Meet the Owner of the New Bar in Town

Tequila Shots is Rafael Gurrola's first bar. He took over the Goose Looney's on April 2 and, instead of closing for remodeling, has been transforming the interior while operating. He owns a Mexican restaurant with his brother called Red Pepper Grill in Los Altos and wants to shed the dive bar image of the former Goose Looney's.

Milpitas Patch: What would you like people to know about the bar?

Rafael Gurrola: That we're friendly. We're not committed to one ethnic group. We want everyone from all over the world to come drink here at Tequila Shots.

We're going to have food. And anyone can come in here [and sit at the back tables], even if you're not 21. Up to 10 p.m. We haven't done it yet because we haven't opened up the kitchen yet. I'm going through the permits still. We're still asking for IDs for everybody.

Patch: Out of the 80 different tequilas, which one is your favorite?

Gurrola: Maestro Dobel [Diamond Reposado]. It's a tequila that is not very well known. It's brand new. It's a mix of anejo and reposado in the same tequila. What it means is anejo is a tequila that is aged in a barrel for three years. Reposado is two years. Silver is one year. But they all come in three different bottles. This one is a mix of the two best tequillas which is anejo and reposado, all in the same bottle. It's a very competitive price. I ran out because we've been selling a lot.

Patch: You also raised the prices on the drinks.

Gurrola: I changed it so people who really want to come to this bar stay here, if not, they can go next door [to Galaxy's]. If you want to be rowdy, if you want to be loud, go over there. If you want to have a nice beer and watch TV [come here]. 

Patch: Does the bar have a happy hour?

Gurrola: It used to be 3-6, now we've changed it to 4-7. You know, give more of the working people an extra hour to enjoy drinking. 

Patch: You said you want to change the image of the bar.

Gurrola: I've done a 100 percent change inside. It looks much nicer. I want a nicer crowd to come into my bar. That's what I want to bring to Milpitas. A nicer bar.

So far I've accomplished a lot. If you ask someone that was here before, within a month and 15 days, I changed the carpet. I repainted inside and out. I did all the lighting in the bar. Repainted. Cleaned up the kitchen completely. I added the pool table. I added the surround sound system. I added some extra tables. I'm changing these table tops...I added a projector...we added high definition on all our screens. I've done a lot within a month and a half. I've been remodeling as we go.

Patch: If there was one word to describe this bar, what would it be?

Gurrola: I want this bar to be a classy bar.

Tequila Shots is located next to the library at 38 N. Main Street. 408-262-SHOTS.