02 - Gabriella Chamorro Carlsson
23 minutes reading
I love cooking. Asian, Italian, Hungarian meals and basically anything from any recipe. When I first was thinking about starting a business, I wanted to open my own healthy-choice diner. I am devoted to eating clean and possibly organic and I am even more devoted to growing my own produce. My garden in Iowa is full of peppers and tomatoes of crazy shapes, colors and flavors; cucumbers, cantaloupes and zucchinis; goji and various other berries. I am a huge fan of tropical plants and strive to get my frangipanis, which I started from seeds three years ago, to flower. I sprout pineapple, kiwi, citrus or pomegranate seeds and turn them into plants.
So, when I saw my next interview subject and her husband on TV, literally residing in the cloud forest on the highest mountain of Panama, with flora nurtured by the mists coming from the Caribbean, and operating their business, a beyond-imagination magical restaurant right there, I could not help but feel a little envious. Full honesty here. Amazed too. And happy for their success, suspecting that it has come amidst a lot of struggles, numerous dead-ends taking them back to square one multiple times. Amidst worries and anxiety – but also smart and conscious planning, a lot of creativity and resourcefulness, and as the result of the determination to not give up. It must be their heart, I reckoned, that keeps the dream alive; and holding on has paid off, big time.
If you have seen Kristen Kish’s signature show Restaurants at the End of the World, you know who Gabriella Carlsson is. The co-dreamer, co-maker-come-true; co-owner and co-chef to Hacienda Mamecillo. This little miracle is on one of the most unique locations in the world, hosting guests for a full Mamecillo-experience, dining included. I feel fortunate to be given a look into her extraordinary journey and to find out intimate details of her phenomenal life, the result of bravery and instincts – and a little luck. The interviews with this extremely humble, calm and soft-spoken woman were held in the beginning of February as she and her husband were busy preparing for the Panamanian Carnival Holidays rush. The essence is here for you now. Created with love – read with delight.
Gabi, tell me who Gabriella Carlsson, little girl, schoolgirl, young adult is. Where did your story begin?
I grew up in Lomma, Sweden, a smalltown in the outskirts of Malmö, with my parents and two siblings. I went to the local elementary school and took my high school studies in Malmö. My grandparents were farmers and nature lovers and so were my parents. It was in my genes to fall in love with nature early in my life; a love that has not stopped ever since.
Back then I really had no clue of what I wanted to become as an adult. I just lived the life of an average kid of down-to-earth parents, who were not pushing me into any direction but made me feel assured that no matter what I chose, they would one hundred percent have my back. Years passed and I happened to choose my mom’s profession, osteopathy. That is when I made my first serious decision and moved to England. English osteopathy education was known as highly rated, and I wanted to practice my English too, so the die was cast.
What happened next?
After my education I worked in England for a year and then jumped on an opportunity in the Caribbean, in Antigua. There I spent a season as an osteopath at a local facility. When my contract expired, I decided not to go back to my home country of Sweden just yet, as I wanted to explore different places. I remembered I had received an e-mail, while still in school, from Panama with an opportunity. I looked for that e-mail and contacted the Panamanian sender. Two months later I was en route to Panama…
Sounds like quite an adventure!
Yeah, and it is not over yet. Some time into my stay in Panama I met a man at a barbecue party who would become my husband. We started out as friends but after three months everything started to speed up. We became a couple and not much later we found we were really meant for each other. It was the right time, in the right place. We both wanted to go on to the next chapter, ready to really join forces and establish a family. We waited for half a year, planning in the meantime, looking for land in Panama, the country we imagined our life together in.
It took us 3-4 months to find the land we live on now. We stepped on it the first time and knew immediately we were home, even if it only had a small wood cabin on it at the time. Our daughter, Isabella was on the way when we started to build our home ourselves, designed by an architect friend. That was over 11 years ago now.
Rolando & Gabriella
Living in a cloud forest on the top of a mountain must be challenging, to say the least. How do you overcome the problems that occur up there?
