Watch: American YouTuber orders food in ‘fluent’ Gujarati

Team Udayavani, Mar 22, 2022, 10:41 AM IST

Areih Smith, a YouTuber, surprised people when he ordered food in fluent Gujarati. He was even offered free food.

“Many Indians here in America are from this one state in India called Gujarat, so today I speak Gujarati with them,” Smith wrote.

He further added, “Speaking of free food, I also tried a lot of great Gujarati food like paan, masala chaas, bajra no rotlo, and of course Gujarati thali. Yum!”

In the video, Smith visits a Gujarati eatery and asks for a Gujarati dish, startling the Indian owner. The owner beams with excitement when he hears Smith speak Gujarati and smiles as he greets the YouTuber.

Smith begins to pique the man’s interest who asks Smith where he acquired the language and whether he has ever tried Gujarati cuisine. Smith then informs the man that this is his first visit to a Gujarati restaurant, after which the owner serves him a traditional thali.

Smith then goes to another shop to get some paan after praising the dish and licking his fingers. Apparently, the pan owner is Gujarati as well, and they have a conversation in Gujarati. Smith’s skill to pull off an unusual language astounds the paan shop owner, who compliments him for the gesture.

When Smith requests a paan, the owner gives him one for free. “No charge,” says the owner while asserting that he likes people who learn the Gujarati language. Smith expresses his gratitude for the kindness shown to him after receiving his free paan.

One user wrote, “‘He speaks Gujarati and we still can’t speak English yet!’ That was the best. Even if he spoke crappy Gujarati the people would still appreciate it. It goes to show that all it takes is a little effort (it doesn’t have to be something as major as learning a different language either) to break down barriers between us and our fellow men.”

Another wrote, “People are touched by your genuine kindness and the respect you show by speaking their native language. What an amazing gift!”

Aside from his YouTube channel, Smith also has a website where he provides language classes and consulting. He also has a second YouTube channel where he documents his language learning journey.