A man goes into a restaurant, and he sits down. He’s having a bowl of soup and he says to the waiter, “Waiter, come taste the soup.”
Waiter says, “Is something wrong with the soup?”
“Taste the soup.”
Waiter says, “Is there something wrong with the soup? Is the soup too hot?”
“Will you taste the soup?”
Waiter says, “What’s wrong, is the soup too cold?”
“Will you just taste the soup?!”
Waiter says, “Alright, I’ll taste the soup – where’s the spoon?”
Joke Poo: Ordering Coffee at the Drive-Thru
A woman pulls up to a drive-thru coffee shop. She orders a latte and then says, “Excuse me, I need you to smell this coffee.”
The barista says, “Is something wrong with it?”
“Just smell the coffee.”
The barista says, “Is it too hot? I just made it.”
“Just smell the coffee, please.”
The barista sighs, “Alright, alright. Is it not sweet enough? Did I forget the syrup?”
“Just smell the coffee!”
The barista leans in, exasperated. “Okay, fine! I’ll smell the coffee! Where’s the lid?”
Okay, let’s break down this joke and soup-up some new humor.
Joke Dissection:
- Core Premise: A customer repeatedly demands the waiter taste the soup, but the punchline reveals the soup is missing a key element needed to taste it.
- Humor Type: Absurdity and frustration. The humor comes from the escalating frustration of the waiter and the unexpected, simple reason for the customer’s insistent demand.
- Key Elements:
- The Soup (and its implied properties)
- The Waiter (and his assumed role)
- The Customer (and his odd behavior)
- The Question and Answer format
Enrichment Material & Connections:
- Soup History: The earliest evidence of soup dates back to 6000 B.C. It was made from hippopotamus meat, can you imagine making a joke about that!
- Waiter Psychology: Waiters are often trained to be hyper-attentive to customer needs and anticipate problems. This joke plays on that trained response.
- Customer Archetypes: The demanding/difficult customer is a classic comedic trope.
- Spoons: Spoons have been around as long as soup. In Ancient Egypt, they were often made of ivory, slate or wood.
New Humor Attempt 1: Witty Observation
“You know, the real horror of that ‘taste the soup’ joke isn’t the missing spoon; it’s the unspoken implication that even if the soup WAS spoon-accessible, the waiter was still trying to weasel out of trying it! Like, what atrocities are they putting in that broth?!”
New Humor Attempt 2: “Did You Know?”
“Did you know that in some cultures, offering someone a taste of your soup is a sign of respect and trust? Of course, that’s usually with a spoon. Otherwise, it’s just a weird request and a potential biohazard.”
New Humor Attempt 3: Alternate Punchline
The waiter grabs a spoon. He takes a sip and says, “Okay, I tasted it. It’s… oddly familiar.”
The customer sighs and says, “I knew it! It tastes exactly like my mother-in-law’s perfume. That’s why I wanted you to taste it! Tell me I’m not crazy!”