Meet Debora Fadul of Guatemala City

Today we’d like to introduce you to Debora Fadul.

Hi Debora , so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Nineteen years ago, Diacá began as a small catering project, rooted in a desire to cook in a personal and thoughtful way, bringing refined food to private tables and intimate gatherings.

After a decade of learning, experimentation, and shaping an identity through catering, the project naturally evolved into Diacá. What started as a very intimate experience grew over time, allowing the cuisine, the team, and the vision to mature.

The name Diacá comes from the expression “de acá,” a colloquial way of saying “from here” when spoken quickly, commonly used in the interior of Guatemala. It reflects our core belief of cooking with what is truly from here, rooted in place, culture, and territory.

Today, Diacá welcomes more guests and offers both a tasting menu and an à la carte experience, while preserving the closeness, care, and intention that have defined the project since its beginning.

At the heart of our cooking is a deep commitment to local ingredients and sustainability. We work with a network of more than 140 Guatemalan farmers and producers who practice sustainable, ancestral, regenerative, and organic forms of agriculture. These relationships are long term and collaborative, built on trust, fair practices, and shared values.

Everything we cook is entirely seasonal. The menu changes constantly, responding to what the land offers at each moment. This approach reduces waste, respects natural cycles, and allows us to cook in dialogue with the territory rather than imposing ideas upon it.

Our primary focus is sustainability not as a trend but as a responsibility. Through food, we aim to share and teach the biodiversity of Guatemala, a country of extraordinary ecological richness. Nature is our main source of inspiration, shaping both creativity and restraint.

Diacá is the result of nineteen years of continuous evolution, a project that has grown in scale, confidence, and clarity, while remaining faithful to its origins and to a way of cooking that honors land, people, and time.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It is hard to describe the journey as smooth or not. What is certain is that it has been a long one. Nineteen years ago, conversations around local ingredients were rare. In much of Latin America, we tended to look outward, valuing foreign products while overlooking the extraordinary diversity within our own countries.

One of the greatest challenges has been helping people understand that these ingredients are from here, that they are local, and that they carry as much, and sometimes even more, value than imported products. It was also about showing that Guatemalan cuisine could exist beyond tradition alone that it could be refined, contemporary, creative, and worthy of celebration and luxury.

Equally important has been giving visibility to the farmers behind the ingredients. For us, speaking about agriculture is essential. There is immense value, knowledge, and culture embedded in the work of those who cultivate the land, and that value deserves to be recognized.

This has been a constant effort over nineteen years. Today, we feel that people are not only beginning to understand this perspective, but are genuinely celebrating it with us. So rather than smooth or rocky, the journey has been long and continuous. One that, day after day, the entire team shares as we continue to reveal Guatemala’s many ecosystems, microclimates, and the ingredients they offer.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
At Diacá, our work centers on local ingredients and what we refer to as our sensory ecosystem. This concept is rooted in the principles of coffee tasting, where flavor is understood as a direct expression of terroir and of everything that surrounds a product. We apply this same way of thinking beyond coffee, wine, or cacao, recognizing that all ingredients are shaped by their microclimates, ecosystems, and cultural context.

Our specialization lies in giving each ingredient the importance it deserves and allowing it to guide the process. Rather than imposing ideas, we listen to the ingredient itself, to the land it comes from, to the farmer who grows it, to what is planted around it, and to whether it truly belongs to the season. We also question the ecological impact of using an ingredient and whether its presence makes sense within a broader environmental balance.

What sets us apart is this deep, ingredient-led approach. Our cooking is built on observation, respect, and restraint. Nature leads the conversation, and our role is to translate it thoughtfully onto the plate.

What we are most proud of is being able to share Guatemala with the world. What began as a local project has grown into a platform that now reaches beyond national borders, allowing people to look toward this region of Latin America, toward Mesoamerica, and toward Guatemala in particular. Through our work, Guatemala speaks through its biodiversity, its history, its culture, and through the many hands of the farmers who make all of this possible.

Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
The most important quality behind our success has been a deep commitment to never compromising the concept. From the very beginning, the idea was clear: to highlight Guatemalan ingredients, to work with products that are entirely local, and to give real value and visibility to sustainability and to the people behind the ingredients.

Along the way, this approach was not always easy. There were moments when it would have been simpler to adapt, to import, or to force ideas onto the menu. But we chose not to sacrifice the concept. If an ingredient is no longer in season, we do not serve it. We do not force nature to meet our needs. Instead, we adapt to what the land offers.

The concept has evolved over time, as any living project should, but its core has remained unchanged since day one. This consistency has allowed us to stay true to who we are and to cook honestly. We believe that this integrity, maintained over nineteen years, is what has ultimately defined our path and our success at Diacá.

Pricing:

• Tasting Menu – $ 110
• Cocktail / wine pairing – $60
• 0 ABV pairing – $30
• A la Cart – from $10-40 a plate

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Diaca.gt
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/diacagt?igsh=ZXJxbzZscGQ5bjJr