This week, Emirates Woman speaks to Chef Gabriela Chamorro, Co-Founder and Executive Chef of Girl & the Goose – Restaurante Centroamericano.

Welcome to the Emirates Woman weekly series ‘How I got my job as…’ where we speak to some incredible entrepreneurs and businesswomen, both based in the UAE and globally, to find out about their career paths that led them to where they are now; what their daily routines look like; the advice they’d give to those starting out; and the hurdles they’ve had to overcome.

From starting off as a representative for American Airlines in Managua to achieving her childhood dream to become a chef, the journey into the kitchen began long before it became a profession. Inspired by watching her grandmother cook with quiet generosity and care, food was never simply about recipes or technique. It was an expression of love, connection, and service. While formal training and the demands of professionalism came later, those early lessons have remained with Chef Gabriela Chamorro: creating experiences that make people feel seen, cared for, and connected through food everyday.

What’s your educational background?
I studied Diplomacy and International Affairs, which often surprises a lot of people. Looking back, though, it makes perfect sense. My studies taught me to understand different cultures, communicate across borders, and appreciate how deeply food, history, and tradition shape the way people connect with one another. Today, food has become the language I chose to tell those stories.

What was your favourite subject at school?
History, without question. I’ve always been fascinated by where people come from and how traditions evolve over time. In retrospect, I think that’s one of the reasons I fell so deeply in love with cooking. Every recipe carries generations of history, migration, resilience, and identity. To me, food is one of the most powerful ways to preserve culture, keeping stories and traditions alive long after they’ve crossed borders.

What was your first job?
My first job was as an American Airlines representative in Managua. It gave me my first real taste of hospitality and taught me how to stay calm under pressure while looking after people. Coming to think of it, there are more similarities between airports and restaurants than you might expect. Both are about navigating emotions, managing expectations, and creating moments that people remember long after the journey or the meal is over.

What inspired you to be a chef?
Becoming a chef was my childhood dream, even if it wasn’t the career path I initially followed. I grew up watching my grandmother cook, and all I wanted was to be like her. She never cooked to impress anyone; she cooked because it was how she cared for the people she loved. That stayed with me long before I ever stepped into a professional kitchen.
To me, cooking has always been an act of love, generosity, and service. The techniques, the training, and the dining experience all came later, but the purpose has never changed. At its heart, food is about making people feel seen, cared for, and connected, and that’s what continues to inspire me every day.

What are the key elements of your role?
These days, my role extends far beyond cooking. As Executive Chef, my greatest responsibility is to lead, mentor, and develop my team. Creating an environment where people feel supported, inspired, and empowered to grow is just as important as creating new dishes.
Of course, I still love developing menus, refining recipes, and exploring new ideas in the kitchen. But ultimately, every decision we make, whether it’s about the food, the team, or the guest experience, should lead to one outcome: making every person who walks through our doors feel genuinely cared for.

Talk us through your daily routine.
I wish I could tell you I’m one of those people who wakes up at 5 AM, full of energy and ready to take on the day, but that’s definitely not me. My mornings start a little more slowly, usually with our two dogs, Moxy and Strottie, demanding attention before I’ve even had my first coffee.

Three times a week, I fit in a resistance training session, enjoy a late breakfast, and then make my way to Girl & the Goose. No two days are ever the same. Some days I’m in the kitchen tasting sauces, testing recipes, troubleshooting, and experimenting with new ingredients. Other days, you’ll find me on the restaurant floor speaking with guests, hearing their feedback, and seeing their reactions firsthand. That connection is honestly one of my favorite parts of the job.

Mondays and Tuesdays are usually dedicated to admin, meetings, and my ongoing battle with an inbox that never seems to get any smaller. I try to take care of myself where I can, eat well, and, if time allows, walk home for a little quality time with Moxy and Strottie before heading back for evening service.

