Gabriela Ospina
Boia De | Miami, FL
May 2025
When it comes to the front of house, Gabriela Ospina has done it all. Her first industry job was slinging sandwiches at Subway before she started working as a bartender and barista in a number of cafes, music venues, and restaurants in San Francisco’s Little Italy. But hospitality was, for most of her early adulthood, just a side hustle. Ospina studied fashion design and tailoring at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, and once pined after a career on London’s Savile Row. But, while she loved the precision and skill of tailoring, she ultimately found that she enjoyed working with people more than working with garments.
After moving back to her hometown of Miami, Ospina worked her way from server to bartender, and eventually general manager, at Macchialina during the pandemic. It was there that she felt drawn to wine. The stories behind the labels and grape varietals gave her a dopamine fix that drove the education of her palate. In 2022, a friend put Ospina in touch with Rising Stars alums Luciana Giangrandi and Alex Meyer, who offered her a position at Boia De. Early in her tenure, she worked with a small, French-focused wine list, but went on to expand and diversify the restaurant’s wine program. She also developed Boia De’s wine club, which is now over 100 members strong. Ospina focuses heavily on increasing education accessibility for her team and guests. She regularly hosts open-format tastings, masterclasses, and wine education events with the goal of building a collaborative wine community in Little Haiti.
