Pros
Darden restaurants are the only ones I will consider working in any more, because (though not perfect) I feel that they do take necessary steps to take care of their employees. You receive much better training in a Darden restaurant than at any other kind of restaurant I've worked in, the management are overall on a higher level of caring and integrity, and my store in particular has AMAZINGLY responsive and caring managers who really want to help you to be happy with your job and give you the opportunity to succeed. In my store, we are served family meals every Saturday and sometimes Sunday, we are given the opportunity to have the restaurant supplement our tips in the event of a really cheap table (I had a guest leave me $5 on $200, and the restaurant made up the missing $35), and the managers are always very open and candid with us. It really is like a little family, and we all do our best to take care of each other.
Cons
Let's be perfectly fair, this is still a massive restaurant chain, and your experience is going to be different depending on which store you are in. I had a terrible experience at the Olive Garden I worked in, a mediocre experience at Bahama Breeze, and an excellent experience at Seasons 52. All of these brands are owned by Darden, and all of them have a very different business model. At the end of the day, you have to know and understand and be okay with the realities of working in restaurants to be happy here, and not every location is going to have awesome staff or awesome customers. Location is key, and your attitude is key. Darden remains on of the best restaurant companies I've ever worked for, but never forget that it is still a restaurant company.