About

Thanksgiving of 2008, Kogi BBQ had first rolled out as the little Korean-taco-truck-that-could, peddling $2.00 Korean barbecue tacos on the streets of L.A.  Little did they know that within a few short months, they would become an icon of LA street food, a roving symbol of rebellion, independence and the belief that excellent food can be had on a dime budget.

Their short rib taco — two crisply griddled homemade corn tortillas, double-caramelized Korean barbecue, salsa roja, cilantro-onion-lime relish and a Nappa Romaine slaw tossed in a chili-soy vinaigrette — so iconic to Kogi, would soon become anointed as an L.A. classic.

Their regular runs to Rowland Heights, Diamond Bar, Granada Hills, Venice and El Segundo was a silent rallying cry for people to see beyond the bubble of Hollywood and downtown and into the silent beat and rhythms that run the entire city of Los Angeles.

On the food side of things, Kogi set off a nuclear bomb that would shake up and mutate the foundations of the industry so that street food would never be looked at the same way again.  Serious chefs now had license to open up food trucks of their own and be taken seriously.  Authenticity now had more to do with the sincerity and audacity of the spirit than it had to do with adhering to the cultural limitations of tradition.  Upon capturing national attention, a new wave of food trucks burgeoned in cities across America, challenging people to rethink how they approach food on the streets.

Within a few short years of putting street food on the map of the minds of the everyday diner, Kogi has become a kind of iconoclastic symbol wherein which legends are born and rules are made to be broken.

Most recently the Kogi family has opened up its first sit-down restaurant, Chego, in Palms. LA-in-a-rice bowl meets non-alcoholic local dive bar in this mash-up of 2nd generation Angeleno culture, great food and more-than-reasonable prices.