Foreigner speaking Isan uses wife's subsidy at Kalasin shop

A foreign customer speaking fluent Isan surprised staff at a Korean grilled meat shop in Kalasin after ordering two jumbo sets and asking to pay through the Thai discount scheme using his wife's mobile phone.

The moment, recorded on the shop's CCTV at 5.28pm on 14 July, was posted by the owner on Facebook and drew comments from viewers wondering how a foreigner could use the Khon La Khrueng or Thai Chuai Thai Plus benefit.

Shop owner Apinya Phunnoina later explained that the entitlement belonged to the man's wife. He used her phone to scan and pay for the order, according to the report.

Fluent Isan leaves staff laughing

The customer entered the long-established grilled meat shop on Thanon Thinnanon, on the Kalasin-Yang Talat route in Muang district, to buy food to take home.

He placed his order in Isan, the Lao-influenced dialect commonly heard across north-eastern Thailand. Apinya said she could not contain her laughter after hearing his accent.

In her Facebook caption, the owner said she was already amazed that the foreign customer could speak Isan, before he asked whether the shop accepted the half-price scheme. She described him as both handsome and able to speak Isan.

Apinya said the man asked about the available meal sets. She told him a large set cost 250 baht and a jumbo set 320 baht. He chose two jumbo sets.

He then asked whether the shop accepted Khon La Khrueng. Staff asked whose benefit he intended to use, and he replied that it belonged to his wife before producing the phone to scan the payment.

For foreign residents and visitors, eligibility for government cost-of-living schemes remains separate from simply being able to make a payment at a participating shop. Anyone hoping to use such a programme should check the official conditions and ensure the registered beneficiary is making the transaction in line with the scheme's rules.

Pictures courtesy of Amarin