Red Lobster and Vaseline Launch Limited-Time Kissing Booth in Times Square

Red Lobster and Vaseline staged a short, attention-grabbing Valentine’s activation at Red Lobster’s Times Square location, occupying select booths Feb. 10 through Feb. 12 with a reservation-only Kissing Booth experience booked through Tock. The five-course menu for two started at $140, featured Red Lobster classics and Lobsterfest items, and concluded with a complimentary Vaseline Limited Edition Valentine’s Day Lip Therapy product as the final course.

The menu paired Cheddar Bay Biscuits with a choice of Lobster Flatbread featuring Maine and langostino lobster, the new Lobster Pasta au Gratin, or the new Lobsterfest Duo with two LobsterChops and roasted Maine Tail, and closed with Chocolate Wave Cake. Guests selected two beverages from three themed cocktails inspired by the Vaseline collection: UR Mint for Me Mojito (available in a non-alcoholic version), I Love U Berry Much/I Love You Berry Much frozen daiquiri, and Do U Accept This Rosé?/Do You Accept This Rosé sangria. Media coverage and the press language emphasized that staples and new Lobsterfest items were central to the dining sequence.

Outlets consistently cited a $140 base price for the two-person experience, though reporting varied on taxes and service. Several outlets described the fee as $140 excluding tax and tip, while Mediapost specified $140 before taxes with an 18% automatic gratuity. Reservations were handled exclusively on Tock for the Times Square pop-up, and the experience was limited to a small number of select booths during the three-night run.

Brands framed the partnership with playful language. PR copy opened with “After a little playful flirting in the DMs, the two iconic brands are inviting everyone in on the love with the debut of the Vaseline® x Red Lobster Kissing Booth.” The campaign line repeated across coverage: “Vaseline® Limited Edition Valentine's Day Lip Therapy® is the essential that shows up when those moments turn into kisses.” Kate Godbout, head of Vaseline Brand, North America, described the stunt as a way “to take the cringe out of those moments, pairing craveable food, cozy booths, and Vaseline Lip Therapy to help lips feel soft, smooth, and ready for whatever comes after the dessert.” Heather Timm, senior director of marketing at Red Lobster, said the partnership “felt like the perfect match, allowing us to bring this exclusive menu to life with a brand that understands what happens when great food sparks connection.”

The activation included social promotion, an influencer push with author and influencer Tiff Baira, and limited SKUs tied to the packaging-led product play highlighted by Parade as “packaging-led-themed gift items sold in-restaurant/online as limited SKUs alongside a menu push.” Brands also pointed to customer overlap as part of the rationale, citing a 54 percent crossover statistic that “Vaseline users are 54% more likely than the general population to dine at Red Lobster compared with other casual dining restaurants,” and a Vaseline spokesperson noted the brand “resonates especially well in the Black American community.”

As a tightly staged Times Square test, the Vaseline x Red Lobster Kissing Booth combined experiential cocktails, a Lobsterfest-forward five-course meal, and limited-edition Vaseline samples into a single bookable moment that ran for three nights and closed with a branded lip-therapy keepsake.