I went to Olive Garden for lunch with co-workers and got the soup/salad lunch thing and I'm just wondering about how to count the salad. In the WW online tracker it says One Serving of the salad (w/o dressing) is 3 pts and One Serving of the dressing is 5.

I'm thinking that has to be for the entire salad, right? I mean, despite the big bowl they serve it in, there's really not a lot of volume. And I was sharing it with two other people and certainly didn't eat a whole salad by myself but I don't know if I should err on the side of caution, especially with the dressing.

The minestrone soup and the two breadsticks are easy to count, I'm just not sure what to do about the salad, so any advice would be appreciated

One serving of salad is not the whole bowlful at Olive Garden. It's about 2 cups. You also could have asked for their fat free dressing and saved 4 of those points. The 2 breadsticks were 12 points.

No, the two breadsticks are 8 points. And I'm fine with those eight points. And with the regular dressing.

But thank you.

You can also go to the Olive Garden website where they have all the nutrition info listed and use your calculator to determine the points value. Unfortunately the dressing is high in fat and calories and they do offer a low fat version so keep that in mind for the next time you go. Also don't let them put the grated cheese on it.

I checked Olive Garden and it says "one serving" -- it just doesn't say how many servings are in a bowl.

I get 43 points per day. I'm okay with the cheese and the regular dressing. I just wasn't sure how to count the dressing, but if QuilterinVa is correct and it's about 2 cups, I had that and I checked the points in my point tracker on the website and I'm fine with the amount that I had.

Sorry, don't ya just hate that. I think I had the same problem with salad dressing I was trying to figure points for Panera Bread. I wish these places would make it easier for those of us who are trying to watch our waists.
Again, sorry I gave you bad info.

No, it wasn't bad info. That was one of the first places I checked, so it's perfectly reasonable to assume that it would be there

I've read before that there are 4 servings in one of those large bowls but I read that on another discussion forum not some official ww/olive garden page so no idea if that's true or not. Sheesh they sure don't make it easy to get some basic info.

I don't know about Olive Garden (never go there) but I get 32 points and I totally agree with you and would rather spend points for real salad dressing and bread and cheese. I just can't get with fat free this and low fat that. I'd rather have a smaller portion of the real thing. I actually think it is healthier for you in the long run.

Thank you! I mean, isn't that the point of WW? That we can eat the full-fat dressing every once in awhile and have a breadstick or two and still lose weight? I don't go out to eat everyday, let alone every week, and I planned my other meals today around the fact that I knew I'd be going out for lunch.

It is. I mean everyone can do WW in their own way but I try to eat real, whole food as much as possible. We like to go to Outback and I will get a salad with real, full-fat dressing, their delicious green beans and a steak and eat and enjoy it all. I'm not going to be that girl that orders a grilled chicken breast with no seasoning and a potato with no butter or sour cream a salad with fat free dressing on the side and a water. I think that sucks all the joy out of eating.
I still drink beer at 5 PP for 12 ounces. It is also totally worth it. It isn't every day but when I do have it let me tell you it is AWESOME lol.

I don't even want to think how many PP my normal cocktail would be, so I've started drinking rum and diet cokies when I got out. I'll have maybe one or two a week, depending, and they are SO worth the points for the rum!

I don't want to start an argument. BUT...
I would have agreed with you when I first joined WW. Since then, I have learned TONS of healthy habits, including strategies for eating out. I am "that" girl that orders a grilled chicken breast, or grilled salmon or grilled steak with no sauces, then I order extra steamed veggies, no butter or oil. I drink water w/ lemon and I'm totally fine with that, I ENJOY it! I LOVE it! And if I want to spend a few extra points, I share a dessert. I don't think there is anything wrong with that at all.

Well I think I did say that everyone does WW in their own way. If that works for you, fine. But it doesn't work for me. And it doesn't mean my habits are any less healthy, either, just that I choose to spend my points differently.