Well one of the most important things is to learn respect and roll with nature. You cannot really make any changes about it; you can only adapt. Rain and humidity are the factors here that can give you the biggest frustration if you do not learn how to adapt. In the worst months (September-October, sometimes November) and then in the rainy season starting in April-May, we have to keep everything in a plastic bag, pantry items as well as even clothes.
You need to take weather and nature characteristics into account to minimize surprises. We are much better at that than in the beginning as a result of experience. If I had to give a ratio of nature difficulties affecting our lifestyle, I would say it does about 30% of the time. But we have learned how to handle those events. In addition, you cannot hang on to the losses (like when the wind blows away your greenhouse four times in a row), you cannot do anything about it. You need to put these bad things behind you and go on with your life. We also noticed the summer seasons are drier and drier year by year. It surely will have an impact on our coffee plants at some point in time, so we are getting ready for a different variant that nature will develop as a response.
Another thing that helps us stay focused when issues happen is the way my husband Rolando and I complete each other. No matter what differences we have – and rest assured, we have a few – we put high emphasis on communication. And we also have the same goals, the same vision, the same taste. We blend together. This keeps us going and facing everything together, no matter what circumstances come up.
The Chamorro Coffee
Tell me more about that completion of each other. Sounds like a bunch of best practices are going to be shared in a minute!
Well, a Swedish girl married a Panamanian guy, you can guess. For me it is hard to stop or just sit down. I am a checklist-kind of person, he is not as organized. But we still can get the results we want. Normally I put the checklist together and he helps with the tasks. Over the years I have become more tolerant. Now I can let things go when Rolando does not feel like doing something right away. There is always tomorrow.
One big burden he takes off of my shoulders is doing the shopping. I am so grateful for that. For shopping we need to go to the nearest smalltown, Boquete, which is seven kilometers away. The first half of the road is earth, which is not fun in the rainy season, the second part is curvy. Once in the town he runs all the errands, which I hate doing. In exchange I do everything around the house and with the children. Everything but the dishes – that is shared joy. And Rolando cooks, he loves cooking. Also, the coffee plantation is his responsibility. Sharing the obligations in a way we both are happy with is essential and we are fortunate we could reach a consensus that fits our personalities with no major compromises needed.
How do you make an important decision? One would think with this difference in personalities it is impossible.
Not at all. First of all, the big picture is the same for the both of us. We have the same goals. This is essential. Rolando is the one to come up with the ideas, I am the one who needs to take time to think about them. First, he just mentions something, that’s his tactic; he sows the seed in my mind. And then I can start thinking. Later we sit down, comfortably, with a glass of wine, relax and negotiate about the details. Then I need time to process the decisions, but in the meantime, things just start coming along.
A good example that happened not long ago, is when Rolando hinted that we should offer lodging for our guests and have a few cabins. A big picture we both saw in our future. We agreed to have four of them. Some time passed and all of a sudden, he broke the news he had bookings for the cabins for January. While we still did not have any. Well, that is how things happen here. He just mentioned how cool it would be to have a little plane and fly guests in…
Do you guys ever fight?
Fight? As in yelling and slamming doors? No, never. Of course, we sometimes get annoyed or irritated. But for me the key is communication and instead of wasting time on hurt feelings, I try to resolve the issues and move on. I have made it a habit to express what makes me frustrated. Sometimes it is a result of misunderstanding. Sometimes I might have expressed myself in the wrong way. Annoyance goes away after a time. As long as I feel appreciated or get a thank you, which Rolando never misses to express, everything is alright. We always show appreciation to each other for the chores we help with, which is very important for keeping the peace.
What has been your riskiest decision so far?
In all honesty, everything has come into our life gradually. When we stick to what we believe in, keep our goals in mind, and we don’t give up (like during Covid), then we get one step closer to the next level and no decision feels risky.
Let’s talk a little about the business itself. When I saw the show on TV, I had so many questions. As a person who hasn’t given up on her own restaurant business idea yet, I want to know about everything: ingredients, alcohol, competition, all that stuff. Tell me Hacienda Mamecillo’s story.
Well, Rolando always wanted a restaurant. He had been in the hospitality business before, organizing hiking and kayaking trips, and working as a pilot.
