Gabriela: chef
[Oaxaca City, Mexico]
Chef
Gabriela is a chef at one of Oaxaca City’s finest restaurants.
Question + Answer
1) Why did you choose to enter this field? How did you start working at Los Danzantes, one of the most respected restaurants in the city of Oaxaca?
“By my mom, I mean I saw her cooking and I said wow I want to do the same thing she does. The same, because of my mother, she works there and I also think that I had the opportunity to work here because of her.”
2) What is it like to be a cook? And especially, what is it like to be a cook in the city of Oaxaca?
“For me it is something inexplicable. There are so many things you can learn and do in one place. To be a cook in my city, well it is something unique because they continue to maintain the ingredients and flavors of our city. That is something unique that can be appreciated only in Oaxaca.”
3) Name the 3 main things you feel every woman needs to succeed in your industry. That can be practical, emotional, etc.
“1. Be very patient.
2. That you like what you are doing.
3. And be consistent.”
4) What are some of the typical reactions you get when you tell people about the industry in which you work? How do you want them to react?
“Well here in Oaxaca it is normal, but some people cannot believe it because according to them it is very difficult to work in a kitchen where there are many men. Well, they say if she could, I can also work in a kitchen or not only in a kitchen--it can be in anything. I have always said that a woman can do anything, it's just a matter of proposing it.”
5) Where do you see yourself in 5 years, within 10 years in relation to your career?
“Well, really I said that I want to travel in other countries and learn new things, techniques, and ingredients, so I don't have such a firm goal. And of course I have also thought about being a chef but I need to learn more.”
6) What advice would you give to another woman who is considering entering this field?
“That she be consistent and that she really likes doing what she does.”
7) Who is the woman in your life whom you admire most and why? She can be family, a friend, someone famous, etc.
“My mom, because she has an impressive maturity.”
8) What is the best advice you have received in this role?
“That I am good at what I do and that I have a future ahead of me in the kitchen.”
9) What is the biggest obstacle you have faced as a woman in your industry?
“The machismo in my kitchen. I mean, men believe that a woman cannot do her job without the help of a man.”
10) What is the most satisfactory part of your job? The part you love most?
“That I can make my menus or that I can make a proposal on something--that I can give my opinion on everything is what I like most about my work. And being a chef lets me grow and learn new things.”