• by Teresa Buyikian , December 8, 2023

Elf on a Shelf is played out, and Snoop on a Stoop isn’t exactly for everyone -- so Outback steakhouse today introduced customers to Koala on a Walla. A suspicious plush marsupial spreading “Steakmas” cheer, the koala also knows who’s been naughty or nice by keeping a watchful eye on customers.

Created by ad agency Mischief, this social video broke this morning on Outback’s Instagram. Viewers see the plush Koala in various holiday scenes, such as looking through a snowy window and underneath the Christmas tree, on a decorated mantel -- and then he moves to places customers definitely don’t want him to be: sitting atop unpaid parking tickets, in the shower and in the garbage, as the song continues “he’s watching all the time, he knows what’s in your garbage is probably a crime.” But in the end the song brings it back around to “Steakmas” with “He’s seen an awful lot; he knows you haven’t been so great. But this year he thinks everyone deserves a little steak.”

"Outback Steakhouse is bringing the long-standing but little-known Australian holiday of Steakmas to America this season,” commented Ross Fletcher, GCD at Mischief, in a release. “So of course we’re also bringing classic Steakmas traditions like the Koala on the Walla—a stuffed Koala who watches your every move and decides whether you deserve steak. It’s a warm reminder of what’s important this holiday season: delicious steak entrees at Outback."

Instagram directs viewers on how to enter to receive one of the 1,000 custom-made plush toys and additional “mystery” offers exclusively for Dine Rewards members. Entries are one per person beginning today through Dec. 15 while supplies last. Customers are also encouraged to check their inboxes and Dine Rewards accounts between Dec. 15-17 to see if they made Koala’s “nice list.”

In addition to Instagram, the agency created a LinkedIn account for Koala on the Walla, Outback Steakhouse intern, which, when added as a connection, results in DMs such as “I’ve got my eye on you…two eyes actually … and they’re plastic so I can’t close them.”