Who: Patrick Wasetis
What: Beverage director
Where: Suerte, Este, and Bar Toti in Austin, TX
Age: 35
First Industry Job: Spicewood Tavern, a neighborhood restaurant in Austin, TX
Favorite Drink: I’ve probably ordered more Negronis than anything else.
As beverage director for three award-winning Austin, TX, restaurants — Suerte, Este and Bar Toti — Patrick Wasetis oversees the bar programs while also developing cocktails and managing staff education. He leads the bar teams at Suerte, Este and Bar Toti with integrity, compassion, courage and respect and aims to inspire creativity among team members.
“By nature, I like to do things myself, and for much of my career working within small teams I could,” Wasetis says. “As my role grows in scope, however, it’s become increasingly important to empower and rely on the team around me.”
A Texas native, Wasetis came to Austin initially to attend the University of Texas, where he studied molecular biology and business. He credits his degree in biology with teaching him to find wonder in the seemingly mundane.
This inspires his approach to creating cocktails, which allows him to push the boundaries.
One example of this is the Del Mar-tini on the cocktail menu at Este, which is made with navy strength gin, vermouth, muscadet and kombu to put a sea-inspired twist on the cocktail to complement the restaurant’s Mexican seafood offerings. The Martini was featured by The New York Times in 2023.
Este was awarded “Best New Restaurant 2023” by Bon Appetit and was featured by The New York Times as one of “America’s Best Restaurants of 2023.” Wasetis’ beverage program at Suerte was recognized by the James Beard Foundation in 2023 when it was named a James Beard semifinalist in the “Outstanding Wine & Other Beverages Program” category.
