Trivia / The Office USS 3 E 10 A Benihana Christmas

• Approval of God: Although he's a fan of the show, John Mayer initially denied permission to have Michael and Andy sing a karaoke version of "Your Body is a Wonderland", fearing the show would make fun of the song. He relented with one condition: they had to give him a Dundie (which in his case was for "Tallest Music Dude").
• The Cast Showoff:
  • Craig Robinson gets to show off his keyboard skills when Darryl decides to provide music after they can't find the cord for the karaoke machine.
  • At the party Creed sings a song called "Spinnin' 'n' Reelin'", which is a song written and recorded by the Real Life Creed Bratton.
• Cast the Expert: The show borrowed a real Benihana for the restaurant scenes. Chad Yodvisotsak, who played the chef, was an actual chef at the restaurant, with other restaurant employees playing background roles.
• Creator Backlash: Kat Ahn, who played one of the Benihana waitresses who came back to the office with Michael and Andy, has spoken out against the episode, feeling that her subplot and the Racial Face Blindness joke was insensitive (though the gag is more about Michael and Andy being Innocent Bigot nitwits). Greg Daniels himself is on record as not caring for that subplot either, feeling that it was an extremely thin joke that wasn't properly executed.
• Deleted Scenes:
  • Angela complains to Toby about Karen and Pam staging their own party, and when Toby points out that they have the right to throw their own party with their own money, she slaps him.
  • Ryan gives Kelly a present, but Kelly admits she threw her present to him away when she thought he wasn't going to give her one, so they dive in the dumpster looking for it.
  • Michael introduces the Benihana waitress to Stanley, with the idea that Stanley can give her advice because he's also in an interracial relationship. Stanley isn't amused.
• Irony as She Is Cast: In discussing the episode in the Office Ladies podcast and how their characters contrast with their Real Life personalities, Angela Kinsey says that she'd actually be the one staging "A Margarita-Karaoke-Christmas", and Jenna Fischer admits she would have "A Nutcracker Christmas" with a strictly enforced theme.
• Recycled Set: The titular Benihana is really located in Encino, and has appeared in multiple TV shows and movies, most notably in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, where Steve Carell’s character sits in the exact same place as Michael Scott in this episode.
• What Could Have Been: Instead of "You Oughta Know", Kevin's karaoke song was originally scripted to be "Mo Money Mo Problems".