Garrett Marks
Mister Jiu's and Moongate Lounge | San Francisco, CA
September 2026
Garrett Marks was exposed to hospitality at an early age, helping out with the barbecue ribs on his grandfather's food truck in Tacoma, Washington. When he graduated, Marks worked as a dishwasher at From The Bayou and then as a cook at a nearby pizza place, but he left the industry soon after and spent the next few years running a skate shop and doing event coordination. When he moved to San Francisco in 2007, he returned to the industry, working as a cashier at a deli before becoming a barback at The Alembic, one of the city's pioneering craft cocktail bars. Over the next three years, Marks trained under Bartenders Danny Louie and Mike Fluery, learning the philosophy and history behind classic cocktails.
Marks joined the opening team of Mister Jiu's in 2016. At the same time, he helped with the opening of the Alamo Drafthouse, where he learned to work in a fast-paced, high-volume environment. Marks doubled down on Mister Jiu's shortly after and spent the next four years working under Louie again at Chef Brandon Jew's iconic and innovative Chinatown restaurant. In 2019, Marks moved to Los Angeles to bartend at Tartine. He went on to work at Rising Stars alum Melissa Perello's M. Georgina, but moved back to San Francisco when the restaurant closed due to the pandemic.
In 2021, Jew asked Marks to come back to Mister Jiu's to help navigate through the pandemic. Over the next few years, though, Marks started to develop new cocktails and take over more of the bar program. He became the restaurant's beverage director in 2024. Now, he is leading the bar teams at Mister Jiu's and Moongate Lounge, the sleek listening bar and event space upstairs, and building cocktail menus inspired by the culture, history, and seasons of both California and China. While providing his staff with opportunities to grow and express their creativity, Marks is also hosting community events, showcasing DJs, and collaborating with bartenders from around the world.
2026 StarChefs San Francisco-Oakland Rising Stars Award Winner
