INTRODUCTION: Esophageal obstructions are usually due to a food bolus or foreign body ingestion in the setting of underlying esophageal disease. They are medical emergencies, requiring endoscopy within 24 hours of presentation, as failure to intervene can lead to perforation, fistula formation, or aspiration. Standard treatment consists of using a fiberoptic endoscope to advance the object into the stomach or retrieving it proximally. We describe the case of an esophageal obstruction from mashed potatoes. Due to its consistency, the obstruction could not be fully cleared with standard techniques and required an off-label use of gastric lavage for removal. CASE DESCRIPTION/METHODS: A 94-year-old female presented to our hospital complaining of three weeks of nausea, vomiting, and poor oral intake. Despite primarily consuming mashed potatoes, her symptoms worsened, with emesis of any solid foods or medications. She denied any history of dysphagia, esophageal dysmotility, or food impaction. Vital signs were stable and her abdominal exam was benign with no peritoneal signs. Abdominal computed tomography demonstrated a distal esophageal obstruction with proximal dilation. Upper endoscopy revealed food impaction with thick fibrinous food particles extending the entire length of the esophagus. Proximal retrieval with Roth Net retrievers, biopsy forceps, and tripod forceps was attempted for over two hours with minimal clearance. Given poor visualization and extent of esophageal involvement, the push technique could not be safely performed. Food particles repeatedly clogged the endoscope despite the use of diet ginger ale to break up the food. Hours later, success was finally achieved through gastric irrigation with the Ewald tube. DISCUSSION: Esophageal obstruction due to mashed potatoes is rare, and the standard methods of clearance may be ineffective at clearing its fibrinous content. Gastric lavage, routinely used in drug overdose to clear toxic ingestions, consists of inserting a tube (such as an Ewald tube) into the stomach via the mouth with sequential passing of water or saline to remove stomach contents. The same approach was applied to our patient to clear the fibrinous remnants adhering to her esophagus. This case appears to be the first reported use of gastric lavage to clear esophageal obstructions. When available, gastric lavage appears to be an effective method of managing esophageal soft food obstructions and may be considered as a last resort measure when all other methods have failed.