Can a Restaurant Marketing Agency expense 100% of dining costs as advertising instead of 50%?

I'm not looking for official tax advice here - just trying to understand this for my own knowledge (I actually have my CPA but I'm in industry auditing and never touch personal tax stuff). My buddy recently launched a marketing agency that specializes in social media and branding for restaurant groups and alcohol brands. This isn't some random food influencer gig - it's a legitimate business registered in Canada, operating as his primary income source, with formal contracts and a dedicated business bank account. As part of building their portfolio and social media presence, they've been dining at various restaurants, filming the experience, and creating content for their Instagram to showcase their capabilities. My question is: Given the specific nature of their business (restaurant marketing), would there be a reasonable argument to classify 100% of these dining expenses as advertising costs rather than being limited to the standard 50% deduction for meals and entertainment? Since the actual dining experience is essentially their "product" and directly tied to content creation, it seems more like a production cost than a typical business meal.

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19 comments

Luca Esposito

•8M

You're getting into an interesting gray area of tax deductions! The standard rule is that meals and entertainment are limited to 50% deductibility, but there are exceptions where 100% can be claimed. For your friend's situation, there's a potential argument for 100% deductibility if they can clearly establish that the primary purpose of the dining is for content creation rather than business entertainment. The key factor would be documentation - they should keep detailed records showing how each dining experience directly translates into marketing materials, social media content, or portfolio pieces. If the dining is truly part of their "product" and core business function (creating restaurant marketing content), there's a reasonable position that these are advertising/production costs. This would be strengthened if they're not dining with clients or using these meals for relationship-building, but purely for content creation.

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Luca Esposito

•8M

The personal benefit aspect is definitely a consideration, but there are precedents for allowing 100% deduction when the meal is integral to the business function. For example, restaurant critics can often deduct meal costs entirely because eating is essential to performing their job. The key distinction would be whether the primary purpose is content creation rather than sustenance. If they're specifically ordering dishes to photograph, filming the experience, and creating marketing content from each meal, there's a stronger case. They should document everything - notes on content created, photos taken, posts made - to show the direct business purpose of each dining experience.

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Mateo Rodriguez

•8M

Just want to share my experience using https://taxr.ai for situations like this. I have a small video production company and was in a similar gray area with deducting equipment that was technically "entertainment" but used for business purposes. I uploaded my documentation and business context, and they analyzed my specific situation, pulling relevant tax codes that applied to my case. They showed me exactly what documentation I needed to maintain and how to properly categorize these expenses. Their AI can analyze your specific business model and provide tax guidance based on similar cases.

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Mateo Rodriguez

•8M

It's surprisingly accurate for specific tax situations. It doesn't just give generic advice - it analyzes your specific case details and pulls relevant tax codes and rulings. I was skeptical too, but it provided documentation of similar cases and specific sections of tax code that applied to my situation. For Canadian tax issues, yes it works for those too. It has both US and Canadian tax knowledge and clearly distinguishes between the different rules. The CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) has some specific guidelines around business expenses that it references.

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Aisha Abdullah

•8M

I tried taxr.ai after seeing this thread and it really helped clarify my situation! I run a travel blog and was confused about how to handle expenses for trips that are both content creation and partially personal. The analysis broke down exactly how I should allocate expenses between business and personal use, with specific references to Canadian tax rulings. It showed me how to document the business purpose of each expense and create a system that would hold up under scrutiny. Saved me hours of research and gave me confidence in my deduction strategy!

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Ethan Wilson

•8M

I dealt with a similar issue and had to call the CRA for clarification. After being on hold forever, I finally discovered https://claimyr.com which got me connected to a real CRA agent in about 20 minutes instead of the usual 2+ hour wait. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent I spoke with said that for cases like your friend's, they look at whether the primary purpose of the expense is for business. They suggested keeping detailed records showing how each dining experience directly resulted in content creation, including before/after posts, engagement metrics, and client acquisition that came from those specific posts.

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Ethan Wilson

•8M

The service uses an automated system that navigates the phone tree and stays on hold for you. When an agent finally picks up, you get a call connecting you directly to them. It's like having someone else wait in line for you. I was definitely skeptical too, but after trying it myself, I was shocked when I got the call back with an actual CRA agent on the line. The time saved was worth it for me, especially during tax season when wait times are ridiculous. I've used it twice now with similar results both times.

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Carmen Diaz

•8M

I have to admit I was completely wrong about Claimyr. After commenting here, I decided to try it because I needed clarification on some business expenses for my consulting company. Got connected to a CRA agent in about 25 minutes when I had been trying unsuccessfully for weeks. The agent actually gave me really specific guidance on my situation - similar to what OP is asking about. They explained that when expenses serve dual purposes (like meals that are both for sustenance and for content creation), the key is demonstrating that the primary purpose is business. For restaurant marketing specifically, they mentioned that thorough documentation of how each dining experience translates to deliverables is essential.

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Andre Laurent

•8M

I actually worked for a food photography company, and we successfully deducted 100% of our food expenses. The key was that we had a clear business purpose - we weren't eating the food for sustenance, but specifically preparing and photographing it for clients. In your friend's case, I'd recommend they create a formal content creation plan for each restaurant visit, showing exactly what content they're planning to create. They should also save all the content produced and link it back to specific expenses. The more they can show this is a production cost rather than just "eating out," the stronger their case.

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Andre Laurent

•8M

We actually did get reviewed once, but we had super detailed documentation for everything. Each food expense had a corresponding client project number, photos of the final work, and detailed notes on the shoot. We also had a company policy document that explained our process. The reviewer ultimately accepted our deductions because we could clearly demonstrate these were production costs, not meals. We also helped our case by showing that in many instances, the food wasn't even consumed after shooting (food under hot lights for hours isn't always edible).

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