Latest news with #KalaniSmith
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
American TikTok star planning another visit to 'beautiful' Bradford
A SOCIAL media star from America says he is already planning his next trip to Bradford after visiting the city for the first time. Kalani Smith - who posts under the social media handle 'Kalanighosthunter' and 'Kalani Vlogs' - is most known for making food and travel videos across the UK. The 26-year-old, who lives in Tennessee, fell in love with Yorkshire after tracing his ancestry back to different parts of the UK. His travels take him all over the country, having recently explored Blackpool, Nottingham, and Sheffield. Kalani Smith - who posts under the social media handle 'Kalanighosthunter' and 'Kalani Vlogs' - visits Bradford (Image: UGC) His latest adventure to Bradford was inspired by a satirical comment left under one of his recent videos. Kalani and his wife Savannah took up the offer and stopped by Bradford city centre for a day trip. He is now hoping to return and explore other places in the district. 'It was a place people told me not to go to, I guess - the comment was obviously satire,' Kalani told the T&A. 'I wanted to go because I heard it's the best place to get a curry. Up until that point I just knew Bradford was the place for a curry. Kalani Smith - who posts under the social media handle 'Kalanighosthunter' and 'Kalani Vlogs' - met up with Yorkshire's own Danny Malin from Rate My Takeaway (Image: UGC) 'Yorkshire has really cool history and architecture. Bradford really surprised me how much architecture is still there in the city centre. That combined with the people up North are just really nice and a lot of good food. 'Whitby is one of my favourite places. 'You can definitely tell there's a lot of diverse culture in Bradford - there's so many different groups of folks there. You can see why it won the City of Culture. Not in a bad way either, there's not many spots you can go into like that. London feels like that, there's so many different people melding in one spot. I thought that was really cool.' The couple decided to ask RateMyTakeaway's Danny Malin for his recommendations. 'Danny's a good friend of mine,' said Kalani. 'I asked him, being a Yorkshire lad, where he recommended in Bradford. He said the Sweet Centre for a curry. 'I will say it's different than ones I've had around the UK. The Sweet Centre ones are more authentic to Kashmir, they don't have all of the gravy sauce that I call them British curries now would have. I had lamb on the bone and spinach and chicken. You can really taste the protein and spice better that way. I enjoyed it. At the Sweet Centre (Image: UGC) 'I still like dunking my Naan in some chicken tikka masala, butter chicken, but it was really nice to get an authentic taste of what the curry was supposed to be like - or what it evolved from. 'In terms of authenticity, that's probably the most authentic curry I've had in the UK. It was very tasty.' He added: 'A few of my fans actually came up to me while I was streaming, people from Bradford that were super grateful I showed up. They were excited because they said not many people travel to Bradford.' Speaking about what he's learned on his explorations around the UK, he said: 'I've learned especially here if someone's telling me not to go somewhere, odds are they've never even stepped foot in the place. It's just a lot of predisposed opinions. Kalani Smith - who posts under the social media handle 'Kalanighosthunter' and 'Kalani Vlogs' - exploring Bradford city centre (Image: UGC) 'My goal is to try and go somewhere and find the bright spots and positives about where I'm at. I feel like after going to Bradford and some of the other places people tell me not to go, there's always really nice people to be found. 'Me and my wife both made a comment that it was absolutely beautiful, especially by City Hall and other spots. It kind of reminded us of some other cities we really enjoy. That wasn't something I was expecting, especially with the comments that people leave about Bradford, it was a nice surprise. Kalani Smith went shopping with Bradfordian Daniel at JD Sports for a Bradford makeover (Image: UGC) 'We'll come back to Bradford and do some more exploring. 'It makes a difference as a content creator being able to highlight places that maybe wouldn't be an American's first choice or even tenth choice to go. 'One thing I am happy my platform has done is its shown Brits they can travel within the UK to places they haven't been, see stuff that is absolutely beautiful, or food that's incredible, and it's been in their backyard and they just never really opened their eyes or knew what was there. "Although the trips to Spain are great, there's also spots here in the UK that you never knew existed.'
