Olive Garden gave comedian Ricky Smith a lot of bread.
The entertainer received a hefty gift card and an apology from the Italian chain after an alleged racist incident occurred involving one of its servers at an Ohio restaurant, TMZ reported.
The unlimited soup and breadsticks-slinging eatery dished out an $1,000 gift card and $5,000 donation to Smith’s charity, Random Acts of Kindness Everywhere, according to the gossip site.
Smith, who is African American, claimed on Tuesday his waitress told him she“doesn’t like serving blacks” when he dined their with a few pals.
The discriminatory comment reportedly prompted Smith to ask the manager for a new waitress, when they allegedly refused, he told them to call the cops.
An unidentified employee reportedly called 911 accusing the comedian of sexual harassment and said the table also tried to order alcohol for minors. The caller asked for police assistance saying that the customers were getting rowdy with the female manager, according to the call obtained by TMZ.
Police escorted Smith out of the restaurant, the gossip site reported.
An Olive Garden spokesperson told TMZ earlier this week that the waitress and manager in question were placed on leave while they investigated the matter.
“We came up with an amicable agreement,” Smith said, after speaking with an Olive Garden VP of operations.
Smith requested that Olive Garden spare the suspended server and manager.
“No need for anyone to lose their job during the holidays,” he tweeted.
