Jonathan Gold, Roy Choi and the taco truck that reinvented fast food

Los Angeles is home to people and cuisines from 140 different countries — you can take a culinary journey around the world without ever leaving city limits. If you want to fully understand the Los Angeles food scene of today, you’ll want to consider the food truck — and the hundreds, sometimes thousands, of Angelenos who, on any given evening, await word from friends or social media so that they may fill a large patch of asphalt and dine on tacos, cupcakes, BBQ, dim sum and more. And you might want to start with the Kogi truck, chef Roy Choi’s great cross-cultural experiment that has become embedded in the city’s cultural landscape in just a few years, thanks to a menu that includes short rib tacos and kimchi dogs. Choi, of course, is more than a chef with an empire of restaurants and food trucks. He’s a collaborator to Hollywood directors, a TV star, a Twitter personality, a community activist and an author. Our August Publisher’s Book Club pick, Roy Choi’s “L.A. Son: My Life, My City, My Food,” chronicles the life of the boundary-breaking chef as he navigates the eclectic cultures and cuisines of Los Angeles neighborhoods. Raised in Los Angeles and Orange County, Roy Choi and his core team catalyzed the L.A. food truck movement with the advent of their Kogi Korean taco truck. Choi’s unconventional yet inspired recipes blend flavors and traditions from Angelenos’ diverse cuisine — ranging from tempura potato pancakes to pork belly stuffed pupusas. Today, Choi’s Kogi trucks remain a top L.A. destination and his standalone restaurants draw consistent crowds. He continues to reinvent the role a chef can play in society by working to provide affordable, quality fast food to underserved communities. LA Times Pulitzer Prize-winning food critic Jonathan Gold will moderate this month’s book club and help us explore food’s paradoxical ability to bind and separate our city’s diverse communities. Please join me, Jonathan Gold and author Roy Choi on August 25 as we explore ways food is shaping and defining our city. Austin Beutner Publisher and CEO, Los Angeles Times