When Locol in Watts launched in 2016, excitement was high in the Southland and beyond. The restaurant, which offered a healthy, sustainable fast-food option in a neighborhood without much seating, generated a lot of interest. The restaurant officially reopened on August 8, a full-circle moment for operators, who closed the doors of the original Los Angeles location in August 2018 (the East Bay locations closed in 2017 and 2018). This time, chefs Keith Corbin and Daniel Patterson have made changes: Locol will operate as a nonprofit incubator where young employees, many of whom live in the local community, will prepare dishes from a new menu centered around soul food.

When it opened eight years ago, Locol was the brainchild of chefs Patterson and Roy Choi. Corbin began working at Locol when he was two years into his 11-year prison sentence. Locol was one of the few companies to accept his application and offer training before the restaurant closed in 2018. When Corbin and Patterson opened the modern soul food restaurant Alta Adams together in 2018, both wanted to provide similar employment opportunities to underserved communities. They will continue that effort at Locol as a program of the nonprofit organization Alta Community.

In recent years, Watts and the surrounding areas have lost several soul food spots, including Bertha’s Soul Food in Gramercy Park, Carolyn’s Kitchen in Florence and Jordan’s Cafe in Watts’ own location. The closures left a gaping hole in the neighborhood, something that wasn’t lost on Corbin. He began asking Watts residents for suggestions on what to serve at a locol revival. “We asked everyone in the neighborhood what they wanted, and they said soul food,” Corbin says. “People used to come once or twice, but they said it didn’t really feel like their place.”

The $8 burgers remain on the menu, along with Locol’s signature Foldies, a smaller, crispier quesadilla that’s still only $3. In addition, they offer a sandwich with barbecue brisket, tofu or fried chicken for $10 each, and a simple green salad option for $8, dressed with honey berbere or ranch dressing. The plates, served with barbecue ribs, brisket, beef sausage, fried chicken and barbecue tofu, come with cornbread and a choice of two sides like red beans and rice, collard greens, sweet potatoes or mac and cheese. The fried chicken a la carte comes in three, six or nine pieces. For dessert, there’s a springy 7-Up cake.

Corbin and Patterson aren’t so concerned about strangers making the trip to the new location – they just want to serve the communities of Watts and the greater South Los Angeles area. Corbin says he hopes diners will speak up if they don’t like the food. “I make food with the intention that you like it and love it,” Corbin says. “If something isn’t right, pull me aside, just like when I was growing up in the public housing. We’ll work it out in the community.”

The team’s workforce will largely consist of a rotating group of young employees placed through the Los Angeles County Workforce Development Board. The current program compensates employees ages 14 to 24 for their training and work experience at Local. Patterson says current operations involve a steady flow of hiring and training every two to three weeks. The program will give Corbin, Patterson and the team the opportunity to reach more young members of the Los Angeles workforce.

2024 could be the year of restaurant comebacks in Los Angeles. It started with bakery chain Sweet Lady Jane, then Cuban bakery Cafe Tropical in Silver Lake and a Souplantation copy (meanwhile, modern Korean restaurant Baroo was revived in 2023). But Corbin says Locol’s reopening is part of a long-term plan with one goal: to help Los Angeles residents have better food and better job opportunities.

“I will never give up on my community. You have to understand that people made sacrifices so I could get to where I am,” he says. “Daniel gave me a chance. There are people in the grave because they took the bullet when the shots were fired, and I’m still here. There are people I shared a 50-cent bag of chips and soda with to get through the day. I will always find a way to drop the rope and help others climb up.”

Locol is open Wednesday through Sunday from 12:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at 1950 East 103rd Street, Watts, CA 90002.