Most nights, I finish around midnight, unwind for a little while, and finally get to bed around 2 AM – which probably explains why I’m not naturally a morning person. Sundays, however, are sacred. That’s my proper day off. I wish I had a more glamorous answer, but the truth is, I’m happiest keeping life simple: spending time with my dogs and my husband, sharing a good meal, and taking a moment to recharge.

At the end of the day, I’m just a chef. I love what I do, and I feel lucky that I get to do it every day.

What advice do you have for anyone looking to follow in the same footsteps?
Understand that being a chef goes far beyond cooking. The kitchen is only one part of the journey. The best chefs are endlessly curious; they read, travel, ask questions, visit local markets, eat at different restaurants, and seek out every opportunity to learn from the world around them.

Whether it’s attending culinary school, joining workshops, discovering new books, taking online courses, or staging in another kitchen, every experience adds another layer to your understanding of food and your craft. Never stop learning, because the moment you stop being curious is the moment you stop growing.

Just as importantly, find your community. I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have mentors, friends, and colleagues who believed in me long before I believed in myself. Those relationships have shaped my journey, and I believe in building that same sense of support for others. Nurture your connections, learn from the people around you, and always make space to champion those coming up behind you.

Most importantly, remember this profession is a marathon, not a sprint. Talent will open doors, but consistency, humility, resilience, and kindness are what will carry you through the journey.

What are the pillars that define Girl & the Goose?
Everything we do at Girl & the Goose is built around three simple ideas.

The first is a modern take on heritage. We honor the traditional recipes, flavors, and techniques of Central America while bringing a contemporary perspective shaped by my own culinary journey and the experiences I’ve gathered from travelling to more than 80 countries. For me, heritage is not about looking backwards; it’s about preserving where we come from while allowing those stories to continue evolving.

The second is storytelling. Every dish has a story to tell, whether it’s about our history, our culture, our ingredients, or the traditions passed down through generations. We believe food becomes more meaningful when people understand the story behind what they are eating.

The third is Latin hospitality. More than anything, we want every person who walks through our doors to feel welcomed. In Latin culture, hospitality is generous, warm, and deeply personal. We don’t simply serve food; we invite people into our home. That’s why every guest at Girl & the Goose is welcomed with the words: “Welcome home.”

Tell us a little about Girl & the Goose. How did you come up with the idea and what do you aim for people to take away from it?
Girl & the Goose began as a supper club, born from a desire to share the richness, diversity, and stories of Central American cuisine with a wider audience. At the time, there was very little representation of our region’s food in the UAE, and I wanted to create a space where people could experience the incredible depth of our heritage beyond the dishes they might already know. Ultimately, I wanted to place Central American cuisine on the culinary map in Dubai.

What started as intimate gatherings around a table eventually grew into a restaurant, but the heart of the idea has remained exactly the same: creating a bridge between cultures through food. Central American cuisine is a reflection of our history, shaped by Indigenous traditions, migration, different landscapes, and generations of families who have preserved recipes and techniques over time. Through Girl & the Goose, I want to share those stories and show people the incredible diversity that exists within our region.

When guests leave, I hope they take away three things. First, I hope they feel genuinely cared for. Hospitality has always been at the center of who we are, and I want every person who walks through our doors to feel welcomed, not just served.

Second, I hope they discover something new, whether that’s an ingredient they’ve never tasted before, a story they’ve never heard, or a part of Central America they never knew existed. Food has the power to open people’s eyes to different cultures in a way that feels personal and memorable.

And finally, I hope they leave feeling they’ve found somewhere they want to return to. A place to celebrate, reconnect, share a meal with loved ones, or simply spend time around a table. At its heart, Girl & the Goose is about creating a sense of belonging; a place that feels, in some small way, like home.

What do you think makes Girl & the Goose unique?
Very few restaurants focus exclusively on Central American cuisine, and even fewer take the time to explore its depth, diversity, and stories through a contemporary lens.

