Restaurant Shyness

I ran into an interesting situation in a restaurant for dinner today. We were at Indochine Palace, a Vietnamese place I like for their Pho, and we'd nearly finished the meal when the waitress brought an absolutely delicious looking dish past us and to a group sitting at a table behind us. It was some sort of crisp noodle base on a plate with vegetables of all colors heaped on top. So here's the interesting part: do I ask the waitress what the dish is, so that I can try it later?

This is a tough question for me usually, because I don't really like interrupting the waitress or calling attention to myself. In this particular situation it wasn't that bad, as I've been to this restaurant many many times and at least recognized the waitress (she is one of the ones who always remembers what I order), so I asked. It turns out it was a vegetarian dish whose name I have already forgotten, but I know the spot on the menu where it appears (in both vegetarian and non-vegetarian versions). So I'm looking forward to trying that one next time we go there and I don't really want the Pho. Unlikely, I know. :)

Anyways, what do other people think about this situation? Is that type of interaction with waiters/waitresses hard for some people but not others? I know I usually have a hard time even calling for a check.