Dude, Where's My Car? gag

Cafe Society
1

I heard some good things about this movie, and it was endorsed by no less a comedy icon than Dave Barry (“All you need to know about America is here.”), so I rented it just a few weeks ago. First off, I’d like to say that I was impressed with Ashton Kucher’s performance here…but it certainly doesn’t hurt that he was playing pretty much the same character he has for his entire TV career.

My question involves the Chinese restaurant scene. Jesse, Chester, and that mystic guy pull up to the Chinese Fooooood drive-in. Jesse lists the items that he’s ordering; after each, the order taker says “An den?” After the last item, Jesse says that’s it, and the order taker says “An den?” again. Jesse reiterates that the order’s complete, and gets another “An den?” in response. Continue like this for much longer than I would’ve liked.

Okay, I’m from a Chinese family, and I didn’t get it. This sounds nothing like any of the stereotypes that I’m familiar with. The closest thing I can think of is how a dinner host will sometimes exhort the guests to eat more…“Have some more! It’s not a problem, really!”…but there’s a big difference between a show of generosity and an endless hard sell.

Anyone have an idea?

(Y’know what, I think that place is actually a front for a Triad. I can’t imagine how a restaurant that never completes a single order can stay in business. :slight_smile: )

2

I haven’t seen the movie, but I’ll WAG that this isn’t so much a joke about Chinese people as it is about cashiers/clerks with ingrained habits. (For example, when I call in a catalog order, the phone person says after each one, “Next item?” “Next item?” “Next item?”) With a little bit about poor language skills thrown in.

3

I agree with Scarlett. It’s making fun of cashiers who say “What else”, even after you’ve ordered an entire meal. I do find Chinese takeout restaurants do this a lot as well. But I think the accent was used just 'cause “An Den” sounded funnny.

4

Like others said, I don’t think they were playing into a stereotype. If they were, it’s not one I’ve ever heard. The “And Then?” lady is just another wacky character, and that was her wacky quirk, just like the ostrich guy or the Trekkie cultists.

5

Is that an endorsement or an insult? He’s a comedian, so I think it’s the latter.

6

After seeing “D,WMY?” I always thought “An Den” meant something like “Thank you” in Chinese, and that the humor of the scene was in the misunderstanding.

I never eat Chinese food, so I assumed this was some phrase common to Chinese restaurants that most people would’ve gotten.