Join us for the 24th Annual ¡A Viva Voz! Celebration of U.S. Latino/a Culture, hosted by the Benson Latin American Collection
Special guest Adán Medrano is a food writer, chef, and filmmaker whose work explores the Indigenous foodways of Texas and the Americas. Up to age 16, he worked as a migrant farmworker—picking cotton in Texas and laboring in Midwestern fields—an experience that shaped his understanding of culinary arts, labor, and culture.
He is the author of Truly Texas Mexican: A Native Culinary Heritage in Recipes, named Finalist, Book of the Year by Foreword Reviews. His subsequent books include Don’t Count the Tortillas: The Art of Texas Mexican Cooking (2019) and The Texas Mexican Plant-Based Cookbook (2025), documenting the Indigenous roots of Texas Mexican food.
As a filmmaker, Medrano served as executive producer and writer of the documentary Truly Texas Mexican, winner of Best Documentary at the New York Independent Cinema Awards. Medrano founded the CineFestival in San Antonio, Texas—the first and longest-running Latino film festival in the United States. He is editor of the Texas Tech University Press book series, Indigenous Foodways of Texas and Northern Mexico, and president of The Texas Indigenous Food Project, a nonprofit organization.
Light refreshments provided by Comadre Panadería and Neighborhood Molino.
Vinyl sounds by DJ Despeinada.
Free and open to the public.
Location: Benson Latin American Collection, Ann Hartness Reading Room (SRH 1.106)
Building: Sid Richardson Hall 1
Address: 2300 Red River St, Austin, TX 78712