Roy Choi And Daniel Patterson Announce Opening Date Of Fast Casual Eatery

As gourmet fast casual eateries begin to emerge as the new face of fast food, casual eats are being bolstered by some pretty big names. Jose Andres, Daniel Humm, and David Chang have all announced fast casual concepts in the past year, and joining that list is Roy Choi (prominent founder of the food truck movement), and chef Daniel Patterson (formerly of Coi and il Cane Rosso).The dynamic restaurateur duo have announced January 18 as the official opening date of their fast casual veggie burger spot, LocoL, which will be located in Watts, South L.A. The second location of LocoL will open in San Francisco later this year.

Choi broke the news of the opening on Christmas Eve via Instagram:

 

Airhorn: I am proud to officially announce we will OPEN these doors on January 18, 2016 at 11am. It's gonna be a special day in Watts. We would love you all to come out. It's MLK day so all the schools are off, so the neighborhood will be out in force. If you're from Watts then you already know and if you're visiting us that day, the Watts family is so excited to welcome you to the cradle. Let's party. 1950 East 103rd Street 90002 Cali. Some details: 1st 100 in line get a special one of a kind collab shirt with Undefeated x LocoL, plus free food and a hug. If you camp out overnight or early in the morning then our family got you out here and will keep you company. I've been feeding all y'all heavy for the last 7 years here in LA on the streets and my spots and I can't wait to see your faces here at LocoL. Also it's gonna be an exciting thing for y'all to taste the flavors that Daniel put together. Happy New Year! #LocoL

A photo posted by L.A. Son (@ridingshotgunla) on Dec 31, 2015 at 5:17pm PST

The best part about the opening (besides the fact that it's on Martin Luther King Day so many of us will be off!) is that they'll be handing out free swag, food, and hugs to the first 100 people on line. Given the popularity of Roy Choi's taco trucks in L.A., we imagine that it will be tough to snag one of those first 100 spots at 11 a.m. in front of 1950 East 103rd Street.

Over the past week, Choi has revealed more details about the eatery which will feature customizable, affordable veggie burgers. One of the menu items is "The Foldie" (which looks like the love child of a veggie burger and quesadilla). Choi describes The Foldie as "three types of beans, lentils, grains, brown rice, jack cheese, super greens salsa, crispness, and a smile." Another photo shows what looks like regular burger buns on the grill, heavy on the cheese and aïoli. 

 

Fire em up. Not perfect yet but getting there. Day 2 in the books. 14 more till ready or not.. #LocoL #Watts

A photo posted by L.A. Son (@ridingshotgunla) on Jan 3, 2016 at 6:55pm PST