Ep 18. Out to Lunch

In the season three episode of WKRP in Cincinnati titled "Out to Lunch," the employees of the radio station learn that their annual Christmas bonus will consist of a free lunch at a local restaurant. However, station manager Arthur Carlson is not content with just giving his employees a free meal, and decides to make the lunch a competition. He splits the staff into two teams, the Red Bulldogs and the White Lightning, and challenges them to see who can eat the most food.

As the teams prepare for the competition, tensions start to rise between coworkers as they begin to strategize on who should eat what. Bailey Quarters is assigned to eat nothing but salads, which limits her team's ability to pack in the calories. Meanwhile, news director Les Nessman prepares for the competition by practicing his eating techniques at home, much to the dismay of his wife.

When the day of the competition arrives, the staff fills the restaurant with their boisterous cheers and chants. The Red Bulldogs start off strong, packing in burgers and fries, while the White Lightning struggle to make up ground. But as the competition wears on, the Red Bulldogs begin to slow down, while the White Lightning steadily eats their way to the lead.

As the competition nears its conclusion, the teams are neck and neck, with only a few plates of food separating them. It all comes down to a final dessert round, where each team must finish a giant cake. Despite their best efforts, the Red Bulldogs fall behind, and the White Lightning is declared the winner.

However, the victory is short-lived as the employees soon realize that the prize for winning is not a cash bonus like they were hoping for, but rather a golden toilet seat that Arthur Carlson had purchased with the station's funds. The staff is outraged and disgusted by this cheap and tasteless prize, and soon demand that Carlson resign as station manager.

Ultimately, the episode ends on a bittersweet note as Bailey Quarters comforts a saddened Carlson, telling him that while the staff may be angry with him now, they will eventually forgive and forget. The staff is left to ponder Carlson's actions and what the future holds for WKRP in Cincinnati.