Kogi Truck History

Kogi truck history is like many other stories—a late-night drunken revelation prompted a chain events that would lead to a popular and thriving business. Back in 2008, Mark Manguera found himself searching for unique street food in Los Angeles and found a way to provide that food to the masses.  

Manguera told the Los Angeles Times about the idea to start the Kogi Korean BBQ truck, stating that the idea first came to him after a long night of drinking with sister-in-law, Carolina Shin-Manguera. As he was snacking on a taco, he envisioned combining the classic tastes of Korean BBQ within the form of a taco.    

To make the idea happen, Manguera, who married into a Korean family, purchased a food truck and partnered with former RockSugar chef Roy Choi. Although having the supplies, a proficient chef and the idea was not enough to make the Kogi BBQ truck a success, Manguera also needed to spread the word.  

Enter his family and friends who used social networking tools like Twitter and YouTube to make the Kogi truck an Internet phenomenon. After several months and a lot of social networking, the Kogi truck has become one of the most popular in Southern California with over 80,000 Twitter followers.  

Manguera and his crew uses the social networking site to this day to announce specials and the locations of his now fleet of food trucks. The social aspect, along with the tasty Korean BBQ and many musicians that come out to entertain those waiting to enjoy the street food, have made the once-drunken idea a smashing success.