Paxx Caraballo Moll has been cooking for 19 years, long before their transition. Today, this trans, queer chef leads the kitchen at San Juan’s Jungle BaoBao inside the acclaimed bar JungleBird.

Moll’s stand-out, Puerto Rican bar snacks—infused with Asian flavors—just earned them the title of one of Food & Wine Magazine’s Best New Chefs 2019. This year, they were also the first openly trans chef to cook at the James Beard House in New York. I spoke with the talented, humble Moll about these trailblazing achievements and the #queersinthekitchen community in Puerto Rico.

First off, congratulations on being named one of Food & Wine Magazine’s Best New Chefs 2019! What has the experience been like for you?

Ever since I got that call, it’s all been kind of a daze. We’ve been super happy here in Puerto Rico, but we couldn’t tell anyone. So it’s been really cool. I’m excited about it.

What was the process like? Did the Food & Wine team come down to Puerto Rico to scope you out?

Yeah, I didn’t really know them, but I remember seeing this woman at Junglebird with a friend, and they ordered the whole menu. It just seemed weird that two girls were ordering the entire menu, so I knew something was up.

Then, at the end of our shift, we were having a beer at the bar, and she tagged me in something on Instagram, and when I went to her account I saw she was from Food & Wine and I was like what?! At the moment I thought it was for a different Food & Wine article we were already being featured in. So I was like that’s cool, I hope they liked it, and I didn’t think much of it.

About a month went by, then she called me and told me, and I must have asked her like seven times, “Are you serious? Are you for real?” I’ve been cooking for 19 years, and I thought it was just something you read about.

You're the first trans person to earn the title!

I think so, which is, oh my god, it’s so cool man.

So tell me about JungleBird’s restaurant Jungle BaoBao. What kind of food do you cook?

I’ve been cooking at JungleBird for about a year now. JungleBird is the sister bar to La Factoria, which is on the World’s 50 Best Bar list. We’re the third kitchen to take over the bar.

JungleBird is a tropical bar with a tiki flare. What I’m cooking there is Puerto Rican bar snacks with a little bit of Asian flavor. I think the two go well together. We make sure we use really good produce from local farmers, and I have an awesome fish dude. We try to make something beautiful and something good for you at the same time.

We’re a late-night kitchen, so we close at 2am. To have something great and local with vegetarian options open late is unique here. There are not many options for vegans and vegetarians after a certain time in Puerto Rico. We want to make sure that we bring that to the table.

This year, you were also the first openly trans chef to cook at the James Beard House in New York. Tell me what that was like.

That was really, really exciting because I got to go with an amazing group of chef friends from Puerto Rico. To be invited to cook at the Beard House, I never thought that was going to happen to me. It was a big deal, and I took it seriously.

We all planned for months before about what this dinner was going to be like, and it played out very cohesively. We had a lot of fun there, and it was a good experience. It felt like we were family throughout the whole thing, and I’m super thankful.

I’ll actually be back at the Beard House on June 8 cooking for the Iconoclast Dinner. I’ll be one of seven chefs there. It will be good to be back.

Do you feel like the culinary community is becoming more open and accepting of trans and queer people in the kitchen?

I think it’s a new time. We’ve always been in kitchens, but I think most of us have been scared because most kitchens don’t feel safe, but slowly we’re changing that.

My kitchen is super inclusive—we respect each other. So I don’t know, I think it’s catching on. I can only talk about my experience, but I feel like people are being more respectful and at the end of the day we’re cooking exactly like other people. It’s changing, very slowly, but it is changing.

When you say your kitchen is inclusive, what do you mean?

We have a very small kitchen and a very small crew. My partner and I are in charge of the business part of it. If not for my partner in life and biz, Audrey Berry, I would not be where I am now. She's a force and she pushes me to be better everyday.

My sous chef is a lesbian, and I have a line cook who is a young trans kid in his freshman year at culinary school. We also have a super fierce ally working in the kitchen. I’m really stoked to have them. Everyone gets along fantastically—there’s no fear. I wouldn’t want it any other way. I spent some time in other kitchens where it was not cool, and I don’t want that in my kitchen. To get to the point where everyone knows that they have a voice feels like a million bucks.

Do you see yourself staying on the island or moving to a more inclusive city like New York or San Francisco?

I would love to do pop-ups around San Francisco and New York, but I would stay here. I think Puerto Rico needs this queer kitchen movement so I want to expand on that. If I could open another restaurant and give more job opportunities to young kids that would be the best.

Is there is a queer kitchen movement happening in Puerto Rico?

I would say there is a small movement. I think we have some great queer chefs and cooks here on the island. I just want to find the right moment to gather everyone up and start something because I know there are people out there.

Are people afraid and closeted or is the movement just lacking a central force?

Many people here are in the closet, and many people are scared. You know how kitchens are, it’s about the white man. Many girls don’t get a chance and many trans people will never get a chance. I think we can change that, we need to gather everyone up and to start something and see what we can do to help ourselves.

What advice would you give to young trans or queer chefs in the kitchen?

If you’re in kitchens now, keep your head up. Try not to get bullied and show the people that you’re just like everyone else. Do the work. It will get better. It definitely will.

In 2014, you were featured in a documentary called Mala Mala about gender identity in Puerto Rico. What is it like being trans in Puerto Rico?

I remember when Myspace came out, and I started seeing all these LGBTQ things … but I couldn’t put it out there. So I waited 12 years, and then I slowly started to come out. I didn’t know any trans people, but after this film, there is now a community, there are support groups there’s access to therapy and hormone treatments. I celebrated three years on [testosterone] on April 16. It’s great, we have a long way to go, but we now have funds and access to get top surgeries done. It’s is something that wasn’t even in my head six years ago, so it’s really, really good.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell people about you or Puerto Rico?

Come to Puerto Rico and support local shops. Come eat at our restaurants and get out of San Juan. There’s a lot of beautiful places to see around the island. Just come and support [us].