By Popular Demand – Grilled Chicken and Pineapple Torta
September 1st, 2009You guys wanted it back and Uncle Roy answered. The holy grail of Kogi specials is back!
Perfect summer torta with flavors you’d expect from a great burger joint. In this feasty treat, we have grilled chicken and pineapple with pickled red onions, chili mayo, and cotija cheese. Get it before the week is out and hopefully we don’t sell out too fast!
@KOGIBBQ ON TWITTER
July 15th, 2009
So will this also be on the lunch trucks or just the eve/night trucks?
July 15th, 2009
we try for lunch but sometimes we don’t have enough time for the turn around to prep the special from the evening……
chef roy
July 15th, 2009
Long Beach luvs u!!!! Come back SOON!
July 15th, 2009
This looks so GOOOOOD!!!! Possibly a special for 2 weeks so i can make it out to the trucks and give it a try?
July 16th, 2009
AMAZING!!! AMAZING!!! I tried this on Tuesday @ Eagle Rock. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the fresh pineapple! Way to go Kogi!
July 16th, 2009
will these be available today at the little tokyo location? if not can you guys have one made for me? i will show up and say the codeword afro thunder?
July 16th, 2009
I want to try this special…..2 weeks PLEEZE??
July 16th, 2009
We love you in Torrance
July 16th, 2009
I ate this Lovely piece of Torta…hhhmmmmh,hhhhmmmm delicious!!! Excellent! You have to try it, and hopefully KogiBBQ will serve it for longer!
July 16th, 2009
Please keep it for 2 weeks–or a permanent feature. Amazing!
July 16th, 2009
Please have this next week, too. I have planned my whole week around meeting up with the truck on Wednesday on Santa Monica.
July 17th, 2009
Don’t forget to come back and visit us in the LBC. We love Kogi!
July 17th, 2009
When are you coming to oC?
July 18th, 2009
I just had this on the truck. Actually I had the burrito version since you guys ran out of Torta bread. The flavors mesh together on this one great…was delicious! Great concoction Roy, if you came up with this one on the fly you sure know how to blend your flavors of the top of your head! I love the cojita cheese…I’m a huge fan of cojita. I’m sure it would mesh well with the spicy pork also! Any chance we could get a spicy pork and cojita mulita or quesadilla any time soon??
July 18th, 2009
ok, next week.
we will call it the jss1 mulita special.
it will be delicious! I’ll think of some stuff to put it in it.
thanks and we got you…
chef roy
July 18th, 2009
Sweeet! I was craving that combination on the way back from the truck last night after having the special and a spicy pork taco…I will be lining up at the truck multiple times this upcoming week now! Thanks Roy!! Keep up the hard work and great flavors!!
July 18th, 2009
Okay, since it wasn’t on the lunch truck I hit earlier in the week, had to get it at the Alibi Room. It was soooo worth the trip. A M A Z I N G ! ! !
This one’s a keeper; but, get it while you can…
(P.S., Will the Chocolate-Coconut bars make a cameo appearance any time soon? Here’s hopin’!)
July 19th, 2009
No torta available friday night but the burrito version was sooooo good!!! I love my Kogi truck!!!
July 20th, 2009
I had the burrito version Thursday night, and it was the best burrito I have ever had!!! You guys would be fools not to make this a permanent item!
July 20th, 2009
I had this when at the La Mirada stop on Friday night and all i can say is that it was the SHIZZ! All of the flavors were meant for each other and like everyone else has said, the cojita cheese was perfect. This has been my favorite special so far. I can’t wait to see what Chef Roy comes up with next. I do like the idea of a spicy pork mulita though>.. YUM!
Lemon bar deserts coming back anytime soon???
July 23rd, 2009
The pineapple chicken torta was AMAZING! my brother was a first timer and opted for the tacos and sliders while i grubbed on the torta… he had a bite and was pissed he didn’t get one too
September 1st, 2009
I’m so excited to try the Torta….Thank You!!
September 1st, 2009
Will this be @ the alibi room too?
September 1st, 2009
@Ryan Yes, unless we sell out
September 1st, 2009
You guys need to come Santa Fe Springs, around Telegraph and Norwalk. A lot of hungry workers during lunch…..
