Monday, Feb. 9 at 5:30 p.m., Gustavo Arellano will speak in the Chao Auditorium of Ekstrom Library at the University of Louisville about how Mexican food became so popular throughout the United States. His free talk will touch on topics such as how the margarita became a popular cocktail in the U.S., why college students love burritos and how Doritos were invented at Disneyland.

Arellano is editor of the alternative newspaper OC Weekly in Orange County, California. He also writes the syndicated “Ask a Mexican!” column that uses humor to explore issues such as immigration, labor and Mexican culture in the U.S.

Arellano is working on a Southern Foodways Alliance oral history project about Mexican restaurants in Kentucky.