Fibresteve
Regular Member
My family and I were were enjoying a nice meal at Olive Garden in Vancouver last Friday night (November 15th). We were nearly finished and had just turned down dessert when asked by our server when the manager came to our table and politely asked me to put my firearm in my vehicle. I asked him if there was a problem and he said that they don't allow guns in the restaurant. Knowing ahead of time that this is not true (Darden, Olive Garden's parent company follows state law in all of their restaurants and allows CC and OC) I asked him if he knows Darden's corporate policy. He just said that they don't allow guns in their restaurants. I said OK and proceeded to get up and head to the car and leave my firearm in it. While I was walking out with the manager he said he was sorry for the inconvenience and would pay for our entire meal. He also stated that "I am sure you have a concealed weapons permit" I told him that is irrelevant due to the fact that I was OC. When I returned to my family inside the restaurant the manager was once again at our table apologizing for the inconvenience and stated he would pay for our meal. After that I looked at my wife and said that we are ordering dessert after all! I got the managers business card and once again informed him that Olive Garden's corporate policy was that they allow CC and OC. He said restaurant policy was no guns. Even for LEO (yeah right!). I told him I would be contacting Darden, Olive Garden's parent company, regarding this. He said if I prove him wrong he would by another meal there also. He was actuall very kind and polite. I just didn't like the fact that he didn't know his own companies policy.
So today I called Darden and talked to Nicole and I asked her what their policy regarding firearms in their restaurants was. She immediately told me it was to follow state law. Just as I thought. I told her what had happened and she is going to have her regional manager call me back within 24 hours. She did ask if there was alcohol at the table and I said yes (wife had one drink and I had one beer). She said usually when there is alcohol at the table then you can not have a firearm. If I am correct in WA state you CAN consume alcohol in a restaurant and carry, just not in a bar where minors are not permitted. She was very pleasant and said she would look into that and get back to me. Both the manager and customer relations were very polite and professional. It was just very embarrassing and inconvenient for me to have to get up and leave my family to put my gun in the car. Not to mention I don't like leaving a loaded firearm unattended in my vehicle. I am anxiously awaiting the response from the regional manager and am looking forward to another free meal at Olive Garden!
Here is Darden's statement from June of this year regarding firearms in their restaurants that I got form 2Acheck.com
Dear (2ACheck):
Our guests’ safety is our number one priority and we are committed to delighting all of our guests with an outstanding dining experience.
If a state or local government allows or does not specifically ban weapons (concealed and/or open) in restaurants that serve alcohol, we don’t ban them either. Even if businesses are allowed to “opt out” by posting signage indicating weapons are not allowed, we don’t believe in implementing procedures that conflict with what the state or local government intends. Our company has faced this situation in several cities and there haven’t been any issues from not posting an “opt out” sign.
We do not allow employees to carry weapons while working. However, if state or local laws allow employees to keep a weapon in their personal vehicle while on the job, we follow the law as written.
These policies are the same for all the brands in Darden Restaurants’ portfolio, and as with all of our company policies they are not subject to an individual manager’s discretion. If you were to see a “no guns” sign in a Darden restaurant where concealed and/or open-carry weapons are legally allowed, please contact our Guest Relations Department at 1-800-562-7837 and we will follow up with that restaurant management team.
I hope this answers your questions, (2ACheck), and we hope to see you in one of our restaurants soon!
We appreciate the time you took to contact us.
Sincerely,
Shari
Red Lobster Guest Relations
So today I called Darden and talked to Nicole and I asked her what their policy regarding firearms in their restaurants was. She immediately told me it was to follow state law. Just as I thought. I told her what had happened and she is going to have her regional manager call me back within 24 hours. She did ask if there was alcohol at the table and I said yes (wife had one drink and I had one beer). She said usually when there is alcohol at the table then you can not have a firearm. If I am correct in WA state you CAN consume alcohol in a restaurant and carry, just not in a bar where minors are not permitted. She was very pleasant and said she would look into that and get back to me. Both the manager and customer relations were very polite and professional. It was just very embarrassing and inconvenient for me to have to get up and leave my family to put my gun in the car. Not to mention I don't like leaving a loaded firearm unattended in my vehicle. I am anxiously awaiting the response from the regional manager and am looking forward to another free meal at Olive Garden!
Here is Darden's statement from June of this year regarding firearms in their restaurants that I got form 2Acheck.com
Dear (2ACheck):
Our guests’ safety is our number one priority and we are committed to delighting all of our guests with an outstanding dining experience.
If a state or local government allows or does not specifically ban weapons (concealed and/or open) in restaurants that serve alcohol, we don’t ban them either. Even if businesses are allowed to “opt out” by posting signage indicating weapons are not allowed, we don’t believe in implementing procedures that conflict with what the state or local government intends. Our company has faced this situation in several cities and there haven’t been any issues from not posting an “opt out” sign.
We do not allow employees to carry weapons while working. However, if state or local laws allow employees to keep a weapon in their personal vehicle while on the job, we follow the law as written.
These policies are the same for all the brands in Darden Restaurants’ portfolio, and as with all of our company policies they are not subject to an individual manager’s discretion. If you were to see a “no guns” sign in a Darden restaurant where concealed and/or open-carry weapons are legally allowed, please contact our Guest Relations Department at 1-800-562-7837 and we will follow up with that restaurant management team.
I hope this answers your questions, (2ACheck), and we hope to see you in one of our restaurants soon!
We appreciate the time you took to contact us.
Sincerely,
Shari
Red Lobster Guest Relations
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