September 2nd, 2009
NOTICE TO CHEF ROY AND KOGI CREW:
Unfortunately, I think this whole “special” thing of yours needs some serious re-evaluating.
For the third time in a row — and maybe I just have extremely awful luck — you guys showed up to the west side already having run out of food.
Tonight, I was actually numero uno in line. Got there a half-hour early, you were a half-hour late, then you took 15 minutes to set up. That’s 1 hour, 15 minutes. And when the door is lifted and I proceed to order a Grilled Chicken and Pineapple Torta, I get a sarcastic chuckle followed by, “Ah no, we ran out of those a long time ago. Now what can I get you?”
C’mon. You guys are better than this. Or at least, you used to be.
Is it that ridiculous for me to assume you guys would actually carry a special for the entire day? I mean, you promote these things enough, right? And seeing as how it’s back “BY POPULAR DEMAND,” you had to know people were going to be asking. I knew of at least 10 other people in line tonight who were there strictly for the torta — 3 of them left immediately upon hearing the news.
Some suggestions:
1) Spread out your supply to cover all your stops. If you know you’re hitting 3 places, portion out the food accordingly.
2) If you run out before your next stop, go get more food. I was told tonight you were out of pineapple. Really? 1 1/2 hours between stops — you telling me someone couldn’t have stopped by the grocery store to pick up some pineapple? Dude, I would’ve done it. I had plenty of time.
3) If all else fails … Twitter! You guys “tweet” how many times a day? How about one more to let folks know when you’ve run out of food? It takes all of 2 minutes. Seriously. And isn’t that the point of Twitter? To keep everyone up-to-date at all times?
“GuYS, nO moRe SPeciaLs toNiTe. SooooooooRy!! Love and tacos, Aliiiiiiiiiice…”
See. Easy.
Stick to the food guys. That’s what people want. Leave the cheesy camisas to Ed Hardy.
September 2nd, 2009
Disappointed Again,
I will stand in the line of fire on this one and take complete responsibility. I really feel bad that you have had this luck with our specials. I will increase the production on the specials to try and stretch throughout the night.
We appreciate your continued support and our only goal is to feed you the best food that we can, I stand behind this sentence.
Sometimes the early shift just kicks our asses and the guys sell out.
But I will address this now and increase the volume on production for specials.
As far as the sarcastic comment by our manager on the Westside, I can guarantee you that he was not trying to be sarcastic. Jae is from Korea and his English is not perfect. So sometimes his inflection is the best way he can express how hard his team has worked earlier in the night.
The hour and half we take between shifts is to give our guys a break and travel and prep.
They focus on the main menu first.
We will do our best to get you the specials throughout the day and night.
But I ask only one thing…..
My crew busts their ass trying to bring a consistent delicious product to the streets and to you. They are not perfect, they make mistakes, but they keep it real and try to bring joy to your life.
I will improve the systems, we will update the twitter, but please leave the comments like “cheesy camisas” “see. Easy” at the door.
I’m man enough to stand up and take the heat and I really care for your passion towards Kogi, but don’t sarcastically attack my team. That shit ain’t cool in my book.
Uncle Roy
September 2nd, 2009
My heart skipped a beat when i saw the tweet that the torta was back! Had one last night, and it is still hands down the best item on the menu! Dericious!!
September 2nd, 2009
This and the sliders are awesome. Man, you guys can hang up the tacos thing and ride these sandwiches into the sunset. How about it, just a sliders and tortas only truck some nights?
September 2nd, 2009
Just a reminder to everybody. The Alibi Room is always open, will never be late, has drinks to help with the wait, and since it is our main kitchen, usually has a greater stock of specials than the trucks.
No need to wait on a truck when we have a brick and motor location. Best times to go are on Mondays and Tuesdays when it’s not so packed or around 9-10ish hour when the rush dies down.
The truck is an experience I know, but can be inconvenient at times. The Alibi may be a longer drive, but you know it’s there, and won’t stop serving food until midnight.
