Foodable has launched the second season of Chef AF! This season is hosted by celebrity chef, author, and restaurateur Adrianne Calvo. Calvo has opened a number of acclaimed restaurants, including Chef Adrianne’s Vineyard Restaurant and Wine Bar and Cracked Eatery. Her dishes have been featured in such publications Gourmet and Bon Appétit, and she regularly appears on NBC's 6 In the Mix.

In the Chef AF season premiere, Chef Adrianne sits down with Chloe St-Cyr, the executive chef for Scrub Island Resort. Situated in the British Virgin Islands, the resort is known for its fresh, locally-sourced Caribbean-American cuisine. Chef Adrianne and Chef Chloe discuss the gender pay gap and the best ways to support female chefs in the industry.

Chef Chloe has traveled far and wide. Originally from Montreal, Chef Chloe moved with her family to the Caribbean islands when she was ten years old. She later abandoned her pursuit of a business degree to instead complete culinary school in Quebec. After graduation, she secured her first job at a Hilton in Dubai. She moved again to the Maldives before returning to the Caribbean.

“I fell in love with working internationally,” says Chef Chloe, but the Caribbean was “where my heart was calling.”

For Chef Chloe, working in a male-dominated industry was both a challenge and an opportunity. In Dubai, she was one of five or six women in a 175-person staff. While people were polite, she often had to insist that she could do the same work as the men without help.

“People think they’re being nice,” adds Chef Chloe, “But at the end of the day, they’re neglecting your education. Working in a kitchen is about doing it to learn to do it right. Practice makes perfect.”

One of her fellow female chefs advised her “you have to work three times harder but show that you’re working half as hard.” And one of the executive chefs often refused to give her a desired job because he felt that, while she was capable, the people under her would not listen to her because she was a woman.

Chef Chloe also highlights the inherent problem of the gender pay gap, limited job offers, and missed promotions: you never really know for sure. “You never get that feedback,” says Chef Chloe. “No one will tell you directly. Your gut tells you, but you never actually have that acceptance.”

Check out the podcast to hear more about how Chef Chloe worked to gain acceptance and inclusion in male-dominated workplaces and her advice for aspiring female chefs.