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Red Lobster restaurant exterior next to a sign featuring an outline of Greenland
Last year, Donald Trump managed to cause a bit of an international incident when he asserted the United States was seriously inclined to take over Greenland. A new report has shed some light on the American officials who were tasked with putting together a plan to achieve that goal, including one man who pointed to all-you-can-eat shrimp at Red Lobster as a motivating factor.
In the 10th century, the Norwegian explorer known as Erik the Red was exiled from Iceland and hopped on a ship that took him to the island he dubbed Greenland, where he established a number of settlements on the rocky and icy expanse that did not reflect the name he chose in the hopes of growing its population.
It spent centuries as an afterthought in the geopolitical landscape, and that was largely still the case when it was declared a colony of Denmark in 1814. Its status was shifted to a state in 1953, and while it is still technically a part of that country’s kingdom, it has served as a self-governing territory since the end of the 1970s.
In 2025, Greenland was thrust into the international spotlight when Donald Trump championed a push to annex the country before implying the United States would go as far as to stage a military invasion to seize control. Those plans (and threats) did not come to fruition, but we’ve gotten a glimpse at what was going down behind the scenes—which includes an unexpected subplot involving Red Lobster.
A member of the Trump administration suggested Red Lobster could bring back all-you-can-eat shrimp if the United States took control of Greenland
Last week, The New Yorker published an in-depth retrospective of the so-called “Greeland crisis,” which chronicled the “ludicrous, deadly serious plan” to add it to America’s geographic portfolio.
Many people initially laughed off the president’s comments concerning a potential takeover, but the report highlights the officials who were tasked with figuring out a way to make his dreams a reality. That includes Tom Dans, who has served as the chair of the United States Arctic Research Commission since he was appointed to the role last December.
Trump framed Greenland as an attractive target due to its location in the Atlantic Ocean and its supply of rare-earth minerals. However, during a conversation with the magazine, Dans highlighted another potential upside by turning his attention to the potential resurrection of a popular promotion at a struggling seafood chain, saying:
“My view is that the United States could take all the seafood Greenland could produce, and cut out the middleman, and keep it from China—and you could bring back all-you-can-eat shrimp at Red Lobster.”
It turns out America did not need to take control of Greenland for that special to return, as Red Lobster announced Endless Shrimp was coming back for a limited time back in April. The promo, which reportedly played a role in its bankruptcy in 2024, is still available as of this writing, although the company’s website warns it is “ending soon.”
We live in truly fascinating times.