If you really love pasta – and what's not to love about pasta? – there's a special day to celebrate it: National Pasta Day, Thursday, Oct. 17.

There are many kinds of pasta – from angel hair to ziti – and several types of pasta are among the favorite entrées in the U.S., according to YouGov's ranking of The Most Popular American Dishes. 

Lasagna is ranked No. 2 behind chocolate chip cookies (can't argue with that), earning an 82% popularity ranking. Spaghetti with meatballs comes in at No. 5 (80%), just ahead of burritos. Ravioli and macaroni and cheese land spots No. 7 (78%) and No. 8 (78%), respectively; pasta with tomato sauce is at No. 11 (75%).

There's no specific reason Oct. 17 has been designated as National Pasta Day, but that doesn't mean you can't observe it. Several restaurant chains across the U.S. including Olive Garden, Carrabba's, Noodles & Company and Fazoli's have specials.

Here's some of the free food deals and other specials on National Pasta Day. Don't forget to check with local restaurants for promotions, too. Just check their social media accounts.

Carrabba's National Pasta Day $10 Take Home deal

Dine in at Carrabba’s Italian Grill and when you order any entrée, you can take home another full-size entrée to have at home for $10.

Fazoli's: $10 for two entrées on National Pasta Day

On National Pasta Day at Fazoli’s, get two Spaghetti with Marinara or Meat Sauce or Fettuccine Alfredo entrées and two small drinks for $10. Deal good at participating locations; use the code Pasta24 or mention the deal.

Noodles & Company: Kids eat free

For National Pasta Day, you can take part in Noodles & Company's ongoing Kids Eat Free Every Day that Ends in "Y" deal. When you purchase any entrée you also get a free kids meal. Get the deal in restaurants or online using the code KIDSEATFREE.

Olive Garden: National Pasta Day means never ending pasta

National Pasta Day arrives in the midst of Olive Garden's Never Ending Pasta Bowl, which gets you endless pasta, "unlimited amounts" of breadsticks and soup or salad, at locations nationwide starting at $13.99. You can also add never-ending toppings for $4.99. The promotion runs until Nov. 17.

More National Pasta Day deals

• Barilla: To celebrate World Pasta Day, which is Oct. 25, the pasta maker has a contest to win a trip to reunite you with a loved one ($10,000 grand prize). Buy two boxes of Barilla pasta before Oct. 25, save your receipt and submit it on the Barilla website.
• Daily Harvest: The plant-based food purveyor has a National Pasta Day sale running Oct. 17-20. New subscribers can get 15% off multi-serve pasta packages with the code PASTA15 and 15% off the no-subscription-required Pasta Party bundle (usecode PASTABUNDLE).
• Rustichella d'Abruzzo: The artisanal Italian pasta maker, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, has among its current deals a free package of pumpkin pasta when you buy another Biologica ZeroTre product.
• Tantos: For National Pasta Day on Tuesday get a 20% discount on all orders of Tantos puffed pasta chips with discount code SOMUCHPASTA (limited to one use per customer).

Contributing: Gabe Hauari.

Follow Mike Snider on X and Threads: @mikesnider & mikegsnider.

This story has been updated to clarify deal details for Daily Harvest.

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