From the Wall Street Journal:

A surprise warning on earnings by Darden Restaurants Inc. suggests that sit-down restaurants will continue struggling through the fall after a dismal summer.

On Tuesday, the parent of Olive Garden and Red Lobster said its earnings for the fiscal first quarter ended Aug. 24 would be below Wall Street’s expectations, and lowered its profit forecast for the year ending May 31.

It’s another sign that the second-half econoic recovery of 2008 is more likely to be fantasy than reality. Offering all-you-can-eat breadsticks isn’t going to be enough as the consuming public tightens their collective beltstrings while watching inflation push up prices on food and fuel at the same time that any equity remaining in their homes vanishes.

I suppose we didn’t need all those carbs anyway.

Olive Garden 4, originally uploaded by eggrollboy.