California Soul: An American Epic of Cooking and Survival

Chef Keith Corbin has been cooking his entire life. Born on the home turf of the notorious Grape Street Crips in 1980s Watts, Los Angeles, he got his start cooking crack at age thirteen, becoming so skilled that he was flown across the country to cook for drug operations in other cities. After years in California’s most notorious maximum security prisons, Corbin developed his own culinary palate, creating "spreads" out of commissary ingredients and experimenting in the prison kitchen. Following his release, he struggled with the public portrayal of him while achieving culinary success, developing a vision for "California soul food" and becoming head chef of Alta Adams, one of America’s best restaurants.