The Spin

Posts Tagged ‘Hippies’

Mad 4 Stereotypes

Tae Kim

Lisp-smacking good?

Before attending the Anderson Cooper event this past Saturday (which was great, but how much did he cost?), I went to Mad 4 Mex for a good ol’ Tex Mex dinner. As it one of the first times I ate there without also drinking a Big-Azz Margarita, my sober eyes were finally able to fully explore the menu beyond the drink specials.

What I found on the menu that night was somewhat concerning. You see, the obnoxious and sometimes-abrasive food descriptions were far less effective at convincing me to eat the enchiladas and instead left me questioning the motivations behind the management’s marketing decisions.

Okay, I understand that Mad 4 isn’t the most family-orientated establishment, and that humor probably plays a role in catering to a predominantly college crowd. So I can look over the stereotypes they play up about hippies while describing their vegetarian “Angry Hippie Burrito”…

“Have your Birken stocks dropped? Your hacky been sacked? … Smell?”

… and I can ignore the fact that they poke fun and exploit the celebrity culture while pitching something like their “Winehouse Fajita”…

“Eat it quick - this crazy dish is set to self-destruct.”

… but the sentence that caught my attention was perhaps the most poorly conceived, which described their “San Francisco” hot wings as “lisp-smacking good” (See photo, or if you don’t believe it, check out the main menu).

Now, I’ll leave it to you to decide whether you find that offensive or not, but my question is this: what exactly was the management of Mad 4 trying to accomplish by citing a gay stereotype?

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