Christopher Addison Robert Gonzales was Chef Gonzo. He had an early passion for cooking that started as a teenager with BBQ's in the park with his friends in the boating community of Discovery Bay,CA. His parents encouraged him to follow that passion by beginning work in the local restaurant, Boardwalk Grill at the Discovery Bay Marina. He also started his education in the culinary program at Diablo Valley College (DVC). While there he enjoyed multiple trips to Pebble Beach working on culinary teams in support of the A.T.&T. Pro-Am golf tournament. He graduated from DVC earning certificates in Restaurant Management, Baking and Hospitality. He also forged valuable friendships that would prove beneficial in his career. He then moved on to work at Shutters Brasserie under the direction of owner Scottie Nguyen. With the exposure to seasonal French cuisine, he realized that fine dining was his first love. An opportunity presented itself to move to Sacramento to live in the family home where he was born and he took advantage of it. He was joined by his cousin Andria and later his brother Alexander. Once there, he reconnected with his DVC alumnus Brandon at Rio City Cafe. It was here that he was challenged by the high volume and had to prove himself on the lunch shift before taking on dinner shifts. He than moved on to Broderick Roadhouse in Midtown and then to fine dining establishment Ten22 affiliated with Firehouse down the street. When Ten22 posted on Facebook that they had decided to shut down operations, Christopher was recruited by text within hours by Chef Q Bennett (www.q1227restaurant.com) to join him in launching the new Echo & Rig Steakhouse. After a while there, he was recruited once again by another fellow DVC alumnus Derek Grogg. Derek sold him on the idea of evenings and weekends off which was also supported by Chris' parents and he made the move to help open Casablanca Cafe (www.casablancacaters.com)