If you haven’t noticed, the selection of late-night food in Los Angeles is sub par at best. I’m sick of Norm’s, Denny’s and other relatives of the 50s diner. Not to mention, why does everything close so early?’
My complaints have been heard.’
The latest hybrid of the Angeleno food selection is’ being served out of a truck at a bar near you.’
In the wake of late night gourmet food trucks is Kogi BBQ, a Korean taco truck to the rescue.
Kogi seasons and prepares some of the most delicious short ribs, spicy pork and chicken along with tasty tofu for those who go meatless.’ The definitive appeal of Kogi transpires with the choice of these ingredients wrapped in a burrito or taco.
Korean meets Mexican.’ Can it get anymore L.A.?’
It’s $5 for a burrito and $2 for tacos.’ It’s cheap,’ out of a truck and simply divine.
Roy Choi, chef and owner of Kogi, takes this late night phenomenon very seriously.’ He is up early with his crew picking out the freshest ingredients from the same markets he frequented when he used to be a chef at top restaurants like Trader Vic’s and the Beverly Hilton.’ Choi also uses high quality meat by the same purveyors that provide supplies to the most prestigious restaurants in L.A.
‘We put a lot of love in our food and are honest about what we are doing,’ said Choi.’Also, the steps that I take are like four to five hours to prepare before we go out.’ These small differences make it special.’
Kogi took to the streets last November and had a hard time finding their niche, but with a request to head over to Westwood and serve the UCLA community, it was only a matter of time before it spread like wildfire.’ They now boast about serving 500-1000 customers per night.
Kogi has two shifts every night.’ The first shift sent out is deemed the evening shift from 6 to 9 p.m., with one truck catering to the west side and one to the east.’ Then there is the late night shift that usually rolls into a parking lot outside of a bar around 10 p.m.’ It’s during this time when Kogi becomes a rock star and the unaware bystanders who have never heard of this food truck think mobs are taking over the streets.’ The Kogi truck usually hangs around until closing time or whenever their 450 lbs. of meat run out.’
Kogi has figured out their marketing strategy by using Twitter to relay their schedule and whereabouts by the minute. This new form of media allows Kogi-lovers to assemble forces at the site of this divine intervention on wheels before they even get there.
With a complete seven-day schedule, Kogi is crisscrossing all over the city.’ The owners added a second truck scheduled to make stops in Venice, downtown L.A.’ and Hollywood.
It’s only a matter of time before Kogi makes its way into the San Fernando Valley and a possible surprise appearance at CSUN. But if you can’t wait, find out where they are via Twitter and get Kogied.
Follow the Kogi truck on Twitter at kogibbq
