When asked to name a famous St. Louis food, most people go to our warped take on Italian food—Imo’s pizza, toasted ravioli, provel cheese. But just as beloved is our fair city’s version of Chinese food, particularly our fried rice.
In his short film “Half Order” (40 min.), director Eric “Remrod” Mayes explores, and celebrates, the fried rice and chop suey restaurants that dot every neighborhood in St. Louis, both for their deliciousness and for their role as a cornerstone of the St. Louis Black community. The opening scenes feature dozens of St. Louisans espousing their favorites, and everyone has their own take. Who does it better, the City, the County, or the Eastside? Do you want your rice dark, or “light-skinned”? With or without veggies? Hot pepper, soy sauce, sweet and sour (always the yellowy stuff that comes in packets, never the dayglow orange version), egg foo young gravy…or how about a little of each? Despite the many different ways to doctor up your order, the consensus is clear: St. Louis fried rice just hits different. And as if to prove that theory, Remrod travels to New York City’s Chinatown and gets a special dispatch from a St. Louisan living in China. The verdict? Theirs is good too, but it’s just not the same.
The opening montage of opinionated St. Louisans is dizzying fun, but I locked into the film a bit more when it settled down into a more typical documentary mode, with chapters exploring things like the history of the St. Paul sandwich (an egg foo young sandwich, a St. Louis original) and the relationship between Chinese food and St. Louis’ own Vess soda and all its fruit flavors. The most compelling moments come late in the film, though, when Remrod delves into the racial divide between the Asian immigrants that run these restaurants and the largely Black clientele they serve. As a square white guy, I was honestly a bit taken aback by how freely the term “Chinaman” was bandied about from the film’s early moments; Remrod wisely doesn’t let that skate by without some discussion about how it’s meant as a term of endearment but maybe not always taken as such, and how it’s thankfully falling out of favor with the younger generation.
At only 40 minutes, “Half Order” did leave me wanting more—particularly more interviews with the cooks and shop owners. It also might have helped to establish some quote-unquote “main characters” so that the film could have a bit more of a narrative to it. But as it is, it’s still a fun watch, edited with energy and panache and featuring a soundtrack overflowing with Lou-made hip hop.
One thing is absolutely for certain: you will leave this screening hungry. But fortunately, you’re in luck: immediately after the screening at the Hi-Pointe, Remrod will be hosting a “fried rice happy hour” right next door at Par Lounge (1001 McCausland Ave.) with fried rice from Hong Kong Express (2247 S. Grand Blvd.). The first 100 people get their fried rice for free. | Jason Green
Half Order will screen at the Hi-Pointe Theatre (1005 McCausland Ave.) on Saturday, November 7 at 4 pm as part of the St. Louis International Film Festival 2026. Single film tickets are $15 for general admission, $12 for Cinema St. Louis members, seniors, military, and students with valid current photo IDs. Multi-film and all-access passes are also available. Further information is available here.
