Top Chef Season 18 Headshot Gabriel Pascuzzi

Gabriel Pascuzzi

HOMETOWN: Portland, OR

CURRENT CITY OF RESIDENCE: Portland, Oregon

OCCUPATION/PROFESSION: Chef/Owner, Mama Bird, Stacked Sandwich Shop and Feel Good

Gabriel Pascuzzi is the chef and owner of three restaurants in Portland, Oregon – Mama Bird, Stacked Sandwich Shop and Feel Good. Growing up in an Italian American household, his love of food started at a young age. He grew up visiting his uncle’s acclaimed restaurant in Big Fork, Montana washing lettuce and peeling shrimp in exchange for a slice of pie. After apprenticing for his uncle during high school, he went on to Johnson & Wales University receiving a bachelor’s degree in Culinary Arts. Gabriel then cut his teeth in New York City working for Daniel Boulud and head judge Tom Colicchio at Colicchio & Sons. He later staged at the world renowned and two Michelin star restaurant Noma in Copenhagen. Returning home, he helmed several kitchens before opening his first restaurant, Stacked Sandwich Shop in 2017. Stacked has been named on Thrillist’s Top 31 Sandwich Shops in America. Gabriel also took home Eater Portland’s Chef of the Year in 2017. In 2019, he opened Mama Bird six months before the pandemic hit.