From El Bulli to Transforming Guatemala | Mirciny Moliviatis

When Mirciny Moliviatis returned from working at El Bulli — considered the best restaurant in the world — she had two paths: chase international fame or return to Guatemala and dedicate her life to elevating the country’s gastronomy. She chose the latter. And that decision changed everything.

Guatemalan gastronomy is a reflection of our history and identity. Few understand it as deeply as Mirciny, chef and creator of Gastrocultura, who has dedicated over fifteen years to researching, documenting, and elevating the culinary traditions of Guatemala.

In this conversation, Mirciny opens the doors to her story: from Saturday tamales with her grandmother Chave, through the most demanding kitchens in Europe, to the personal tragedy that led her to find her true purpose.

The Origins: Where It All Began

Mirciny comes from a family of tireless workers. Her father, a Greek immigrant, arrived in Guatemala on October 20, 1960, with barely 16 years old, without speaking the language, and with nothing but the determination to build a life. Her mother, equally hardworking, taught her that nothing comes without effort.

‘You lead by example. I come from two parents who are my best friends. My dad came with nothing, without speaking the language, to try his luck. And I think that entrepreneurial spirit and that work ethic are part of my DNA.’

— Mirciny Moliviatis

But it was her grandmother Chave who planted the seed that would define her life. While her parents worked, Mirciny and her siblings spent time with their grandmother, and it was there, between the market and the kitchen, where she discovered her vocation.

Her grandmother would dress elegantly to go to the market: nice dresses, matching shoes. It was a ritual. And on those outings, among the smells of fresh vegetables and spices, little Mirciny learned that food is much more than sustenance.

‘I always saw my grandmother happy cooking. She awakened in us those feelings of aromas, flavors, traditions. I thought my grandmother made the best food in the world. And maybe she did.’

— Mirciny Moliviatis

The Unexpected Path

At 17, Mirciny had no idea what to do with her life. Like many young people, she faced the pressure of choosing a career that would ‘determine the rest of her life.’ Her journey was anything but linear:

Industrial Psychology: A year studying something that didn’t fulfill her, following her friends’ path.

The discovery: A culinary diploma at IFES, recommended by her brother Basilis and sister-in-law Lorena.

The confrontation: An Argentine chef who told her she’d starve. In those days, chefs in Guatemala weren’t Guatemalan.

The first job: Pastry assistant at a hotel, discovering how much she still had to learn.

Spain and El Bulli: She sold her car, saved everything, and went to learn from the best in the world.

El Bulli: Where She Learned That Cooking Is Philosophy

In Spain, Mirciny arrived at the perfect moment: Spanish cuisine was at its peak, with figures like Ferran Adrià, Juan María Arzak, Martín Berasategui. She absorbed everything.

Working at El Bulli was a shock. Fifty cooks for 45 diners. A research laboratory. Obsessive attention to detail. Absolute perfection.

‘In the third month, I called my dad crying, telling him I couldn’t take it anymore, that I wanted to come back. It’s 18-hour days. But at that moment I hadn’t realized something my dad understood perfectly.’

— Mirciny Moliviatis

Her father gave her a response that would change her perspective: ‘You decided to be there, you’re staying there. Better figure out what you’re doing wrong and why you’re not finding joy in what you chose.’

And she searched. She learned that she needed to be excellent. That she had to ask for help without shame. That excellence is ethics. That questioning yourself is part of the process.

More than culinary techniques, Mirciny learned a philosophy. She saw Ferran Adrià write books, give interviews, win awards. She understood that gastronomy is not just cooking — it’s culture, identity, and a vehicle for transformation.

The Decision That Changed Everything

In 2010, with an international career on the rise and a show on Fox Life, Mirciny faced the hardest moment of her life: the death of her brother in Guatemala due to violence.

She had everything to leave. She could pursue fame, open an avant-garde restaurant anywhere in the world. But she chose to stay.

‘I couldn’t understand how in this beautiful country what happened to my brother had happened. And I asked myself, why? I didn’t want to hate. I didn’t want to leave. I needed to find beauty in my country.’

— Mirciny Moliviatis

That tragedy became fuel. Instead of looking for the ugly, she decided to look for the beautiful in Guatemala. And she found it in its gastronomy.

