Restaurant owner and bartender Jason Seele had just gotten Los Gatos Soda Works humming along when the lockdown hit. But he was able to move forward by partnering with another local restaurant to sell cocktails to go once the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control gave the okay on March 19.
“We have been selling cocktails to go since March 20,” Seele says. “Within 12 hours (of the ABC’s announcement) we had a partnership and were to market with product before anyone else in the South Bay. We partnered with Sushi Confidential in Campbell to test the waters and see if this was something we should put more time and focus into.”
The response was positive, says Seele.
“We had our bottling process down within a week,” he adds. “Sanitizing, labeling, batching and filling in premium bottles helped set our cocktails visually above the rest. It was important to us that we maintained the unique quality and creativeness of our cocktails. We didn’t want to cut corners and move away from what our brand is known for.”
Seele prides himself on precisely crafted cocktails, but things were different when he first started out. Working in sports bars, nightclubs and restaurants, he made margaritas, cosmos and lemon drops and served up lots of shots. Such establishments were driven by volume, not quality.
His “Aha!” moment came when he went with a friend to a cocktail bar in San Francisco.
“The bar was clean and well designed,” Seele recalls. “The bartender had fresh herbs and fruit—tools I had never seen before, like mixing glasses for stirring drinks. This was a foreign concept to me. Why stir a drink? Shaking it is so much faster. Why are they using strainers, and jiggers to measure ingredients? These all slow you down, and bartending is all about speed, right?”
After tasting the first properly made cocktail he’d ever had—a classic called The Last Word made with fresh lime, green Chartreuse, and Luxardo Maraschino liqueur—he was hooked.
“It was bright, crisp, and herbal, afar cry from the sugary concoctions I had been producing,” Seele says. “There was so much more to this industry then I knew, and I wanted to learn more.”
And learn he has, achieving success over a 17-year career that saw stints at PF Chang’s, Left Bank and Jack Rose, eventually leading to ownership of Los Gatos Soda Works.
Among his proudest achievements came at the Beefeater Mix London National Title, where he represented the U.S. against 33 other countries at the global final in London, taking second place in the world and winning the People’s Choice award.
Seele is grateful for the support of his Soda Works fans during the lockdown. “We had a lot of regulars and Los Gatos locals come to Sushi Confidential to support us,” he says. “The demand was large enough that we decided to open both locations, and we have now been selling cocktails at both Sushi Confidential and Los Gatos Soda Works since April 9. My wife, Nicole, sells at Sushi Confidential, and I run LGSW. With the two of us doing everything ourselves, we are able to cut a lot of overhead cost as well as ensure a safe and sanitary product.”
They are currently offering eight cocktails, and the selections change weekly.
Asked to describe his philosophy, Seele says it’s pretty straightforward. “Create unique cocktails using seasonal flavors and ingredients with a focus on balance and layering of flavors.
“I tend to utilize a lot of culinary techniques to extract flavors and incorporate them into my drinks,” he adds. “The goal is to create a menu that has something for everyone: citrus, tart, sweet, herbal, bitter, smoky, floral, etc.”
He admits he’s among the fortunate. “We have been able to generate enough revenue to pay our bills and at this point, that is all you can ask for. A lot of small businesses have not been that lucky. We are just keeping our heads down and continue to pivot with the continuously changing regulations and mandates. We all hope that we can get back to some kind of normalcy soon.”
Los Gatos Soda Works, 21 College Ave. in Los Gatos, is open Thursday-Saturday, 3-8 p.m., for to-go orders. Call 408-402-5111 or drop by to order. See current selections on Facebook and Instagram.
Sushi Confidential, 247 E. Campbell Ave. in Campbell, is open for takeout daily, 11:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Order at http://www.sushiconfidential.com/sushi-campbell.