September 3rd, 2009
Chef Roy/Alice -
My intent was never to attack your team, so no need to get too bent out of shape. After all, I’m just some dude complaining that he didn’t get his Kogi fix … and on a Grilled Chicken and Pineapple Torta comment board of all things. It’s not like I ripped you guys a new one on Chowhound, or wrote a seething letter to Eater LA, or left a 1-star rating on Yelp. In fact, if you were able to check out my Yelp page you’d see I was one of the first ever to write a Kogi review and gave a perfect 5 with glowing remarks.
Buried within all the alleged sarcasm of my original post above is actually some well thought out — albeit not as tactful as it could have been — good ol’ fashioned constructive criticism. I was simply pointing out that a “tweet” to alert those at the next stop that you’ve run out of food seems like a viable and relatively simple solution — and would probably alleviate future disappointment. And the camisas? Maybe it’s just the food purist in me who doesn’t understand why a taco truck with an already top-notch product feels the need to sell t-shirts (but then again, I’ve never read a marketing textbook in my life … so what do I know?).
And Alice, I did in fact have the pleasure of reading your response today before you deleted it. Very heartfelt — as are all of your posts when you go on the defensive — but just so you know, your assumptions couldn’t have been more off base. As for not being able to last three hours on a Kogi truck, I was in the industry for several years and worked on the line at more than one fine-dining, high-volume restaurant. I worked the grueling hours, I got paid nothing, I was in the “weeds” nearly every night. I get it.
Look, no matter how you interpret my criticism, I want you guys to succeed. Why else would I stand in line for hours when I rarely wait more than 30 minutes to be seated at a restaurant? I love the product, and I’m thoroughly appreciative for what you guys have created and accomplished on the greater Los Angeles food scene.
I came home from the Brig last night tired and hungry. I felt like a total asshole after raving to my buddies all day about this must-try special, making them wait until 11pm to eat dinner, getting to the spot early enough to ensure that we’d be very first in line, and then leaving rather empty-handed. It was a real bummer, and I needed to vent.
I apologize if I put a damper on your day in the process…
- DA
September 3rd, 2009
DA,
I think we straight now….
Your point and criticism has been taken.
You now understand that our shirts are a community based project and not a marketing ploy.
Let’s pick up the pieces and break bread again.
All good in da hood baby.
BFF,
Uncle Roy and la familia
September 4th, 2009
Hey Guys,
I’m a big Torta fan too, and a longtime fan of the truck.
The idea of Tweeting when the specials are out is a good one.
One other suggestion for the future to try and cover this (when you have the resources) – How about a mobile support car, whose only purpose it is, is to resupply the trucks when they run out of a certain item?
Starting to run out of pineapple? Have the truck fire up the bat-phone to the Kogi “Pit Crew”. They then run out to Santa Monica, Torrance, or wherever with a vat full of pineapple!
Or better yet……..make the Torta a regular menu item!
Your crew is doing great, and I see Jae every week – and he always has an easy smile for me and my wife – so good on him!
Keep up the good work!
Alohas………
N~
P.S. Praying that Roja Will have PLENTY of Pineapple Chicken Tortas at Torrance on Friday night!!
P.P.S. You guys blew the roof off at Alpine HQ last week! Congrats, gang!
September 4th, 2009
YAYAYAY!!
We were able to get the special tonight & it as well worth the wait!!! It is SO good!! You really should put it on your menu!!
Thank You for your talents!!
September 5th, 2009
Thanks for stocking up on the special, gang!
We were able to get it easily (along with the fantastic dessert).
Hope you consider adding the Torta to the main menu – it is probably the best item I’ve ever had on the truck.
September 5th, 2009
After sadly missing out on the Chicken Pineapple Torta in Glendale on Wednesday, I finally tasted success tonight in Rosemead…and what delicious, delicious success it was! Bravo Chef Roy, bravo!
P.S. Please do NOT add this Torta to the main menu, as I would then be forced to visit your truck more often…errr, more often than the once a week I already seem to find myself there at any rate… =P
September 5th, 2009
i live in wheeling wv and crave kogi by watching this site alone..
and have never had the joy of eating the food…but i did ask for
info on how to get a t-shirt…alice????…roy????..some love for
a fan named dan from wild wonderful west-by-gawd virginia????
(52 and never been to LA…damn!)
