A Guaranteed Good Time

When Uchi opened in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood in 2021, diners were giddy with excitement — and with good reason.

The sushi restaurant had built a reputation in its hometown of Austin, Texas, as being one of the top eateries in town. Both upscale and whimsical, Uchi shines with its creativity and superb ingredients. It’s no different at the bar, where mixologist Juan Sosa serves drinks that keep patrons happy and surprised. We met up with him to learn more.

Q&A

Why bartending?

Bartending helped me become the person I am today. It has helped me meet a lot of great people and build connections, not only in the hospitality world but all over South Florida. Most of all, bartending forced me out of my comfort zone as a 21-year-old kid and helped me develop conversation and social skills that were definitely lacking early on for me.

Favorite quote?

“We serve guests, not drinks.” A reminder that in the field of hospitality our role is to ensure that the people on the other side of the bar are having a good time and things need to be to their liking, not ours.

You can design your own cocktail napkin – what would it say?

“Drink responsibly, tip recklessly.”

Drink everyone needs to experience, and why?

M&M, usually served as a shot of equal parts mezcal and Amaro Montenegro — one of my longtime favorites.

Rule you wish people would break?

When creating cocktails, it can feel like you’re restricted to using the things at your disposal. Don’t be afraid to find interesting ingredients and experiment to make something awesome. I’ve found that talking to kitchen staff, particularly pastry chefs, has led to some really unique creations.

Bar trend you’d wish would fizzle out?

Passion fruit! I think as long as I’m in South Florida it will be a staple in my well, but there are so many tropical fruits that are just as good or better.

Best piece of advice you ever got?

“Just keep moving.” It’s the only way to get through a long night of service. When you’re bartending there’s no time to stop and think about your mistakes. If you mess up, just dump it out and start over.

There are so many great bars in South Florida — what makes Uchi’s stand out from the rest?

Our guests can sit at our bar and have incredible culinary experiences with our knowledgeable team or just come hang out for happy hour and let us mess around and craft cocktails specific to their liking. Either way, they’re going to have a great time with us.

Who, living or not, would you want to make a drink for? Why?

Action Bronson. He’s an incredibly talented artist with an extensive culinary background and a huge personality. I’d love to let him taste my drinks and bounce ideas off each other. I’m sure we’d make some really awesome drinks.

Oyabun

Cocktail Ingredients:

• 1½ oz. shishito-infused mezcal (see below)

• ¾ oz. pineapple oleo (see below)

• ¾ oz. lemon juice

• ½ oz. Strega

• 10 oz. whole milk

(used as milk wash)

• dehydrated pineapple with togarashi (garnish)

Shishito Mezcal:

• shishito peppers

• 750 ml bottle of Union Mezcal

Blister 10 shishito peppers and then split them in half lengthwise. Add the peppers to the bottle of mezcal and let infuse for 24 hours.

Pineapple Oleo:

• 1 pineapple (for the skin)

• 12⁄3 cup turbinado sugar

• 1 cup water

Remove the skin, crown and base of one pineapple, cut the skin and base into 1-to 2-inch chunks and add to a container that you can close with a lid. Add the turbinado, close the container and shake it to coat the pineapple in turbinado. Allow to sit at room temperature for 6-24 hours and then squeeze pieces to extract any juice. Dispose of the pieces. Add one cup of water. Strain and store in the fridge. Yields about 20 oz.

Instructions:

Add shishito-infused mezcal, pineapple oleo, lemon juice and Strega liquor to a shaker with ice. Shake for 5-10 seconds. Add the cocktail blend to the whole milk. Allow to rest, refrigerated, for one hour. Strain through fine filter.

Pour the milk washed batch in a rocks glass with one large ice cube. Stir in the glass and top with a togarashi pineapple garnish.