Before & After: Olive Garden's New Logo

Olive Garden is well known as the restaurant chain of Italian-American fast casual dining cuisine, which touts an endless supply of bread sticks and salads to their customers. During an investor presentation this month, the owners of Olive Garden announced that with, “same-restaurant sales lagging Knapp-Track ratings recently,” they are, “implementing a comprehensive brand renaissance plan to regain momentum,” that includes a completely redesigned logo. In this era of simplified design, staying relevant to your target consumers while attracting new consumers is not a simple task to undertake. After carefully reviewing the new logo, we see it as clean, fresh, and appealing, but question whether it will appeal to the consumers that Olive Garden are aiming to reach. What do you think? Please share your thoughts below.

Before & After: Logo

After:

Olive Garden's Logo Detail 

Olive Garden's New Logo Implementation Restaurant Signage.

Source: Darden Strategic Action Plan to Enhance Shareholders Value, Spring 2014