More than 250 students, faculty and staff members waited anxiously Thursday to taste a variety of free authentic Latin cuisine as part of the National Hispanic Heritage Month celebration.

Sabor Latino, or food tasting, began at 11 a.m. in LeBaron Lounge. By shortly after noon, most of the food and all of the paper plates were gone as partakers indulged in seconds and thirds.

Some dishes showcased were tortillas and salsa, enchiladas, fajitas, pico de gallo (fresh salsa), tacaila lollipops (tequila flavored lollipops) and pastel des tres leches (three-milk cake).

Yanira Pacheco-Ortiz, minority liaison and program coordinator of the College of Family and Consumer Sciences, said ideas for various dishes came from volunteers who wanted to showcase their ethnic foods.

“We asked that whoever was interested in cooking tell us a week in advance, so that there wouldn’t be any replications,” she said.

“We also sent e-mails to Latino students inviting them to showcase their dishes.”

Brenda Vargas, sophomore in animal ecology and anthropology, made pastel des tres leches, which is a cake soaked in three different types of milk and topped with whipped cream frosting.

“It took me six hours to make three cakes,” she said.

Friends passed by and shouted compliments like “It reminded me of home,” and “It was like magic,” to Vargas.

Pacheco-Ortiz said people began lining up while the tables were being set.

By 12:15 p.m., food was running low, and members of the Hispanic Heritage Month Committee were scrambling to make taquitos (flour tortillas with beans) for the remaining people in line.

“Everything went so fast,” Pacheco-Ortiz said.

“Some people were getting in line twice, sometimes three times.”

Pacheco-Ortiz said all 250 plates were used, and they had to resort to using cups and napkins.

“We probably ended up serving more than 300 people,” she said.

She said every year attendance keeps growing and a lot of it has to do with the convenient location of LeBaron Lounge and sponsorship from the College of Family and Consumer Sciences.

Hilary Umbaugh, sophomore in pre-business, missed out on the main dishes but was able to still sample some taquitos.

“I just got out of class and was expecting to taste more,” she said. “But the taquitos are delicious.”