Olive Garden Chicken Piccata: What’s on the Plate and How to Order It
Looking for Olive Garden Chicken Piccata? Plenty of diners search for this lemony chicken plate before they order. The catch: most U.S. menus don’t list it right now. This guide covers what’s in it, how it tastes, how it compares with similar chicken dishes and what to check before you go.
For the full restaurant lineup, start with our Olive Garden menu with prices.
Key facts
- Chicken Piccata is grilled chicken in a lemon garlic butter sauce with sun-dried tomatoes and capers.
- Past U.S. menus served it with Parmesan-crusted zucchini.
- Olive Garden’s U.S. nutrition guide, updated August 31, 2026, doesn’t list it.
- Check your local menu before you plan on it.
- It skips pasta and cream sauce, unlike Chicken Alfredo or Chicken Scampi.
- Prices vary by location.
Is Chicken Piccata Still on the Olive Garden Menu?
Short answer: probably not at your restaurant, but check.
Olive Garden’s current U.S. nutrition guide covers the regular menu, and Chicken Piccata isn’t in it. The guide notes that it can leave out regional items and test products. Some third-party local menus still show the dish, and Olive Garden’s Costa Rica menu lists a version served with Parmesan garlic broccoli.
So don’t count on it tonight. Open your local Olive Garden dinner menu, pick your restaurant in the Olive Garden app, or ask the host. If it’s gone where you live, try Grilled Chicken Margherita or Chicken Scampi.
Tip: Call ahead or check the app for your exact restaurant. Menus change by market, and regional dishes come and go faster than the big classics.
What’s in Olive Garden Chicken Piccata?
Here’s the plate past U.S. menus described:
- Grilled chicken breast
- Lemon garlic butter sauce
- Sun-dried tomatoes
- Capers
- Parmesan-crusted zucchini on the side
Capers bring a briny pop. Lemon and garlic keep the sauce bright. Sun-dried tomatoes add a sweet, chewy bite. The kitchen grills the chicken instead of breading it like Chicken Parmigiana. Some menus pair it with broccoli instead of zucchini, so ask what your restaurant serves.
Does the Sauce Have Cream or Wine?
Olive Garden’s menu copy names butter, garlic and lemon, with no mention of cream or wine. Home copycat recipes often add wine, broth or a splash of cream. Butter sits in the sauce, so ask your server if you need a dairy-free plate.
What Does Olive Garden Chicken Piccata Taste Like?
Expect bright and savory, not heavy. Lemon hits first, then garlic. Capers add salt and tang. Sun-dried tomatoes soften the sharpness. The grilled chicken stays firm, and the zucchini soaks up the sauce.
If you want rich cream, pick Chicken Alfredo or Chicken Scampi. If you want a lemon garlic sauce without capers, Grilled Chicken Margherita comes closer.
Chicken Piccata vs Chicken Scampi vs Marsala
These three chicken dishes sit near each other in diner searches. They don’t taste the same.
| Dish | Sauce and style | Served with | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken Piccata | Lemon garlic butter, capers and sun-dried tomatoes. Bright and salty. | Parmesan-crusted zucchini (past menus) | Not in current guide |
| Chicken Scampi | Creamy scampi sauce with bell peppers and red onions. Richer. | Angel hair pasta | 1,050 |
| Stuffed Chicken Marsala | Creamy Marsala wine and mushroom sauce. Earthy and a bit sweet. | Mashed potatoes | 1,170 |
Pick Piccata when you want citrus and a lighter plate. Pick Scampi when you want pasta and cream. Pick Marsala when you want mushrooms and a deeper wine sauce. Our Chicken Scampi guide covers the creamy option in more detail.
Lunch Portion and What Comes With It
When restaurants carried Chicken Piccata, many offered lunch and dinner sizes. Lunch is a smaller portion at a lower weekday price. Dinner is the full entrée.
Dine-in entrées come with the never-ending first course: soup or salad plus warm breadsticks. That helps round out a lighter plate. Check the Olive Garden lunch menu for your restaurant’s weekday cutoff.
| Portion | What you usually get | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Lunch Chicken Piccata | Smaller grilled chicken plate with lemon sauce and a vegetable side | Check your local menu |
| Dinner Chicken Piccata | Full entrée with lemon sauce and a vegetable side | Check your local menu |
| Soup or salad and breadsticks | Never-ending first course with dine-in entrées | Included |
Price of Olive Garden Chicken Piccata
We won’t invent a dollar figure. Local menus set the price, and it changes. Your receipt is the only number that counts.
Want a deal around it? Check current Olive Garden specials and the 2 for $25 menu. Ask your server if Piccata qualifies that day.
Calories and Nutrition
Olive Garden’s current U.S. nutrition guide doesn’t include Chicken Piccata, so we can’t confirm a current calorie count. Older menus listed lunch and dinner figures, and calorie trackers still quote them. Those numbers may not match today’s recipe, so we leave them out.
