Olive Garden Receipt Debate: Reddit Erupts In Discussion Over Brandjacking, Is Comped Bill A Good Deed Or Marketing Ploy?

An Olive Garden receipt posted on Reddit by a customer who allegedly received a comped meal went viral on Reddit and sparked debate when users denounced the receipt and image as fake.

Early on Wednesday, March 27, a Reddit user named 'Tanek42' posted a photo of a receipt from Olive Garden. The caption read, "My brother, wife, 3-year-old daughter and I went to Olive Garden after a recent house fire at my parents. When the manager asked how everything was, my daughter said 'Grandpa's house burned down.' Here's how we received the check."

The check shows each item the family ordered as 'Comp Item' and the total of the bill as $0. The logo next to the check clearly says 'Olive Garden.'

The initial Reddit post got more than 1,000 comments, many of which questioned the receipt's legitimacy.

One user pointed out that the Olive Garden logo was too "perfectly framed" to the left, suggesting that photoshop had been used to alter the image.

'Iworkinadvertising' sparked the strongest reaction, "That Olive Garden receipt is fake; it's free advertising. I know because I work in advertising and have spoken to the people who plan these campaigns." The user then submitted himself for an AMA, or 'Ask Me Anything.'

The post continued, "Honestly, I'm sick and tired of this s--t on Reddit and the fact that users are getting defrauded by cheap advertisers looking to lift their engagement with some free advertising." A slew of negative comments about Tanek42 and the 'fake' receipt followed. 

Tanek42 commented at the negative comments on his original post saying, "Holy cow! I went to bed last night and was not really expecting this big of a response. There's a lot of hate out there. I can't even believe some of the messages I received." But, Tanek42 wasn't alone in defending Olive Garden and it's good deed. 

A Reddit administrator backed up the Tanek42 Olive Garden post. "While I'm really upset that today some poor person is going to get home from work and find the entire internet has decided to burn him at the stake, there is seriously nothing I love more than catching a spammer or ad agency or someone trying to manipulate reddit. Your anger about fake stuff is shared by many of us who work at reddit, but please do not do this to the redditor in the title of your submission who doesn't deserve this."

A representative for Olive Garden's ad agency, Grey Advertising, denied involvement in the Reddit receipt post. The rep stated, "It would be against our code of conduct."

Mashable reported that Reddit's general manager, Erik Martin, believes the receipt is real. He said, "'I know for a fact that this is fake because I've seen something similar' is not proof. Brands aren't that smart. I just find it hard to believe that a brand like Olive Garden can fabricate a fake receipt and story like this. The backlash potential if they get caught is too high."

Martin explained that Reddit is constantly monitoring its site for 'brandjacking.' He added that most brands are unsophisticated in their approach, and easy to flush out. In this Olive Garden receipt debate, there were no red flags indicating that the post came from anyone connected to the Olive Garden.

It does seem that this particular receipt is a legitimate good deed and not a hoax.

An Olive Garden rep told the Huffington Post, "We are always looking for ways to surprise and delight our guests, and this was one of the ways the Olive Garden team in Vernon Hills, Ill. did that last weekend."