After 10 years as a partner of Consortium Holdings' Polite Provisions, renowned mixologist Erick Castro has announced his departure from the San Diego cocktail hotspot.
Prior to returning to San Diego, Erick Castro built his cocktail empire at highly revered Bourbon & Branch and Rickhouse in San Francisco by searching for obscure recipes, methods and ingredients that originated prior to Prohibition. But his humble beginnings first began in San Diego tending bar while attending classes at San Diego State University before leaving for Northern California in 2005.
Castro joined San Diego's Consortium Holdings in September 2012 to assist the growing hospitality firm in launching Polite Provisions. Castro has since assisted the company in fine tuning its cocktail programs at their nearly two dozen San Diego properties. Over the course of his illustrious career, Castro's unique spirits programs have earned him mention in some of the most coveted media outlets, including Esquire, Food & Wine, and Forbes.
"As the saying goes, 'all good things must come to an end,'" wrote Erick Casto in a social media post announcing his departure from Consortium Holdings. "Which is why I am now bidding farewell to one of my greatest passions, Polite Provisions. Over the years, it has been an amazing and incredibly rewarding experience working with my team there to build something truly special, which in many ways has become a cornerstone in the community. Now as I look back on the last 10 years, my heart is filled with pride and my spirit is packed dense with an incalculable amount of memories that I will never forget."
There is no word on the reason behind Castro's announced departure from Polite Provisions or if it has anything to do with the bar's recent closure due to its latest in a series of liquor license violations. It is believed that Castro has sold his ownership shares of Polite Provisions but may be staying on with Consortium Holdings to continue working with Raised By Wolves in Westfield UTC Mall. It remains unclear why he'd post such a lengthy announcement to his more than 22,000 Instagram followers if he intended to stay on with the parent company. We reached out to Castro for comment and more information but he did not respond by the time of publishing.
"As the saying goes, 'all good things must come to an end,'" wrote Erick Casto in a social media post announcing his departure from Consortium Holdings. "Which is why I am now bidding farewell to one of my greatest passions, Polite Provisions. Over the years, it has been an amazing and incredibly rewarding experience working with my team there to build something truly special, which in many ways has become a cornerstone in the community. Now as I look back on the last 10 years, my heart is filled with pride and my spirit is packed dense with an incalculable amount of memories that I will never forget."
There is no word on the reason behind Castro's announced departure from Polite Provisions or if it has anything to do with the bar's recent closure due to its latest in a series of liquor license violations. It is believed that Castro has sold his ownership shares of Polite Provisions but may be staying on with Consortium Holdings to continue working with Raised By Wolves in Westfield UTC Mall. It remains unclear why he'd post such a lengthy announcement to his more than 22,000 Instagram followers if he intended to stay on with the parent company. We reached out to Castro for comment and more information but he did not respond by the time of publishing.
Castro is the latest big name talent to leave a high position at Consortium Holdings in the past year. In early 2022, corporate executive chef Jason McLeod left the company after an 11 year tenure. Then last fall, CH's Director of Kitchen Development Kat Humphus relocated to Northern California.
