Man goes on pasta binge after winning promotion at Olive Garden

For one North Carolina man, there’s no such thing as “too much Olive Garden” – especially if the meals are free.

Burlington, North Carolina’s Alan Martin was one of the winners of Olive Garden’s “Free Pasta Pass,” which allows the recipient to eat unlimited pasta over the course of seven weeks.

For some, this might be seen as a chance to have a couple nice dinners out over the next month and change.

But Martin, who paid $100 dollars to enter the promotion and also happens to live within walking distance of the Burlington Olive Garden, saw an opportunity to maximize his return on investment.

“I intend on eating there twice a day for the 49 days the pass is good for, and will attempt to eat 100 free dinners,” Martin told WGHP News in North Carolina when he first won the “pasta pass” promotion.

Do the quick math and you realize that Martin would have to eat multiple meals per day to reach his goal of 100 free dinners.

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And that’s exactly what he’s been doing – stopping in at the local Olive Garden twice a day, every day, since the promotion began September 22.

The promotion expires on November 9, and Martin said he plans on out-eating the rest of the 1,000 people in the U.S. who won the promotion.

“I would love to be the person that ate the most of the 1,000 people. That would be a good contest to win,” said Martin. “Because that means I got the most value out of the card of anyone in the United States.”

For those wondering, there are some rules associated with the “Free Pasta Pass”: it’s valid only for pasta (plus toppings), salad, bread, and Coca-Cola drinks. Customers are also not allowed to share their food with anyone else.

But that hasn’t been a problem for Martin, who said he’s eaten $1,510 in free food so far with no intention to slow down.

And he’s not worried about potential health problems associated with his pasta binge – not when the value is this good.

“I am willing to gain 30 pounds to collect $1,500 dollars in free dinners,” Martin joked.