Want a lighter plate with current numbers? These dinner entrées come from the August 2026 guide:
| Dinner entrée | Calories | Sodium |
|---|---|---|
| Shrimp Scampi | 490 | 1,120 mg |
| Herb-Grilled Salmon | 610 | 1,360 mg |
| Grilled Chicken Margherita | 650 | 2,120 mg |
Breadsticks, dressing and soup add up fast. A breadstick with garlic topping has 140 calories, and one serving of house salad with Signature Italian Dressing has 150. Log the entrée and first course separately if you track macros. Our Olive Garden nutrition information page has the full breakdown.
Tip: Ask for dressing on the side and keep breadsticks to one or two if you want a lighter meal.
Is Olive Garden Chicken Piccata Gluten-Free?
Treat it as not gluten-free unless your server confirms otherwise.
Classic piccata recipes dredge chicken in flour. Olive Garden’s current gluten-sensitive menu lists other grilled items, such as Herb-Grilled Salmon and Grilled Chicken Parmigiana, but not Piccata. Kitchens also share equipment. If you avoid gluten, read our gluten-free menu guide and tell your server before you order.
Allergy note: Chicken Piccata comes with a butter sauce and, on past menus, Parmesan on the zucchini, so expect milk. Wheat can show up from a flour dredge or shared prep surfaces, and cross-contact can happen. Check the Olive Garden allergen menu and speak up about any allergy when you sit down.
Who Should Order Chicken Piccata?
Order it if you want grilled chicken that isn’t buried in cream, plus lemon, garlic and a salty caper bite. It leaves room for breadsticks or dessert.
Skip it if you dislike capers or strong lemon, want a big pasta bowl (see the Olive Garden pasta menu or Shrimp Alfredo), or need a confirmed gluten-free entrée tonight.
Can You Get Chicken Piccata To Go?
If your restaurant still serves it, you can usually order it for pickup or Olive Garden delivery. Reheat it gently so the lemon butter doesn’t separate.
Olive Garden’s catering pans center on lasagna, Alfredo, Chicken Parmigiana and other pastas, and Piccata isn’t one of them. Check Olive Garden family meals if you’re feeding a group and need a sure thing.
Copycat Recipe Notes
Diners search for an Olive Garden Chicken Piccata recipe all the time. At home, the usual build is thin chicken cutlets, a light flour dusting, then a pan sauce with butter, garlic, lemon, broth, sun-dried tomatoes and capers. Some cooks finish with cream. It can get close, but it won’t match every kitchen. Confirm your restaurant still serves the real plate before you drive over.
Ordering Tips
- Confirm the dish on your local menu first.
- Ask what vegetable comes with it today.
- Keep soup or salad going if you want a fuller meal around a lighter entrée.
- If Piccata is gone, ask for Grilled Chicken Margherita or Chicken Scampi instead.
- Mention allergies before you order.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Olive Garden still have Chicken Piccata?
Most U.S. restaurants don’t list it. Olive Garden’s U.S. nutrition guide, updated August 31, 2026, leaves it out. Check your local menu or the app before you go.
What comes with Olive Garden Chicken Piccata?
Past menus described grilled chicken in lemon garlic butter sauce with sun-dried tomatoes and capers, plus Parmesan-crusted zucchini. Dine-in entrées also include soup or salad and breadsticks.
How many calories are in Olive Garden Chicken Piccata?
Olive Garden’s current U.S. nutrition guide doesn’t list Chicken Piccata, so we can’t confirm a current figure. Breadsticks and dressing add calories on top of any entrée.
How much does Olive Garden Chicken Piccata cost?
Prices vary by location and by lunch or dinner portion. Check your local menu.
Is Chicken Piccata the same as Chicken Scampi at Olive Garden?
No. Piccata is lemon butter with capers and a vegetable side. Scampi is a creamy sauce over angel hair with bell peppers and red onions.
Does Olive Garden Chicken Piccata have pasta?
No. Past menus served it with zucchini or another vegetable, not pasta.
Is there a lunch size?
Many restaurants that carried it offered a weekday lunch portion. Confirm hours on the Olive Garden lunch menu.
Can I get it without capers?
Ask your server. Capers define the sauce, so leaving them out changes the dish.
Final Thoughts on Olive Garden Chicken Piccata
Olive Garden Chicken Piccata is the bright, lemony grilled chicken option when your restaurant serves it. Capers and sun-dried tomatoes set it apart from creamy Scampi and earthy Marsala. Confirm it’s on your local menu, then enjoy it with soup or salad and breadsticks. For everything else, browse our Olive Garden menu with prices.
Planning Your Order?
Check the calories or browse the full menu before you go.
Disclaimer: theolivegardenmenu.com is an independent, unofficial guide. Olive Garden and Darden Restaurants don’t run, endorse or sponsor this site. Menu items, deals and prices may vary by location and can change at any time.
