Roy Choi facts for kids
.jpg)
Roy Choi from Kogi BBQ
Aspen Food & Wine Fest 2010 |
|
| Born | Roy S Choi February 24, 1970 Seoul, South Korea |
|---|---|
| Education | Culinary Institute of America California State University, Fullerton Southern California Military Academy |
|
Current restaurant(s)
|
|
|
Television show(s)
|
|
Roy Choi (born February 24, 1970) is a famous Korean-American chef. He is well-known for creating the gourmet Korean-Mexican taco truck called Kogi. Chef Choi is celebrated for making "food that isn't fancy." He is also known as one of the people who started the popular gourmet food truck movement. In 2019, Roy Choi began hosting a cooking show on Netflix with Jon Favreau. The show is called The Chef Show.
Early Life and Education
Where Roy Choi Grew Up
Roy Choi was born in Seoul, South Korea. His father, Soo Myung Choi, was from South Korea. His mother, Jai Nam Choi, was from North Korea. His parents met in the United States. After they got married, they moved back to Korea. In 1972, his family moved from South Korea to live in the United States permanently.
Roy Choi grew up in Los Angeles and other parts of Southern California. As he got older, his parents owned many different businesses. These included a liquor store, a dry-cleaning shop, and a Korean restaurant. They also sold jewelry door to door. Eventually, they built a very successful jewelry company.
Family Restaurant and Childhood Memories
When Roy was young, his parents owned a Korean restaurant. It was called Silver Garden and was in Anaheim, California. They ran it for three years. Roy's mother made kimchi that was so popular. People in their community loved it so much that they packaged it and sold it locally. Roy's favorite childhood memory is making dumplings. He was only eight years old and helping at his family's restaurant. His family moved many times when he was a child. They lived in different areas of Los Angeles.
School Days and New Paths
Roy Choi attended a special program for gifted students. However, his parents became successful in the jewelry business. They moved their family to a neighborhood in Orange County called Villa Park. Roy started having some difficulties and his grades dropped.
At age 15, Roy's parents sent him to Southern California Military Academy in Signal Hill, California. He remembers this time as a good experience for him. After high school, Roy went to Korea. He worked there as an English teacher. Then, he attended California State University, Fullerton. He earned a bachelor's degree in philosophy from there.
Roy Choi later started law school. But he decided to leave after just one semester. When he was 24, Roy became very interested in a cooking show. It was called "Essence of Emeril" and hosted by Emeril Lagasse. This show inspired him to go to culinary school. Roy said that Emeril's show "saved my life."
Culinary Training and Internships
In 1996, Roy Choi began studying at the Culinary Institute of America. This famous cooking school is in Hyde Park, New York. He really liked the way the programs were structured. During his studies, he worked as an intern. He trained at Le Bernardin, a very famous restaurant in New York City. It has earned three Michelin stars, which are a top award for restaurants.
Culinary Career and Achievements
Early Hotel Experience
After finishing his culinary training, Roy Choi gained experience as a chef in hotels. In 2001, he started working for Hilton Hotels. He was promoted within the company. By 2007, Choi became the head chef (called chef de cuisine) at the Beverly Hilton. This is where he met Mark Manguera, who would become his business partner. Roy Choi also worked at other hotels and restaurants in California.
Starting the Food Truck Movement
Roy Choi had a lot of classical training in cooking. He also spent years working in high-end, Michelin-star restaurants. He said that moving to food trucks was a great change. His first food trucks were in Venice.
Choi's company, Kogi, was started in 2008. He founded it with his partners Mark Manguera and his wife, Caroline Shin-Manguera. Kogi became famous for its unique Korean-Mexican fusion tacos.
Awards and Recognition
In 2010, Food and Wine magazine named Roy Choi one of the top ten "Best New Chefs." He was the first food truck operator to ever receive this honor. This showed how much he had changed the food scene.
Time magazine included Roy Choi in their TIME 100 list. This list features the most influential people in the world. He was on the list in both 2011 and 2016. Fellow chef and author Anthony Bourdain praised Choi. He wrote that Roy Choi "changed the world." He said Choi made the food truck concept much more respected and popular.
Roy Choi's Restaurants and Projects
Roy Choi runs Sunny Spot in Venice, California. This restaurant serves Caribbean-inspired food. He also ran Chego!, which was known for its rice bowls. Another restaurant he had was A-Frame. It was built in a former IHOP and had a Hawaiian "aloha" feel. He also had Pot at the Line Hotel in Koreatown.
In December 2018, Choi opened a restaurant called Best Friend in Las Vegas, Nevada. His cooking style mixes Mexican and Korean flavors and dishes. In 2015, Choi and chef Daniel Patterson opened a restaurant called LocoL. It is located in Watts, a neighborhood in Los Angeles. Their goal was to bring good, healthy, and inspiring fast-food to inner-city areas.
Books and TV Shows
In November 2013, Roy Choi released his autobiography. It is also part cookbook. The book is called L.A. Son: My Life, My City, My Food. Roy said he didn't plan to write a book at first. But people kept asking him the same questions about his food. They wanted to know about its flavors and how it was made. The book also talks about the culture of Los Angeles. It shows how the city has changed since the 1970s.
The Jon Favreau movie Chef (2014) was partly inspired by Roy Choi. It also drew ideas from the food truck movement. Choi worked as an advisor for the movie. He helped Jon Favreau with the cooking and restaurant scenes. Roy Choi even appears in the end credits of the film. Favreau visited all of Choi's restaurants. He also went to a French culinary school and trained in several of Choi's kitchens. In 2019, Favreau and Choi worked together on a cooking show for Netflix. It is called The Chef Show.
In 2019, Roy Choi also produced and hosted a TV series. It is called Broken Bread. The show aired on Tastemade and KCET in Los Angeles.
Personal Life and Community Work
Roy Choi has a daughter. He is sometimes called by the nicknames "Papi" and "El Guapo." He also has a blog where he shares recipes and his thoughts.
Roy Choi enjoys teaching cooking. He volunteers at an organization called A Place Called Home. This place helps young people in South Los Angeles. Choi also supports 3 Worlds Cafe. This is a community coffee and smoothie shop in South Central Los Angeles. It is a partnership between Choi, a local community group, Dole Packaged Foods, and Jefferson High School.
In his younger years, Roy Choi faced some personal challenges. He later decided to focus more seriously on cooking. Roy says that his current passion is feeding people.
