Language watchdog targets Saint-Henri brunch spot
Arthurs Nosh Bar received a complaint from the OQLF over the word 'nosh'—a Yiddish term, not English. Owner Raegan Steinberg called the move 'ridiculous.'
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Arthurs Nosh Bar in Saint-Henri has become the latest target of Quebec's language watchdog.
The Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF) sent a complaint to the Jewish food restaurant over the word "nosh" in their window signage, according to owner Raegan Steinberg. Nosh is a Yiddish term meaning to snack or enjoy a light meal.
Steinberg pushed back on the complaint in an Instagram post Tuesday, pointing out that nosh is not an English word but a Yiddish one. "Living in Quebec, operating as an anglophone means that we got another 'avertissement' from the language police about the word nosh, which is not an English word, it's a Yiddish word that means to bite, to eat," she wrote.
"They're insisting I remove it from my window. There is a word, it's probably about three inches wide, that says nosh. Has been for a decade. It's not an English word. What the eff."
Arthurs opened on Notre-Dame Street in Saint-Henri in 2016. The OQLF complaint is the latest in a series of high-profile enforcement actions that have drawn criticism from business owners and residents questioning the regulator's priorities.