'I ate 108 in four hours': Customers react after Red Lobster's $20 'endless shrimp' deal is blamed for its demise

Daily Mail UK ^ | May 15, 2024 | Alice Wright

[Morgana]

Red Lobster customers have taken to social media to say goodbye to the beloved chain as it edges towards bankruptcy.

But other Americans have boasted about how much they ate in the chain's famous $20 'endless shrimp' promotion, recently raised to $27, which is blamed for the chain's demise.

One customer claimed she managed to guzzle down 108 shrimp as part of the deal by staying at the restaurant for four and a half hours.

'I set a new record at my local Red Lobster, this is my greatest achievement in life' the poster explained in a TikTok video.

The seafood chain announced the immediate shuttering of almost 100 restaurants across 21 states on Monday night - and is auctioning off the contents of 48 of them.

Only in America could we eat Red Lobster into bankruptcy. pic.twitter.com/rCoepfTcVW — teatime75 (@teatime75) May 14, 2024

fly high, silver spring red lobster 🕊️ pic.twitter.com/8NU1Yg7GG1 — Mishka Espey (they/them) (@mxespey) May 14, 2024

The abrupt closures come after the chain's owners reported losses of $11 million in three months last year, which its CFO blamed on its unlimited shrimp deal.

The company is now expected to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, according to reports.

Some posters saw the funny side of the company's predicament, while others expressed regret for the laid off staff and the loss of a dining out fan favorite.

'Only in America could we eat Red Lobster into bankruptcy' one user wrote on X, alongside a Rebel Wilson gif reading 'crushed it.'

Another posted a Judge Trudy meme of red lobster characters in court with the caption 'Day One of the Red Lobster bankruptcy proceedings and the lobsters have already disrupted order in the court.'

[Ezekiel]

One customer claimed she managed to guzzle down 108 shrimp as part of the deal by staying at the restaurant for four and a half hours.

How large is this gal?

Paradoxically, we all thought that Mike Rowe could take on any dirty job, but even Mike Rowe wasn't... small enough to take down Red Lobster.

[dfwgator]

Do I need to guess?

[Sirius Lee]

I was never a Red Lobster fan and I don't like shrimp.

Same. Sea bugs are gross. And yet I can eat the oysters right out of the Damariscotta estuary no problem.

[Red Badger]

It may have contributed, but I wouldn’t blame it all on the deal.

Their food, prices, service and facilities sucked for years.

The reason they initiated the shrimp deal was to get people to come back to Red Lobster in the first place.......................

[moovova]

I just can’t do all-u-can-eat anymore. Just give me a regular plate of good food at a reasonable price.

Of course, that ain’t gonna happen anymore, either.

[SaveFerris]

[’I ate 108 in four hours’: Customers react after Red Lobster’s $20 ‘endless shrimp’ deal is blamed for its demise]

“You been here four hour ... you go, NOW!”

Why you been here four hour?

(I can’t post the video because ...)

[aMorePerfectUnion]

Casinos ban card counters.
Restaurants should ban shrimp counters.
Change my mind.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

If I go to a restaurant and eat 108 shrimp, it will be because a hurricane hit my area, and I ran out of food before the lights came back on.

[NorthWoody]

My standard at buffets used to be three full plates, possibly followed by a dish of ice cream for dessert.

These days I do one full plate followed by half a plate of my favorites. And I usually skip dessert.

I feel much better after the meal and the next day, too.

[NorthWoody]

See my post #49. I can’t eat like I used to either, which is probably a good thing. I still enjoy a buffet now and then, but I eat about half of what I used to.

[Allegra]

You been here fo hour! Go home now!

[moovova]

I understand.

I quit doing all-u-can-eat when the prices were around $18-$20 a person. Not because of the price, but because I just couldn’t eat that much anymore. Chinese buffets were my favorite. The big thing for other folks was the steamed crab legs (which I didn’t eat), but I could knock out some chicken skewers. Not now though. If I’m gonna be miserable after a meal, it’ll be after eating one GREAT steak, a baked potato, salad, and vegetable du jour...maybe a dessert.

The good news...eating out is still fun! I just had to adjust.

[HombreSecreto]

LOL

[hinckley buzzard]

Apparently it was a financial disaster. Never a good idea to cater to Swinus americanus.

[Svartalfiar]

I think a good idea might have been to discontinue the promotion if it’s putting you out of business.

I feel like I saw an article a couple years ago about how they ran an analysis on it, and they would go out of business faster by not having the promotion, cause then almost no one would go there.

But yea, they should definitely limit it to a couple hours, or only a couple times a month or something. There's definitely ways to limit the costs without hurting the promotion perception/effect too badly!

[Rlsau1]

Gluttony - part of the American culture now. The size of so many, especially females, is mind boggling. Go to Walmart, or even your doctors’ office. The size of some of these women is unbelievable. Many would need to lose 100 lbs just to get close to a healthy BMI.

[dfwgator]

It’s spreading around the globe.

[Noumenon]

Someone call for backup and a forklift.

[Svartalfiar]

One customer claimed she managed to guzzle down 108 shrimp as part of the deal by staying at the restaurant for four and a half hours.

🐖 🐷 🐽 {oink! snort!}

To be fair, they don't really have the biggest shrimp, so that's only what, maybe 3 lbs? And I assume they're self-peel for a buffet, so cut that weight almost in half. Really not that much if that's all you're eating. For four hours...

[Svartalfiar]

Most of those places just don’t have really good food. I’ll do the buffet at some of the Greek or Indian restaurants that have it, or something like Texas de Brasil or Oni (Korean BBQ version), but they’re up in the 30s-50s per person :/