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Article: The flavor factory: Chef Bob Okura manufactures creative fusion of world flavors for The Cheesecake Factory. (Toque Of The Town).
- Article from:
- Chain Leader
- Article date:
- February 1, 2003
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. (US). This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The seminal food moment of Chef Bob Okura's life came at the tender age of eight. After years of driving with his mother past a small Italian sandwich shop in Los Angeles that "filled the air with the most luscious aromas," Okura managed to scrounge the money together to get to the store all by himself. "Then I stood there, looking up at this tough guy with a pack of Lucky Strikes rolled up in his sleeve, trying to figure out what to order," he recalls. "He looked down at me and smiled and said, `For you, my specialty!' and gave me the most wonderful classic Italian beef sandwich, topped with peppers and onions and dripping with juice.
"The sandwich was so ...