Mamecillo is a local oak-type of tree that has various beautiful colors. We chose the name for our place to imply the diversity of nature and our offers to our guests. Rolando designed the logo for the farm and created our sign himself.
We started with coffee plantation tours on our land and offered buffet food outside the house, over nine years ago. Then things started to gradually evolve. First, we figured it would be more personal if we served the food ourselves. Then we started to put more emphasis on meal presentation and offering cooked meals.
Haciends Mamecillo
We are a service provider approved by the Panama Tourism Authority in the agrotourism category. What we offer is so much different than any other restaurant. We don’t even call it a restaurant. It is a place that provides guests with a full experience: a hiking tour, storytelling, and of course a nice, seven-course meal with wine. The program starts at 9 a.m. and it finishes at 3 p.m. officially. But, if anyone is only interested in having a meal, not the tour, they have the option to dine only. The dining experience begins at 6 p.m. And when the weather does not allow the morning hiking tour, we have a plan B for an indoors activity.
We operate on a reservation basis, collecting detailed information of our guests’ dining needs; allergies and dietary preferences. Once we know everything, we create the plan for the meal courses. We like to pay attention to every little detail that might make the Mamecillo-experience the best for our visitors, their happiness is our fuel. The best feedback about our passionate work is how often guests don’t want to leave. We have guests who return multiple times and when that happens, we try to offer them a different menu than what they had the last time, always making it as special as we can.
The experience we provide is unique; thus, we do not really have any competition. We grow our own ingredients and use nature’s produce too. Our menus are based on what is seasonally available. Whatever we cannot grow on the farm, like wine, is available in the neighboring towns. Neither of us are certified chefs, our skills came with a lot of practice, and our meals come from experimentation. Rolando keeps an eye on a few chefs we like on social media to get some inspiration, then we try ideas and that is how we develop our recipes.
Beautiful meals at Hacienda Mamecillp
You guys are amazing. But it sounds like an insane lot of work. How do you fit everything in 24 hours?
Well, we normally start preparing at 5 a.m. When it is a large group of guests, we use the help of friends for doing the dishes and serving. Also, we try to prepare what we can – peeling, slicing, dicing – the previous night. In general, we like to do everything from scratch in the morning, though; freshness is a must. And when we have no dining guests on a night, we can go to bed early.
Do you ever think of leaving all of it for an easier life? Do you miss city life?
You know, I think this is the best place to live. True, there are many challenges. But if an issue arises, you can always work around it. Also, we do not have neighbors, which is good – and bad. If we did not have the visitors coming, we would feel really isolated. But they come, so it is good. Balanced.
During the pandemic life was really isolated. And in Panama the lockdown was very serious. It lasted for eight months and you had only two hours a day to leave your home and do your shopping. There was no work, and no future vision, nobody knew what was going to happen. That was the only time we thought about selling the farm. We had no answer though to the question of what we would do if we sold it…
Living here you need to stay open, as you never know what will happen. We have had to sacrifice a few things. For one, spontaneity is gone. We live by the schedule of our business. We can’t decide to do this or that just on a whim, we need to plan in advance. Leaving the farm behind requires a lot of preparation so spontaneity is really out of the question. And then, I mentioned that before, sleep time. It is much less than it used to be before farm life. Also, social activities. And even if there is anything, like a course for the kids, it requires so many logistics just to get there for a 2-hour activity that it is not ideal. If I think of what might be missing from my life today though, I would say nothing really. So many things have changed. Yet, things need to change for personal growth.
You really gave up important elements of your old life. It does not seem like you regret that though. What are the best things of your current lifestyle?
Number one would be the closeness to nature. The second one would be the freedom of space, not having any neighbors. The third best thing is the healthy lifestyle we have here. The disguised exercising you do every day, all that walking and gardening. And the produce you grow for yourself. Also, one more thing, the most important one; reconsidering, this is definitely the number one: we are together, all the time. We are involved in this lifestyle, we are all part of it, even the children. We work together for the same goal, and so we spend time together all day, not only in the evenings when we are tired and snappy after a hard day. We are lucky to have this life. We do not work for a boss; we work for ourselves. It is very nice to be able to do that.
