Recipe for Copycat Olive Garden Salad and Dressing (So Easy!)

Do you love Olive Garden’s famous house salad? Learn how simple this Copycat Olive Garden Salad Recipe is to make at home so you can enjoy your favorite flavors without the cost of eating out! Includes a homemade version of Olive Garden Dressing, too.

Copycat Olive Garden Salad Recipe

A favorite restaurant copycat dish of ours is this recipe for Olive Garden’s salad dressing.

Our recipe is creamy and tangy, just like the original, so now you can enjoy this famous salad from the comfort of your own home with just a quick trip to the grocery store!

When my kids were younger, eating out on a budget wasn’t too terribly difficult, even for our family of seven. One of our favorite restaurants has always been the Olive Garden.

To the kids, it was affectionately known to our family as “The Grape Place.” That’s what the kids called it when they were very young based on their familiar logo.

Big portions of pasta, unlimited soups, and endless bowls of salad and baskets of breadsticks make for a hearty meal and went a long way with our large family.

But as time marches on, one by one my kids are starting to graduate from the children’s menu to the regular menu, and we’re finding out that a meal out can put quite a dent in our finances.

And that’s why we’ve started trying to recreate some of our favorite dining out dishes, like this Copycat Olive Garden Salad, at home.

It’s delicious poured over a big bowl of salad greens, topped with red onion, black olives, Roma tomato, tangy pepperoncini peppers, and your favorite croutons.

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What is in Olive Garden Salad?

You’ll need ingredients to make the salad itself as well as the homemade dressing:

Olive Garden salad ingredients:

• Bag of salad mix or romaine lettuce and iceberg lettuce mix
• Red Onion Slices
• Black Olives
• Pepperoncini Peppers
• Sliced Roma Tomato or Plum Tomatoes
• Croutons (I like these Garlicky Croutons)
• Grated Romano Cheese

And for the copycat Olive Garden Dressing Recipe, you’ll need:

• Mayonnaise
• White Wine Vinegar or White Vinegar
• Granulated Sugar
• Lemon Lemon Juice
• Water
• Romano Cheese
• Extra-Virgin Olive oil
• Seasoning (Italian seasoning, parsley, garlic flakes)

For the complete ingredient list and detailed instructions to make a copycat Olive Garden salad, scroll to the bottom of this post for the FREE printable recipe card.

Olive Garden Salad Recipe Make Ahead Ideas

• The Olive Garden salad dressing can be made up to 2 days in advance. Then, store the homemade dressing in the refrigerator in an airtight container, such as a mason jar.
• If you plan on using homemade croutons, you can make your croutons up to 2 days in advance and store them in a zip top bag at room temperature. Just make sure to let the croutons cool completely first. (Try these Homemade Sourdough Croutons – croutons are really easy to make and it is a great way to use up leftover bread that has maybe gone slightly stale.)
• Veggies can be prepped in advance: lettuce washed and dried and stored in a bag with a paper towel, onions sliced and stored in an airtight container, roma tomatoes sliced and stored in an airtight container.

Recipe Variations

• Use halved cherry tomatoes instead of roma tomatoes if that is what you have on hand.
• For extra veggies, add sliced cucumber to the salad.
• For a different delicious dressing, try our homemade Caesar dressing.
• Add sliced, grilled chicken for a light, delicious meal. We like to use this easy recipe for balsamic chicken marinade before grilling. ​

Olive Garden Salad FAQs

Got questions about how to make this Olive Garden salad recipe? Here are the answers to a few commonly asked questions. Feel free to leave any other questions in the comments on this post and I’ll respond with answers.

What cheese does Olive Garden use?

I have heard that Olive Garden uses Romano cheese in their rotary graters.

What can I substitute for Romano cheese?

If you don’t have (or can’t find) Romano cheese, you can easily use parmesan in its place.

What lettuce does Olive Garden use?

Olive Garden uses Iceberg lettuce in their famous salad. However, at home, we usually use Romaine, a mix of Iceberg and Romaine, or a bagged garden salad mix.

What should I do with leftover salad?

If you don’t think you’ll use all of the salad, I recommend serving the homemade olive garden dressing on the side rather than tossing the salad with the dressing.

Then, you can store any leftover salad in the refrigerator in an airtight container without it getting soggy.

How long does the homemade dressing last?

Note that the dressing recipe listed makes enough for about four big bowls of salad.

If you have leftovers, store it in an airtight container in the fridge (it’ll last for about a week). You can use it on other salads, or as a marinade for grilled chicken.

What to Serve with this Olive Garden Salad

Wondering what you should serve with your copycat Olive Garden Salad? Any of your favorite Italian Recipes would be great, but here are some of my main entree suggestions for a delicious meal:

If you’re a fan of Olive Garden’s Zuppa Toscana, you may want to try this creamy and rich Italian Sausage and Kale Soup (known as Zuppa Toscana) to serve alongside your Olive Garden Salad. It is one of my favorite soup recipes!

This Italian Beef Ragu with Pappardelle would also pair nicely with Olive Garden’s famous house salad. The rich meat sauce complements the tangy dressing perfectly!

This recipe for Alfredo Pasta is another popular recipe to serve alongside this Olive Garden Copycat Salad.

For an even easier main dish, make this One Skillet Baked Ziti. It comes together in 30 minutes and would go well with this Olive Garden salad.

Add a few slices of this savory rustic homemade bread for a delicious comforting Italian dinner at home for a fraction of the cost of eating out. This bread recipe also makes great garlic bread!

Try this Olive Garden Salad Recipe at Home!

Next time you’re craving Olive Garden’s amazing salad, consider preparing it at home instead using this copycat dressing and delicious salad.

Recreating copycat versions of restaurant favorites is the perfect way to spend less going out. The best part is this recipe is one that’s easy to prepare!

On Instagram? Share your photo and tag me @goodlifeeats and #goodlifeeatsrecipes. I’d love to see your photo of this Copycat Olive Garden Salad!

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Post Information: This Olive Garden Salad Recipe was originally written on 2/27/13 by Tara of Unsophisticook. It has been edited by Good Life Eats to include additional information and new photos. Photography: photos taken in this post are by Rachael from Set the Table.