A woman dining at Olive Garden encountered an unexpected situation involving the restaurant’s popular breadsticks.
The diner — who shared her experience on TikTok in a Nov. 16 post — revealed that one of her breadsticks appeared to be etched with the letters “O” and “K” along with the number “6” in a neat, dark font.
“Guys why is there letters on my olive garden breadstick,” she wrote over an image of the half-eaten piece of bread, while also tagging the restaurant.
Olive Garden was quick to respond to the post, which has received more than 4 million views as of Dec. 1. “We are concerned about this. Can you please send an email to [email protected] with your full name, and the location you went to?” a representative from the restaurant chain wrote in the comments section.
The TikTok user then shared a follow-up post on Nov. 20, revealing that the company had since sent her a $100 gift certificate. She captioned the post, “Thank you olive garden,” while including a sound effect of sinister laughter.
Several TikTokers have offered theories in the post’s comments about what caused the distinct dark lettering. “It’s from the plastic bag they come in,” wrote one person who identified themselves as an Olive Garden employee. “And when they sit in the freezer for a while that can happen.”
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Another user agreed, likening the phenomenon to temporary tattoos and explaining that moisture likely caused the ink on the bag to transfer to the breadstick before it was baked. “It’s like when you do the tongue tattoos with Fruit Roll-Ups,” they wrote.
As for the company’s response, many social media users approved. “Olive garden does NOTT playyy,” one user commented.
“Now that’s good service,” another wrote.
Some people joked that they might start using this as a tactic to get gift cards of their own.
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“There was letters on my breadsticks when I went tomorrow,” one user joked, while another added, “There might have been some numbers on mine too now that I think about it.”
Olive Garden breadsticks are widely considered a brand staple and have become something of a cultural phenomenon in recent years. The company introduced its “bottomless breadsticks” option — as in, endless breadsticks — in 2013 along with their bottomless salad. It has also centered several holiday campaigns around the customer favorite, including a “Valentine’s Day breadstick bouquet” in 2020.
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