FOOD+ D R I NK
CHÚLA EATERY
interview
JORGE PEREZCHICA
portrait by LILY OLIVIA MINDELL
LA QUINTA, CA
94
Chúla Eatery is locally sourced, made from scratch, delicious food, organic espresso, delightful pastries, a mimosa in the sunshine, farm to table and Oh So Bueno! It’s no wonder Katherine Gonzalez, chef/owner of Chúla Eatery is voted as one of the top ten restaurants in the Coachella Valley — good food brings everyone together. Katherine’s love for heritage-inspired dishes began at a young age while learning to cook with her mama. Over time, she created her own recipes, sharing her handmade salsas and tamales at the local farmers market. From that, Chúla began.
At our house there was always a pot of beans cooking, fresh made flour tortillas, salsa and sopas fideo. It was warm and delicious comfort food at every celebration, mom would always make chips and salsas and tamales and my friends would sit and eat it all. They always said ‘you guys should sell this!’ I remember asking my mom to show me how to make tamales one holiday, then the chips, then the salsas. Over time, I began to change up the ingredients and create different flavor profiles. Then my mom started taking jars of salsa with her after visiting me!
Growing up and earliest food memories. I was raised in Southern Arizona, a city called Tucson. I am one of 3 children. My mother’s family migrated from Chihuahua, Mexico and my father’s family from Spain, both of my parents are from large families! My dad had 11 siblings and my mom had 13. With so many children in a house the cooking had to be creative, inexpensive and feed so many everyday. There was always the best hot food at both of my nanas’ homes; fresh tortillas de mano, fresh charred chiles, sopas, caldos, carnitas, pappas, salsitas and my mom starting cooking the same way for us once she became a mom at 18.
Important lessons and influence from mom. How good food brings everyone together...it’s love, it’s the glue. My mom would always invite everyone for the holidays and birthdays and she loves gathering and cooking for the family, and I see the love and feel that when I make her red chile sauce from scratch at Chula, that’s something I will never change. We have the best customers. I see the same people 2, 3, 4 times a week at Chula. They always say they can taste the love in our food, and that starts with my mom‘s influence, my creativity, shared through our staff and received by our guests.
COACHELLA MAGAZINE
