Wow! Major big ups to Chef Roy Choi!

Not surprisingly, he was one ten chefs to be so honored this year — and, naturally, the only one rockin’ a grill in a truck.

In his interview with the magazine, Choi told them that he’s had an unorthodox arc in finding his culinary chops:

“When I was 25, before I started cooking, I hit rock bottom. I was almost disowned by my family,” he said. “Then one day, I was lying on the couch watching Essence of Emeril, and I had an out-of-body experience. I felt like Emeril stepped out of the TV and shook me by the shoulders and said, ‘Get off that couch. Taste this, smell this, do something.’ So I went to the bookstore, started doing research and read about chefs like Eric Ripert [at New York City's Le Bernardin].”

But the best part of the interview details Kogi & Co.’s new (previously-secret) brick-and-mortar restaurant in West LA, Chego! :

“Chego loosely means ‘thumbs up’ in Korean,” he said. “It’s like when your mouth is full and your grandmother asks how her food is, you just give her a thumbs up.”

Apparently lots of people are already loving the restaurant that’s been open now for six weeks, with the Chubby Pork Belly Bowl being the big draw. One Yelper described it thusly: “The One Chubby Pork Belly was just as beautiful. The water spinach and peanuts were a surprising touch that added a needed texture to the bowl. The coriander gave a fresh herbaciousness to the dish. The sunny side fried egg added a lovely richness to the fatty chunks of pork belly. WOW. ”

Man, I can’t wait to try it.

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post