Questions

    Interviews at Olive Garden Italian Restaurants

    15 Interview Reviews

    Experience

    Experience
    54%
    13%
    33%

    Getting an Interview

    Getting an Interview
    37%
    21%
    21%
    21

    Difficulty

    2.9
    Average

    Difficulty

    Hard
    Average
    Easy

    Interviews for Top Jobs at Olive Garden Italian Restaurants

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    Helpful (1)  

    Restaurant Manager Interview

    Anonymous Employee in Richmond, VA
    Accepted Offer
    Negative Experience
    Average Interview

    Application

    I applied through other source. The process took 5 weeks. I interviewed at Olive Garden Italian Restaurants (Richmond, VA) in April 2015.

    Interview

    Facetime Interview - Sold the job as an "amazing family organization" Quality of life and growth! (Proved to be the opposite) 2nd interview with Director at a restaurant. Casual conversations. Drug test / background/ offer / start weeks later

    Interview Questions

    • Facetime interview, standards tell me a time stuff / interview 2 just casual convo about 30 minutes   Answer Question

    Negotiation

    47,000 - Ask for at least $50 or for $5k more than you're looking for. Darden pays well. Managers $45-50 , Gm around $56k

    Other Interview Reviews for Olive Garden Italian Restaurants

    1.  

      Restaurant Manager Interview

      Anonymous Employee in Houston, TX
      Accepted Offer
      Positive Experience
      Difficult Interview

      Application

      I applied online. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at Olive Garden Italian Restaurants (Houston, TX) in April 2012.

      Interview

      It is a four step process. 1) Online interview 2) Online evaluation 3) Face to face meeting with Director 4) Phone interview with Corporate Hiring Manager. There is also a drug test involved (which is paid by the company) and a background check

      Interview Questions

    2. Helpful (3)  

      Restaurant Manager Interview

      Anonymous Employee in New York, NY
      Accepted Offer
      Positive Experience
      Average Interview

      Application

      I applied online. The process took 3+ months. I interviewed at Olive Garden Italian Restaurants (New York, NY) in April 2016.

      Interview

      I applied back in February and the whole process took 3 months until my first day. straight forward i was given an assessment test, 2 phone interviews, face to face interview (2hrs) and then discuss offer back to back and wait for final offer 24 hours later. Is a long process, but was worth it and the salary we both agreed on was more than i asked, so it worked out at the end. Overall like i said it was a long process but nothing difficult if you know the job well and do your homework before interviews.

      Interview Questions

      • performance and waste goes hand in hand and many questions were asked about that specific topic.   Answer Question
      3. Join the Olive Garden Italian Restaurants team
      See Our Latest Jobs

    3.  

      Restaurant Manager Interview

      Anonymous Employee in Topeka, KS
      Accepted Offer
      Negative Experience
      Easy Interview

      Application

      I applied through a recruiter. The process took a week. I interviewed at Olive Garden Italian Restaurants (Topeka, KS) in June 2012.

      Interview

      I was recruited from my previous job. I had one face to face interview with the district manager and was hired. Standard math test (easy), personality and drug tests. I had been in the industry for almost 10 yrs so I was expecting the usual phone interview, face to face, shadow shift and offer process. Not the case there for me...

      Interview Questions

      • Length of time in the industry? Strengths? Weaknesses?
        Successes? Very generic...   Answer Question

      Negotiation

      They offered to match my current salary and misled me about where my store was and what needed to be accomplished. The bonus structure was not clearly laid out to me. I mentioned what I was currently getting bonus wise and the DM said beating it would be a breeze.

    4.  

      Restaurant Manager Interview

      Anonymous Employee in Hickory, NC
      Accepted Offer
      Neutral Experience
      Difficult Interview

      Application

      I applied in-person. The process took 5 days. I interviewed at Olive Garden Italian Restaurants (Hickory, NC) in March 2011.

      Interview

      It was professional and real. They asked a lot of questions, about myself. They told me who they are as a company and asked I am a person that would fit in there. They let me know what they expected for my position. It was intense but comfortable at the same time.

      Interview Questions

      • What type of person do you consider yourself to be   1 Answer

    5.  

      Restaurant Manager Interview

      Anonymous Employee in Atlanta, GA
      Accepted Offer
      Positive Experience
      Difficult Interview

      Application

      I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Olive Garden Italian Restaurants (Atlanta, GA) in February 2011.

      Interview

      Started with a phone interview with a person at corporate. Then an interview with the director of operations. After that they called you to set up drug screen and do a background check. It was a rough interview but it taught me a lot.

      Interview Questions

    6.  

      Restaurant Manager Interview

      Anonymous Employee
      Accepted Offer
      Positive Experience
      Average Interview

      Application

      I applied in-person. The process took 4+ weeks. I interviewed at Olive Garden Italian Restaurants in August 2012.

      Interview

      I was an internal promotion so area director had one on one with me and then I completed online application. For area director to be interested in promoting me I was an opening restaurant certified trainer, completed projects for the restaurant and researched how we could improve metrics of guest satisfaction. I was working toward management for a couple years until I was actually approached about moving forward. Once the process started the hiring director then had a phone interview and regional manager in area I applied had a phone interview with me as well. The interviews with both of them discussed how I would separate my mindset from being a team member to being a manager, how I would create a diverse and engaging work environment, and why I wanted to pursue a future in management/what long term goals I had for my development in the company.

      Interview Questions

      • How I would bridge the gap between culinary and service teams to create a cohesive team.   1 Answer

    7.  

      Restaurant Manager Interview

      Anonymous Employee in Orlando, FL
      Accepted Offer
      Positive Experience
      Average Interview

      Application

      I applied through other source. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at Olive Garden Italian Restaurants (Orlando, FL).

      Interview

      My interview process was different, in that I was promoted from being a tipped/hourly team member. I had to demonstrate my qualifications, and genuinely wanting the position, by completing a few eligibility programs and helping open two new restaurant locations. I had to interview with both the HR manager and the Director of Operations for that region.

      Interview Questions

      • The most difficult question asked was regarding food/labor cost percentages and how I managed, or would manage, those costs.   Answer Question

      Negotiation

      Being an internal promote, there was no negotiation phase for me.

    8. Helpful (6)  

      Restaurant Manager Interview

      Anonymous Interview Candidate in Fort Worth, TX
      No Offer
      Negative Experience
      Easy Interview

      Application

      I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Olive Garden Italian Restaurants (Fort Worth, TX) in October 2014.

      Interview

      I had already successfully passed the online assessment from a prior application so I was contacted by an district manager for an on site interview. We met in one of the stores. It was a casual format and we talked for some time. There were questions about leadership style, problem solving, etc. nothing very difficult. It seemed to go well, to the point of discussing which stores were best for me.
       I then met with the general manager of the unit. After being shown the restaurant I was told by the area director that he would personally contact me in the next 2-3 days.
      After a week went by I followed up via phone. I was told something entirely different this time. I consider the experience very unprofessional especially given that Darden is so highly regarded in the business. It is okay to say we are not interested in you, it is NOT okay to lead me on and then tell
      me a fish story.

    9. Helpful (1)  

      Restaurant Manager Interview

      Anonymous Interview Candidate in Houston, TX
      No Offer
      Negative Experience
      Easy Interview

      Application

      I applied in-person. The process took 1 day. I interviewed at Olive Garden Italian Restaurants (Houston, TX) in January 2010.

      Interview

      very formal like reading from a book , people interviewing have no personality and very stern hiring and interview was very easy as they are eager to hire people due to short staff all the time

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