Sam Choy facts for kids
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Sam Choy during a meeting with Eni Faleomavaega
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| Cooking style | Pacific Rim cuisine |
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| Education | Kapiolani Community College |
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Current restaurant(s)
Sam Choy's Kai Lanai
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Television show(s)
Iron Chef America
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Award(s) won
James Beard Foundation Award for America's Classics (2004)
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Sam Choy Sr. is a famous American chef and restaurant owner. He is known as "the godfather of poke" and helped create a special cooking style called Pacific Rim cuisine. He has also been a popular face on television!
Contents
Discovering Sam Choy
Early Life and Education
Sam Choy grew up in Laie, a town on the island of Oahu. His father was Chinese, and his mother was German-Hawaiian. Sam learned a lot about cooking at Kapiolani Community College's Culinary Arts program.
Becoming a Chef
One of Sam's first jobs was at a famous hotel, The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, in New York City. Later, he returned to Hawaii and opened many of his own restaurants. He played a big part in making "Hawaii regional cuisine" popular. This style uses fresh, local ingredients from Hawaii.
The Poke Festival
In 1991, Sam Choy started the Poke Festival and Recipe Contest. Poke is a traditional Hawaiian dish made with diced raw fish. This festival helped share the love for poke with many people!
Special Awards and Recognition
In 2004, one of Sam Choy's restaurants, Sam Choy's Kaloko in Kailua-Kona, received a very special award. The James Beard Foundation named it one of "America's Classics" restaurants. This award celebrates beloved local restaurants that show the true spirit of their communities.
Sam Choy on TV
Sam Choy has appeared on many Food Network shows. You might have seen him on Ready.. Set... Cook!, Chopped’s first Grill Master Tournament, or Iron Chef America.
He is also good friends with another famous chef, Emeril Lagasse. Emeril has appeared on Sam's TV show, Sam Choy's Kitchen. Once, on his own show, Emeril even shared Sam Choy's "secret ingredient" for poke: peanut butter! In 2015, Sam Choy started his own series on YouTube called Sam Choy In The Kitchen.
Sam Choy has even designed special Hawaiian-inspired meals for first-class passengers flying with American Airlines to and from Hawaii.
Sam Choy's Family Life
Sam Choy is married to Carol, and they have two sons, Sam Jr. and Christopher. Today, Sam Choy lives in the Kona District, Hawaii.
Sam Choy's Restaurants
- Holoholo Grill (Kauai at Koloa Landing Hotel)
- Huki Lau Cafe (Laie, O'ahu, Hawaii - no longer owned by Choy)
- Pier Nine by Sam Choy (HPU Campus, O'ahu, Hawaii)
- Sam Choy's Breakfast, Lunch, and Crab (Closed in 2013)
- Sam Choy's (Tumon Bay, Guam - Closed)
- Sam Choy's Kai Lanai (Big Island, Hawaii - Closed)
- Sam Choy's Seafood Style Island Grille (Pearl Harbor, O'ahu, Hawaii)
- Sam Choy's Kahului (Queen Kaahumanu Center, Kahului, Maui - Closed)
- Sam Choy's Lahaina (Front Street - Closed)
- Sam Choy's Poke to the Max (Seattle & Tacoma, Washington)
- Sam Choy’s Ohana Diner (Bowl Incline, Incline Village, Nevada)
- Sam Choy's Kaloko (Kaloko, Hawaii - Closed)
See also
- Cuisine of Hawaii
- Iron Chef America
- George Mavrothalassitis
- Poke (Hawaii)
- Alan Wong
- Roy Yamaguchi
