News

Columbia-based chain plans US opening

April 3, 2012

Colombia, South America-based restaurant chain Kokoriko, specializing in rotisserie chicken, has partnered with veteran restaurateur and chef Richard Sandoval to expand Kokoriko into the U.S. market with the launch of Kokoriko Natural Rotisserie. For the new brand, Sandoval has developed a menu that both honors its 45-year history and modernizes its concept and flavor profiles.

Making its U.S. mid-April debut in downtown Miami, Kokoriko Natural Rotisserie will bring a new incarnation of Colombia’s fast casual restaurants to American diners.

“We couldn’t pass on the opportunity to team up with Chef Sandoval at such an exciting time in our company’s history,” said Kokoriko CEO, Eduardo Robayo, whose father founded Kokoriko in 1967. “We’ve been eager to bring Kokoriko to North America and he was the perfect chef to partner with to helm our expansion.”

Kokoriko’s menu - with an average check of $20 per person - will feature a selection of chicken specialties and Latin American comfort foods.

The menu also will boast an assortment of signature dishes, including a juicy, grilled half boneless chicken “churrasco,” jicama cucumber salad and Sandoval’s twist on a popular Venezuelan dish, corn cachapas pancakes - available plain or with a cheese and tomato jam filling.

A Colombian-style creamy potato and chicken soup, ajiaco, will be made with capers, corn and avocado, while sides will include yucca fries with citrus mojo, crushed baby potato with truffle chimichurri, creamy aji amarillo cole slaw, and Latin-style corn on the cob with creamy chipotle sauce and queso fresco.

For the flagship 3,000-square-foot Miami location, Miami’s SOW Design Studio created a rustic yet modern look for the restaurant; accommodating78 guestsin the dining room and an additional 76in the patio area. A focal-point of the dining room will be an open-kitchen with a rotisserie oven. Here, designers have incorporated recycled materials and the craftsmanship of local artisans, such as walls covered in reclaimed wood from barns and brick, reminiscent of Colombia’s countryside. Table-tops made of petrified tree trunks will be accented by bench-style banquette seating. 

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