September 5th, 2009
This was the best thing I ate all week. Sad that I missed the bacon + egg burrito, but I’m hopeful you will resurrect it soon. Thanks Kogi team.
September 6th, 2009
DA: I didn’t deLete my comment. When I get overprotective of the staff and fans, my fam lovingLy puts a muzzLe on it. YES, ALICE GETS CENSORED SOMETIMES.
BUT we aLL good.
I understand the wait times suck, as does when we run out of food, but just know we reaLLy put everything we got. We fit as much food as that tiny truck can carry, so when we run out, it’s not a matter of being under prepared.
Think of carrying a backpack that can onLy hoLd 50 appLes. That’s its max capacity. But 100 peopLe show up. What can we do? We can’t take the tortiLLas out and serve just pineappLe tortas aLL day, as dericious as they are!
T-Shirts: We never intended to seLL t-shirts, but the fans have been asking for them since December. I decided to make it more fun by having the fans design them themseLves. This 5-month process of weeding through appLications and organizing a vote for a tshirt on top of aLL my other KoGi duties was reaLLy a labor of love that, no, I did not get paid for. But it was something that was so important to me because I reaLLy love, love, love creativeLy connecting w/ the fans.
SeLLing shirts — we didn’t do it for the money. If we did, we’d be charging $15-20 a shirt to make the same profit margins as other restaurants that do retaiL. But we don’t. They’re 10 bucks, dude — and great quaLity. I shouLd know. I went to 4 different vendors and suppLiers and compared quaLity and pricing to make sure our fans stiLL got a great deaL. A lot of 2-3 hour drives down south, dude. And no, KoGi does not pay for my gas.
Designs — Disagree again. They aren’t cheesy — at least not to me. Drew FansLer is a professionaL designer and we coLLectiveLy thought it captured the vibe of the night crowd to a T w/out being too obvious that it’s KoGi. The white shirt was personaLLy hand drawn by Reese Panganiban from Carson THREE TIMES because we wanted it to look fLattering on the body. The detaiLs are AMAZING if you look reaL cLoseLy.
Each and every person has a different vibe, a different face — just like the peopLe in any other KoGi line.
I can see why over 1,200 peopLe voted for it over a 52 hour process.
After taLking face to face w/ different tshirt printers, we finaLLy settLed on Wet Ink because they had the highest quaLity at the most affordabLe price. Their water-based inks reaLLy enhanced the detaiL of an aLready detaiL-heavy shirt.
So yeah — hopefuLLy you can understand why your fLippant comment on the “cheesy camisas” reaLLy bothered me. So much work and love went into it on aLL leveLs — and not just from me!
But I do appreciate the sincerity behind your comment and the fact that you did not choose to fLame the bLog in retaLiation. It shows that you reaLLy can be the bigger person.
HopefuLLy you’LL get to taste how awesome the pineappLe torta is one of these days. The response has been so overwheLmingLy positive AGAIN that I’m sure it’s not the last time you’LL see it on the trucks.
Love and tacos,
Aliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice
September 6th, 2009
man i had the pineapple and chicken torta this past wednesday at west la and i gotta say it just made my love for kogi even stronger. quality food brought by great people, how much more amazin can kogi get! ill remember next time to eat the torta right after i get it though because it kinda got a little soggy on the bottom but it was still amazing! 5/5
September 6th, 2009
When are you coming to Oakland?
September 8th, 2009
@Al Davis 3 of us managers just spent a night in SF. Unfortunately, we left the truck behind…
Thanks to all of you in SF who responded to our call for help when looking for a bar. Shout out to the dude that sent us to Harlot, though, unfortunately it was closed and a big shout out to Jeanie who really helped us find our way. Next time you come down for Kogi, we’ll make sure you don’t get lost like last time. ^_^
September 8th, 2009
Will this be available at sherman oaks on tuesday sept.8, 2009? Please say yes!! It looks yummy… =]
September 8th, 2009
Orange County. Where you at?
September 9th, 2009
Just wanted to say big ups to the Kogi fam. Got a chance to see and hear Uncle Roy speak at the KCCD STFU conference recently, so much love from the community.
Will the Kogi truck possibly make a stop in West Hollywood during lunch, at the PDC one day?
Much love and respect,
John