And the worst things about your current lifestyle?
Haha, the rainy season and the humidity in that season, for sure. The remoteness when doing chores comes in second. The third one is definitely the distance from my family. I do not see them as frequently as I would like. My parents are amazing, our biggest fans. I just wish somehow, other than online, we could be around each other more.
If you encountered that mythical goldfish that makes your three wishes come true, what would you wish?
The very first one would be to see my family any time I want. That would be really cool. My second wish would be for people to be more aware of how to preserve nature and learn how to give back to it after utilization. How to treat, for example, fungi and use pesticides in a nature-friendly way. We support the native tree nursery movement, creating local trees from seed and selling them to people who need trees on their farms. And the third one would be to be able to stay healthy. Without health there is nothing. I really think nature is a healer, which is one reason why I am glad I can live in the middle of it.
Living within nature, what animals do you have around?
There is this bird, the Quetzal, which is the symbol of Guatemala, and we are excited when we spot one. Then there are the White-faced Capuchin monkeys which take our crops, yet we support them as we are taking part in a project to keep their number growing. Sometimes we meet some spiders, non-venomous tarantulas on our walls, now that is not so neat. Also, certain snakes that we see during coffee harvest or hiking can be venomous, but we know how to be careful and how to not disturb them and we do so. Also, we find signs of coatis, sloths, tapers and pumas – they all live around us but we don’t bump into them almost at all.
abi, what do you consider your biggest success in life?
Definitely my kids. They are amazing kids and we are really proud of them. They think about taking over our business one day. I try to make it easy on them saying they do not need to make a decision just yet. In a few years they might want to look around the world. I won’t be their most beloved person in their lives forever (right now they cannot even imagine that though) and it will be alright. Whatever they want to do, we want them to know that they will have our full support.
Nice! Is there anything you fear?
Well, that something: an illness, an accident, something bad will happen to any of my loved ones. I am worried about that but try not to get carried away or think of it too much. Thinking too much takes away time and energy. It is good to feel these things, but it is a mistake to dwell on them for too long. You need to move on.
What are the good feelings that characterize your life?
I usually feel happy. Loved. I feel the love around me. I feel secure where I am in life.
And the bad ones?
Isolation. Disconnectedness from people. Sometimes I feel unmotivated – when I see the dishes piling up at the end of a day. Longing, as a result of being too far from my family.
Hacienda Mamecillo
It is clear you have a lot on your mind and a lot of things to do every day. Do you ever have time to relax? What do you do to gain some energy back?
I know it sounds crazy because it is actually a physical activity, but I love hiking. That is how I get my mental energy back. I like to be outside, even working outside is much different than standing in the kitchen all day. Like fixing the goat fence. Another thing is woodwork. Building furniture. Like kitchen cabinets, bedside tables. Rolando and I made all of our furniture, we like doing stuff like that. Establishing a proper workshop where we can store our tools permanently is among our plans.
Gabi, I could have this discussion with you till the end of time, but I know your time is limited. So, last but not least, do you have any sage advice for our readers?
Well, try not to think too much about the past or future. Try to live in the moment, appreciate the moment, don’t get lost too much in planning. To me it is the key to happiness. Appreciate the day. Make the most out of it. Of course, you still need a plan, a focus – but if you have too much of it, you’ll forget to be in the moment. Life is never perfect, issues always come up, you must be able to balance everything. Just stay in the moment.
Also, from time to time, change your scenery. Sometimes you need to leave your everyday scenery to be able to appreciate what you have.
Gabi, I wish you much-much joy and happiness in Hacienda Mamecillo. Keep up the great work, what you guys do is a wonder and a huge value-add to today’s world. Keep educating people about nature, balance, love, and appreciation through your Mamecillo-experience; the hikes, the stories, and the beautiful soulful meals you offer. It was a pleasure to have these few hours with you, thank you so much.
Thank you, Kami.
If you want to find out more about Gabi, please click on the links below.
Instagram 1
Instagram 2
Website
E-mail
Kristen Kish - Restaurants at the End of the World
