Red Lobster customers have taken to social media to say goodbye to the beloved chain, which is headed for bankruptcy.
But other Americans have bragged about how much they ate during the famous $20 “endless shrimp” promotion, recently increased to $27, that is blamed for the chain’s demise.
One customer claimed she managed to devour 108 prawns as part of the deal by staying in 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 Monday evening the immediate closure of nearly 100 restaurants in 21 states — and is auctioning off the contents of 48 of them.
The abrupt closures come after the chain’s owners reported an $11 million loss in three months last year, which the CFO blamed on the unlimited shrimp deal.
According to reports, the company is now expected to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Some posters saw the funny side of the company’s predicament, while others expressed regret over the laid-off staff and the loss of a fan favorite dining out.
“Only in America could we eat Red Lobster out of business,” one user wrote on X, alongside a gif of Rebel Wilson that read “crushed.”
Another posted a Judge Trudy meme of red lobster characters in court with the caption, “Day one of Red Lobster’s bankruptcy proceedings and the lobsters have already disrupted the court.”
A third posted a photo of Christopher Moltisanti from the hit TV show The Sopranos with the caption, “Now Tone doesn’t get mad, but the Red Lobster is closed. They say we had one ‘endless shrimp’ too many, but I told these fools that was the damn point.”
Others posted their memories of enjoying Red Lobster’s $27 endless shrimp deal.
One content creator, using the handle darnitdamon on TikTok, posted a recent review of his experience at Red Lobster.
“Apparently they lost $11 million because they underestimated how much shrimp people can eat, and I’m not sorry I contributed to that because it was so worth it,” he says in the video.
“We started with the Cheddar Bay biscuits that I loved as a kid, and then my friends and I ordered all eight shrimp options to try everything.”
‘Together we had about 64 shrimps, so we had to keep going.
“By the end I ate 34 shrimp.” he added.
“I decided to test the unlimited claim when I was 10 and I ate so many shrimp that I got sick and didn’t eat them again for 13 years,” one viewer wrote in the comments below the video.
“My dad used to go to a restaurant that had an all-you-can-eat shrimp deal every week… he was asked to go to other locations because he benefited from their profits,” another noted.
“In today’s environment, consumers want to find value and stretch their budgets where they can,” Jim Salera, a research analyst at Stephens, told the Wall Street Journal.
“For $20, it’s entirely possible for a consumer to eat well past the very small profit margin,” he said of Red Lobster’s woes.
Another poster, going by the name KrystalwithaK on TikTok, said she was stunned to hear about the closures after dining at her local Red Lobster on Sunday night.
“Without any knowledge, even the Red Lobster people didn’t know, we were there until 9:30 at night on Sunday, so we had to be the last people in and then they closed for good on Monday,” she said in a video on the platform placed.
“They closed the location and it’s been there forever, that’s where my grandparents go.”
“Actually,” she added, “right now, with the world being the way it is, it’s a nasty move to fire so many people without any notice.”
‘This just happened to me and my husband. I was with the company for 10 years, he was with them for over 20 years,” one viewer wrote in the comments.
‘I’m devastated. I just ordered the my way shrimp on Friday. My mom and I used to go to RL all the time as kids… uggghh,” another added.
The contents of the closed locations will be auctioned on Thursday.
The auctions are organized by Restaurant Equipment Bid. They specialize in selling items from restaurants that are closing and needing to liquidate quickly.
Red Lobster’s available items vary by location, but include high-powered ovens, upright refrigerators and freezers, cooking and heating equipment, as well as “extensive bar and dining setups,” according to the auction site.