The recently-hired executive chef of the Tres Pinos Cantina
Grill and Tequila Bar died early Wednesday morning after being
partially ejected from the 1986 Corvette he was riding in during an
alcohol-related accident on Watsonville Road, according to
police.
Hollister – The recently-hired executive chef of the Tres Pinos Cantina Grill and Tequila Bar died early Wednesday morning after being partially ejected from the 1986 Corvette he was riding in during an alcohol-related accident on Watsonville Road, according to police.
Alex Jara, 34, recently moved to Morgan Hill from Gilroy and was the executive chef at Glory Days restaurant in downtown Morgan Hill. In addition to his work at Glory Days, he also served as executive chef for the Cantina and helped train the restaurant’s staff.
“He was a talented chef, and all around great guy,” said Frank Leal, owner of the Cantina. “He is definitely going to be missed. I imagine there will be a lot of conversations about him at the restaurant.”
A cook since he was only 13 years old, Jara was originally hired by Leal to restore the Cantina’s reputation after receiving numerous complaints about the quality of the food.
He demanded perfection from his staff, was not hesitant to fire cooks who were not passionate about their work and insisted that all of the Cantina’s food be made fresh. Though Jara briefly attended the San Francisco Culinary Academy, most of his craft he learned on his own, through hard work and intuition.
Jara was a passenger in the vehicle driven by Watsonville resident Osbaldo Esquivel, III., 33. Esquivel apparently lost control of the vehicle as it was traveling eastbound on Watsonville Road, west of Watsonville Court, at a unknown rate of speed and slammed into a tree at 12:38am, according to the California Highway Patrol. Jara was not wearing his seat belt and an investigation is underway, according to CHP Officer Chris Armstrong.
“This investigation may take a little time,” Armstrong said. “Once the information is compiled, it will be closely reviewed by the sergeant. An average case, it might take 10 days; with this one, a fatality, it could take up to 30 days.”
Jara was pronounced dead at the scene. Esquivel suffered major injuries in the accident and was flown by Calstar to Valley Medical Center in San Jose. Esquivel was arrested for driving under the influence, according to the CHP report.
“We still will want to interview the driver, and it’s likely to be a while before we can do that,” Armstrong said. “We’re working with the district attorney to determine what charges might be appropriate.” Â
He would not speculate if the charges could include manslaughter or murder.
Santa Clara County Assistant District Attorney David Tomkins said Thursday that he could not say, without having reviewed the case, if Esquivel would be charged with manslaughter because he was allegedly driving drunk.Â
“The way it works is that the police will gather their information, interview those involved, and reduce all of that to a report,” Tomkins said. “We decide what crime, if any, there is described in that report. What is often confusing to people is when people are booked under certain charges, it’s assumed they will be charged. The decision is ours, based on our expertise and a review of the report presented by the police.”
A sign outside Glory Days, which was closed Wednesday, told patrons of the tragedy, according to co-owner Debra Creighton.
“It’s just too fresh, we’re not sure,” she said Wednesday. “I know we want to close it for the (funeral) services, and a lot of our staff are saying we should open it tomorrow, that that is what he would want us to do.”
The restaurant reopened on Thursday.
Jara had worked at several restaurants, including the Happy Dog in Gilroy and Shadowbrook in Santa Cruz, before coming to Glory Days when it opened in April.
“We built our staff together,” Creighton said. “He was a friend first, though. We as a staff are almost as close as his family. We built great relationships. His girlfriend is our manager, Lalani Ponce, born and raised in Morgan Hill, and they have a 3-month-old son, Diego.”
Customers also will miss Jara, Creighton said.
“When I drove up to the restaurant, I found one of our customers, a customer and a good friend, sitting there crying,” she said. “Alex built relationships with the customers, he cared about people.”
A Rosary will be held Sunday at Mehis Funeral Home in Watsonville. Visitation will be from 1pm-9pm, and the Rosary at 6pm. A funeral mass will be held at 9:30am at Assumption Church in Watsonville on Monday.
Staff Writer Danielle Smith contributed to this report.
