Kogi Korean BBQ

Kogi Korean BBQ is a fleet of five fusion food trucks in Los Angeles famous both for their combination of Korean with Mexican food and also for their reliance on Internet technology, especially Twitter and YouTube, to spread information about their offerings and locations. Highlights of typical fare include Spicy Pork Tacos, Kimchi Quesadillas and Short Rib Sliders. Its owner/founder, Mark Manguera, a Filipino-American, married into a Korean family and was inspired to combine Mexican and Korean food as a result. The food truck has won much recognition, including a Bon Appétit Award in 2009 and "Best New Chef" for Roy Choi by Food & Wine in 2010, the first for a food truck.

The Kogi truck took a while to catch on. After several weeks of parking in different locations and not getting any customers, Kogi began going to clubs and giving free samples to bouncers. They enjoyed them and spread the word.

Kogi's first "big break" came when it got the idea outside of Green Door in Hollywood to contact food bloggers about trying the tacos who then wrote about Kogi. Its subsequent use of Twitter to announce its location led to considerable buzz on social networking services, leading Newsweek to proclaim Kogi "America's first viral eatery".

In addition to co-founders Mark Manguera and Caroline Shin, Mark Manguera's friend Roy Choi, a former valedictorian at the Culinary Institute of America, is the chief chef and considered “a sort of post-Abstract Expressionist food artist" while Manguera's sister-in-law, Alice Shin, is in charge of connectivity- posting and tweeting regularly to keep their roving clientele informed. The name, logo, decision to use Twitter, and ongoing social media strategy came from consultant and "twentysomething social networking and branding wunderkind" Kogi Social Media & Brand Director Mike Prasad, who is a best friend of Eric Shin, Kogi Lunch Manager, Photographer, and brother of Caroline.

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Wikipedia