This has turned out to be a really hot topic. This is kind of a summary page. With the advent of AI, I’ve taken 20 printed pages of comments and decanted them down to what follows. Also, at the end of the comments, is AI’s version of the dressing.
Here are contenders and other recipes based on comments and feedback:
Coco’s Asian Sesame Dressing — Chat Summary from Claude.AI
The Product
Coco’s Asian Chicken Salad and its bottled sesame dressing were hugely popular, generating more fan interest than virtually any other recipe on Robert’s site
The dressing was manufactured by a third party and came in gallon containers labeled with the Coco’s name; some supply came from Ken’s Steakhouse brand
A key distinguishing ingredient (vs. similar dressings) was paprika
The On-Again, Off-Again History
Coco’s periodically pulled the bottled dressing from sale, frustrating loyal customers each time
The chain went through ownership changes: originally a Japanese company (Zensho), then Catalina Restaurant Group, then San Antonio-based Food Management Partners (FMP) as of April 2015
FMP closed ~70 locations and the Irvine corporate office by May 2016
The original dressing manufacturer eventually went out of business; Coco’s found a replacement supplier but the new version was considered inferior and had emulsification problems
Current Status (as of the page’s last updates)
Bottled dressing is no longer sold retail, but restaurants will sell a 16 oz. to-go container on request
The Asian Chicken Salad remained on the menu at surviving locations
Robert confirmed at least one Phoenix location (7th St. & Palm Lane / 2026 N. 7th St.) was still serving it
The Copycat Recipe Effort
Robert (“Grandpa”) Andrews developed and posted a copycat recipe, rating it a “fair” substitute — close but not exact
Contributor Diane Mathison shared a simpler single-serving version centered on hoisin sauce and paprika
Commenter Sherry Leger suggested Togo’s Asian Chicken Salad Dressing as a close commercial substitute
This has turned out to be a really hot topic. This is kind of a summary page. With the advent of AI, I’ve taken 20 printed pages of comments and decanted them down to what follows. Also, at the end of the comments, is AI’s version of the dressing.
Here are contenders and other recipes based on comments and feedback:
Coco’s Asian Sesame Dressing — Chat Summary from Claude.AI
The Product
The On-Again, Off-Again History
Current Status (as of the page’s last updates)
The Copycat Recipe Effort