LocoL opened in Watts in 2016. Founded by chefs Roy Choi and Daniel Patterson, LocoL was a new kind of fast food restaurant, built on the idea that everyone deserves good food, a good job, and an opportunity to fulfill their potential.

When hiring from the Watts community and emphasizing training, LocoL was wildly successful in creating new careers for a team that had never held hourly positions. LocoL immediately had an outsized impact on Los Angeles culture, and its influence quickly spread across the country.

Keith Corbin and Daniel met in 2015, before LocoL opened. After working together for three years, in 2018 LocoL closed. A few months later, we opened Alta Adams in West Adams. Alta has been successful beyond anything we could have imagined, and we are so grateful for the support of the Los Angeles community. During this time, our values never changed.

Now we are ready to go back to Watts and relaunch LocoL as a non-profit. To do this we started Alta Community, a non-profit arm of Alta dedicated to empowering communities through food. Using the original LocoL Watts space as our home base, we will expand LocoL’s mission to include three focus areas:

We will use LocoL Watts as a central hub, with satellite locations throughout Los Angeles. Our goal is to create a model that we can replicate in cities across the country.

Keith corbin & Daniel patterson

Co-founders, Alta Adams & Alta Community

Food insecurity has risen to 24% in LA County, and in South LA it is even higher. As part of restaurant operations, we will address food insecurity by working with local organizations to feed those in need.

We will cook large batches of simple, home-cooked meals, and distribute them to local residents and community organizations.

We will also work with local schools to feed students who might not be getting enough food at home. Good food and proper nutrition will increase their focus and performance in class.

testimonial

Keith was hired at LocoL in 2015, before it opened. A Watts native, Keith spent much of his adult life in prison, and by the time he finished his last stint at the age of thirty-five, he was ready to change his path and build a new future for himself and his family. All he needed was an opportunity.

LocoL provided that opportunity. With an approach that focused on training and worker development, Keith quickly rose to manager. After LocoL closed he went to work with Daniel at several fine dining restaurants in the Bay Area to increase his knowledge and skills. After a few years they started to plan a new restaurant together, based on Keith’s vision of a modern soul food restaurant with great ingredients and a welcoming environment. That restaurant, Alta Adams, was a success from the day it opened. It has become a pillar of the Los Angeles community.

The stability provided by his career allowed Keith not only a steady income but gave him the space and motivation to work himself, face the traumas he experienced growing up, and become sober. Today Keith owns multiple businesses. He was nominated for a James Beard Award for Best Chef in California. He published a memoir that was widely praised, and is nominated for a James Beard Award this year. And for everyone he grew up with, he became an example that it is possible, with support, to change your life and legacy. Alta Community can be that support for the Watts community, and beyond.