Traveling Guatemala: The Best University

There is no department, municipality, village, canton, or mountain in Guatemala that Mirciny hasn’t traveled. That journey through the country became her best university.

‘I can speak with authority about Guatemalan gastronomy because I learned it from the true guardians of gastronomy. Those recipes are in the hands of women in communities who have preserved them for generations.’

— Mirciny Moliviatis

What she discovered was revelatory. She saw women making emulsions with ancestral techniques, the same ones she had learned in the most avant-garde kitchens in Europe. She found ingredients of extraordinary quality that the world didn’t know existed. She understood that Guatemala’s gastronomic wealth was immense — it just hadn’t been told.

The Three Pillars She Learned

1. Knowledge: ‘For me, knowing meant: I now know and understand where this comes from, what I can do with it.’

2. Respect: ‘You cannot innovate, you cannot recreate or create from ignorance. You can do whatever you want from respect and knowledge. Never from ignorance.’

3. Falling in love with the flavors: Rediscovering the richness that was always there, waiting to be valued.

‘When you understand that Guatemala’s gastronomy nourishes more than the stomach, because it nourishes the intellect, it’s living culture that you’re still able to experience firsthand, that changes everything.’

— Mirciny Moliviatis

Music and Cooking: The Power of Uniting Two Arts

For 15 years, Mirciny and Gaby Moreno have collaborated on ‘Música y Cocina’ (Music and Cooking), events where Gaby sings and Mirciny cooks to raise funds. The project evolved into a book that combines recipes with music.

The premise was simple but profound: both music and cooking have the power to transport you, to make you feel, to connect you with memories and emotions in ways that words cannot.

‘You smell something and suddenly you say: that smells like my grandmother’s cookies. Or you hear a song and you know who you heard it with for the first time. That combination of senses is what we wanted to capture.’

— Mirciny Moliviatis

The book includes QR codes with playlists created by Gaby for each chapter, plus recipe videos. A truly innovative project that demonstrates that the best collaborations are born from genuine friendship.

Gastrocultura: The Legacy in the Making

Perhaps the project that most excites Mirciny is Gastrocultura: a congress that has brought the world’s best chefs to Guatemala — Joan Roca, Albert Adrià, Virgilio Martínez — not just to show off, but to inspire the next generation.

The proceeds from exclusive dinners are used to provide scholarships. This year they achieved 500 scholarships for young people from all over Guatemala who attend the congress at no cost.

‘My goal is to fill the National Theater with scholarship kids from all over Guatemala. To get 1,500 kids into a congress. We started with 100, then 200, 300, 500. And I’m not going to stop until I fill it.’

She also created the first gastronomic work program where companies and the Ministry of Labor absorb the cost of paid internships, allowing students to learn while earning a salary. Something unheard of in Guatemala’s culinary world.

Mirciny Moliviatis’ Recipe for Success

Passion: ‘When you have a job you love, that motivates you. For me, it wasn’t hard to wake up at 1 AM because I was eager for what was coming. When you have that passion, everything else falls into place.’

Courage: Crossing the ocean alone at 20 with a VHS tape as her only reference. Staying in Guatemala when everything invited her to leave.

Asking for Help: ‘Sometimes I didn’t want to because I’d think: they’ll scold me. But I realized I needed to ask for help to be excellent.’

Excellence: ‘Excellence is ethics. It’s questioning yourself constantly. That’s what I learned at El Bulli.’

Your Team: ‘You can’t do it alone. Your team is crucial. My family team gives me emotional stability. My work team allows me to grow. If you don’t have that, you have to build it.’

Beginner’s Eyes: ‘I love surrounding myself with people I know will be smarter than me, going to places where I have no idea what I’m doing. That keeps you humble and hungry.’

The Final Message

At the close of the conversation, Mirciny left a message for all women seeking their path:

‘Let them search for what makes them happy. Let them not be afraid because we all go through hard situations. And don’t be afraid to start. We’ve all started from zero, from nothing. And that’s where the magic is.’

— Mirciny Moliviatis

Mirciny’s story proves that success is not linear. That the most painful moments can become the most potent fuel. That choosing your country over fame is not a sacrifice — it’s finding your true purpose.

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