Saratoga News

Photograph by George Sakkestad

Tom Brodack, general manager of the Los Gatos Fresh Choice, displays some of the muffins available during Sunday brunch.

Fresh Choice now offers choice of Sunday brunch

By Suzanne Cristallo

Fresh Choice is offering more choices.

The Los Gatos soup, salad and pasta bar is now serving brunch on Sundays to its all-you-can-eat fans. All 27 Bay Area restaurants in the Santa Clara-based chain have been offering the midday repast as a response to customers who seek an alternative to other brunches, which general manager Tom Brodack terms "overpriced."

"Our brunch is middle-priced with similar menu selections," Brodack says of the $7.25 meal. He says it's also ideal for families who can bring their 5- to 10-year-olds for $3.99, including a beverage. Children age 4 and younger eat for free.

The 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. brunch includes a scrambled egg dish, home-style "taters" and roasted red potatoes with chicken andouilles sausage. There is a waffle bar, a hot and cold cereal station, breakfast breads and "wicked stickies"--cinnamon rolls--as well as a fruit and dessert bar. The brunch is in addition to the regular luncheon selections, all for the same price.

Brodack, 38, is a regular fixture in the Los Gatos eatery, spending up to 12 hours each day overseeing operations and a staff of 25. He joined Fresh Choice a year ago after developing a career in the restaurant business while attending De Anza College.

"I came west to seek my fortune 17 years ago," the Chicago native recalls with a smile. As a student, he studied animation, film and photo journalism while working on the school newspaper. To support himself, he worked as a bartender at the old Odyssey Room in Sunnyvale, moving up through the ranks to general manager. Next came a stint with Coco's family restaurants in several locations.

"Finally, I hit a point in my life when I decided restaurant management was going to be my career," says Brodack, who by this time was married with three sons. "So I sought a company with more opportunity." It was then he joined the Fresh Choice corporation, a company he calls "fun and energetic."

Part of Brodack's responsibility involves cost control. While many all-you-can-eat restaurants experience great waste from customers piling plates with food that is left uneaten, Brodack says his customers are very health-conscious, attracted to the restaurant by the kinds of foods served there.

"We don't overproduce our meals," he says of the food, which is constantly being replenished at each station. Muffins that have a 45-minute shelf life are baked as the demand progresses. The 20-minute shelf life of pasta and the 15-minute lifespan of dressed salad are maintained by the serving staff, who monitor demand and make fresh batches accordingly.

Fresh Choice, 15970 Los Gatos Blvd., Los Gatos. Open Mon.-Thu.,11 a.m.- 9 p.m.; Fri.-Sat., 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; and Sun., 10 a.m.-9 p.m. 358-3403.

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