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We have people who come in and give $2 for a buffet meal

but we also have people who come in

and give $50 just for a thosai

I don't think it really matters how much everyone gives

because at the end of the day

if that's all they can afford

that's all they can afford

We always make enough for us to open the next day

and continue serving people

[Sizzling]

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[crunching]

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My name is

Annalakshmi is an Indian vegetarian restaurant

that functions on the (Hindu) philosophy of 'Atithi Devo Bhava'

or 'guest is god'

So tomorrow, if god were to come to your house

and have a meal

you wouldn't give god a bill at the end of the day

For a lot of people, the first thing that comes to mind is

"It's free food"

but we simply do not price our food

We just want to provide home-styled food

to anyone without them having to worry about the money

Initially, when I first started out volunteering here

It would really make me very angry and upset

to see people giving $5 for a (buffet) meal

or even $2

or even $1

I remembered this once

This guy gave a very small amount for his meal

and a few days later

this guy came back and he was like

"I would like to give back what I owed"

It was at that point that I really thought to myself

you know, it was so easy for me to judge the person

without really understanding

what was going on in their own personal lives

I realised that it's not my job to question how much people give

Instead, my job is very simple

My job is to serve good quality food and

the money will come when it needs to come

Because you need the thosai to actually stick a little bit

and then it releases

I have been making thosai now

ever since I started in 2016

For lunch time, you can see me behind the thosai counter

making thosai

Customer: This is ghee?

Harish: Ah, yes

Harish: This is the ghee

There's no tricks

It's not like a teppanyaki bar or something like that

Instead

being at the live station helps me communicate with people

and sometimes I find that many people

Indians, especially, giving a lot of wrong information

to people who don't know much about thosai

For example, we have a special type of thosai

called Jaffna thosai

When people see yellow colour

they are like

"Oh, it must be a pesarattu or an adai"

which are actually two different styles of thosai

they don't even use rice in them

so I'm always happy to stand there and correct them

All the time

people always ask me

what am I doing with my life

and why am I working in a restaurant

but I always knew I wanted to help people

so I guess coming to Annalakshmi

and serving people this way

has just been the right fit for me

At the end of the day

there's nothing more important in life than your own peace of mind

and your own mental and personal happiness

[Chopping sounds] [Indian Instrumental Playing]

My grandmother and grandfather

were one of the first few volunteers to come in

Seeing my grandparents come here and effortlessly

serve for nearly 30 years

I kind of caught that spirit, I guess

When Annalakshmi first began

it was a group of grandmothers and mothers who came together

to help provide the recipes and to cook

When people come in and have a meal

it feels like they are being fed by a loved one

There's something really beautiful in

being able to give back

without expecting anything in return

to serve someone good food

and then they look at you and say

"Thank you so much

I've been away from home for so long

but today you helped me remember my mother."

It's because the volunteers who come here are so involved

are so passionate

that I don't think money has ever been a factor

for not just me

but for any of us who serve here in Annalakshmi