Longtime local bartender Tommy Slater passed away Jan. 16 at his home in Redondo Beach at the age of 61. Slater bartended for the past 10 years at the Mermaid in Hermosa Beach, and previously bartended at Hermosa’s North End and Del 
Conte’s in Torrance.
Slater, pictured with his band Vesuvius while performing at Del Conte’s, was a guitarist whose bands performed throughout the South Bay. Longtime friend Rick Koenig recalled Slater as a loving father and gifted musician who served industrial strength cocktails with a cheerful sense of humor.
Slater’s family will spread his ashes at sea from aboard the Disappearance boat in the morning of Sunday, Jan. 27, and a celebration of his life will be held at 3 p.m. at the King Harbor Yacht Club.