At Girl & the Goose, we celebrate the incredible richness of the region, from the flavors and traditions of Costa Rica, Panama, Guatemala, Honduras, Belize, El Salvador, and Nicaragua, while also incorporating techniques, influences, and perspectives I’ve gathered throughout my own culinary journey and travels around the world.

What makes the experience unique is the way we approach familiar ingredients and traditions. We take flavors that are deeply rooted in our heritage and present them in a way that feels unexpected and relevant today. From our Guacamole and Sweet Plantain in Heaven, to our Seabass Ceviche with Guatemalan green pipián and our Yuca Gnocchi, every dish is a reflection of where we come from while embracing where we are going.

What are your favourite dishes from the menu of Girl & the Goose?
That’s like asking a parent to choose a favorite child… but I do have a few favorites!

If I had to choose one, it would be the Yuca Gnocchi because it perfectly represents our philosophy at Girl & the Goose: taking humble, everyday ingredients that are deeply rooted in our culture and presenting them in a new way. Yuca has always been a staple across Central America, and transforming it into a delicate gnocchi served with a rich lobster bisque is a beautiful example of honoring tradition while creating something unexpected.

I also love the Seabass Aguachile with jalapeño sorbet because it’s vibrant, refreshing, and playful. It captures the energy of our cuisine with its balance of spice, acidity, and freshness. Our Güirillas will always hold a special place in my heart because they instantly transport me back to Nicaragua. They are humble, nostalgic, and full of flavor—the kind of dish that reminds you that food doesn’t need to be complicated to be meaningful.

And finally, the Nicaraguan Steak Bowl is one I always come back to. It’s comfort food at its finest and a reminder that no matter where we come from, there is something wonderfully universal about gathering around a table and sharing a comforting bowl of rice, beans, and memories.

What is the best piece of advice you ever received? And what is the worst?
The best advice I ever received was simply: be yourself.

It sounds obvious, almost cliché, but it took me years to truly understand that authenticity is my greatest strength. For a long time, I felt pressure to adapt, whether that was trying to sound a certain way or fit a certain idea of what success should look like. The moment I stopped trying to change parts of myself and fully embraced my heritage, my voice, and where I come from, everything shifted. I realised that the things that make me different are actually the things that make my work meaningful.

The worst advice? Buying a house before fully understanding personal finance.

I’ve never been someone who enjoys relying on debt or credit cards, but I underestimated how quickly interest rates and financial commitments can add up. It was an important lesson, and one I wish more creatives learned early in their careers. Passion is essential, but understanding the practical side of building a sustainable career is just as important.

What has been the biggest challenge you had to overcome?
Changing careers. I became a chef at 35 after years working as cabin crew. By that time, many chefs had already spent nearly two decades building their careers in professional kitchens, so there were moments when I felt like I was constantly trying to catch up. I had to work harder, stay curious, and be willing to learn from every person and every experience around me.

Building Girl & the Goose was another challenge entirely. I didn’t come from the traditional restaurant world, so we had to learn, adapt, and earn every step of the journey. There was no shortcut; every decision, every mistake, and every achievement became part of the learning process.

Looking back, those challenges became some of my greatest strengths. They taught me resilience, humility, and the importance of approaching things with fresh eyes. Coming from a different background allowed me to see hospitality differently, and I believe that perspective is one of the things that makes Girl & the Goose what it is today.

What are your goals for the future?
My biggest goal is very simple: I want Girl & the Goose to become a restaurant that stands the test of time. A place that continues to bring people together, create meaningful memories, and share the richness of Central American cuisine for years to come.

I also want to continue developing the incredible team around me because no restaurant succeeds because of one chef alone. The people behind the kitchen, the floor, and every part of the experience are what truly bring a restaurant to life, and helping them grow is one of the most rewarding parts of my role.

Personally, I hope to keep shining a light on Central American cuisine and showing the world the depth, diversity, and beauty of our stories, traditions, and flavors. My dream is for more people to discover our region through food and understand that Central American cuisine deserves its place on the global culinary stage.

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