One day, two impeccably polite gentlemen graced our restaurant. David took their orders, though his command of English was somewhat limited. The customers placed orders for two lunches: chicken with broccoli and shrimp fried rice.
As David collected their order and moved towards another table, the taller guest who had just completed his order intercepted David, "Excuse me, can I change my order?"
At that moment, the word "change" had only one meaning in David's mind -- exchange of money in the same amount for a different currency. The customer had just completed his order, and hadn't paid a cent, so why would he want any "change"?
"No change," David refused his request without hesitation.
The customer was equally baffled. He didn’t even know what happened and why he got rejected by the waiter, but still insisted "I want to change my order."
This time, David was getting a bit frustrated - here was a customer who hadn't even paid yet, asking for "change" so straightforwardly. "No change," David replied more assertively.
The two gentlemen found themselves in a deadlock. We just finished ordering. The chef hasn't even begun cooking. How come he won't let us make a change? After some talking, in the end, the customer had no choice but to request calling the manager.
From David’s point of view, the guests, who had just finished ordering, were asking him for "change," and now they wanted the manager - it didn't seem polite at all. So, he got the manager over.
After a brief walk-through, the manager understood the situation and explained to David that like Chinese, English has different meanings for certain words as well. "Change" in this context refers to changing the food order. Only then did my friend realize the mix-up, so he offered an awkward smile and said, "Oh, I'm sorry, you want to change the dish!"
“He thought you wanted the change as in money.” The manager added.
The entire scene became comical, and the guests burst into laughter.
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