It has been 10 years since I started working in the industry. Before pursuing this career, I was in pursuit of a financial career dealing with numbers. I even underwent technical training for it, but somehow I was not happy. My mom used to have a friend who was a chef. He often came to our house and cooked great food, and while he was cooking, I couldn’t take my eyes off him. I began to ask myself if there was something else that attracted me. That’s when I thought about the kitchen. My mom was surprised by my decision, as I had not been into it since I was younger.
She thought I would waste time and money on this career. So, before even starting my studies, I worked in a pizzeria to see how things were. Even though it was not a top-tier kitchen, I tried to take on as much responsibility as possible to experience the pressure and understand how things worked.
During my time at the pizzeria, I decided to study culinary arts and then worked as a cook in a big hotel. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to work under a female chef, so there wasn’t that resistance that I often hear about. During that time, there was an event called “maridaje” where different restaurants from Medellin came together and had stations serving their food. It was during those days that I wanted to work at Carmen, as I had heard many good things about the restaurant.
While I was at one of the stations during the event, a friend of mine told me that the chef of the place was passing by all the stations, tasting the food.
I introduced myself and expressed my interest in working for him.
The next week, I was already undergoing training, and since then, I haven’t looked back. I could have never imagined the level of creativity we have reached here! It has been a community effort where each day brings a new crazy idea. Instead of dismissing these ideas, we are always open to testing them out.
I never imagined creating this cuisine, but this environment has inspired me to explore new flavors, techniques, and ingredients. It’s been a challenging yet rewarding journey, and I’m grateful for the opportunities it has brought me.