Daily Mirror
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
American reveals 'three things he can no longer live without' after spending time in UK
Kalani Smith spent months travelling the UK sampling the finest foods in Britain - and now he's back in the United States there are things he is ordering online that he 'can't live without' After spending months travelling the UK sampling it's culture cuisine, an American foodie has revealed the "three things he can no longer live without" after returning to his native US. Kalani Smith, who hails from Tennessee, has built up a following of more than 3 million on TikTok, largely thanks to his online reviews of food on this side of the Atlantic. After being met with the realisation about what his homeland is lacking, he recorded a video detailing his dilemma. The first item on his list, however, isn't a food or drink item at all - but an electrical appliance. "Number one - an electric kettle," Kalani began. "I never knew in 26 years that I needed a kettle so bad, until I started going to the UK and becoming a real tea addict." And who could blame him? Kalani went on to reveal his tea preferences - namely the brands, Yorkshire Tea, Scottish Blend, Ty-Phoo Tea and Make Mine A Builders. "These are just a couple of them in my pantry, but my favourite is probably still Yorkshire," Kalani admitted. Number two on his list, meanwhile, is "British condiments" - as Kalani revealed: "HP Fruity, Worcester Sauce from Asda, Daddies' Brown Sauce, and some normal HP Sauce. Not including the Henderson's Relish or all the other things we have in our fridge - the UK has a lot of different condiments that I'm now a big fan of." Kalani closed his list declaring: "If you know me then this isn't going to be a surprise." Again, it came in the form of a beverage, with the American confessing he "didn't know what he was missing for 26 years". That drink? Irn-Bru. "The pride of Scotland," Kalani said, brandishing a can of Irn-Bru 1901 - a variation using the original recipe. "The best way to get this is out of a glass bottle," Kalani added. "But I can only get access to cans through Amazon here." "I'm flabbergasted that kettles aren't in every US kitchen," admitted one British TikTok user in response. A Scottish woman added: "I cannot help the smug grin on my face whenever an American tries Irn-Bru and loves it. As if I invented it!" A third person said of the same drink: "Irn-Bru is the best of it all. And delighted to see the 1901 is your fave. That new fangled rubbish since the sugar tax is minging. It does not fix hangovers like the original did." A fourth TikTok user hailed Kalani: "You are now officially British. Yorkshire Tea too one! Irn-Bru I thank you sir. Condiments you need to add English mustard - top condiment." Whilst a fifth individual quipped: "The first American to say Worcestershire sauce correctly. Amen."
BBC News
13-03-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
TikTok star travels 4,000 miles to try a Staffordshire oatcake
A TikTok star from America returned to Staffordshire to sample an "absolute monster" of an oatcake after getting a taste for the local delicacy last reviewer Kalani Smith, known as Kalani Ghost Hunter, first travelled to Stoke-on-Trent from his home in Nashville in 2024 as part of a UK-wide tour to try the country's signature had an oatcake at Captain Kooks in Burslem, but since then has been inundated with comments begging him to try other eateries in the recently returned to the area and went to Oatcakes 'n' Milkshakes in Stone, to tackle the ultimate oatcake breakfast. The dish is a whopping five layers of oatcakes filled with three hash browns, bacon, sausage, fried egg, beans, tomatoes, mushrooms, black pudding and melted cheese. "You can probably not even call it an oatcake because normally you put everything in it and fold it over," he told BBC Radio Stoke."This thing was an absolute monster."Giving his verdict, Mr Smith, who is from Nashville, said it was "delicious" but he and his wife were only able to get through half of also followed it up with a cookies-and-cream chocolate egg sundae and a monster shake. Asked why he visited the area in the first place, Mr Smith said: "The first reason I went to Stoke-on-Trent was for an oatcake. My first trip was all strictly based on recommendations of stuff I had to try."I wanted to travel all around the UK and have what areas are known for."Mr Smith, whose TikTok channel has amassed three million followers, has also travelled to York, Whitby, Warrington and Liverpool during his the success of his channel and the videos he has recorded in the UK, he said: "What people appreciate is you can see the level of knowledge, research and effort I put in to understand British people, food and culture." Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
