In 2022, the Latino media company Mitú merged with NGL Collective, founded by the Tony-winning actor John Leguizamo, to become NGLmitú, a digital, video, audio, and content integration powerhouse that reaches over 15 million fans and followers.
From original content to comedy and news, there's something for everyone, including the newly revamped Hispanic Kitchen. HK, as it's also known, has an ambitious new strategy to expedite growth. It's become a platform dedicated to preserving and celebrating Latin American and Hispanic food traditions and recipes.
"Having this bespoke lane in food is really, really exciting for us," Chief Brand Officer of NGLmitú Vanessa Vigil says. "We know that it has tremendous potential."
In almost every corner of the US, Latin American cuisine has become part of what many consider American cuisine. The Hispanic food industry was estimated at around $36.48 billion in 2024 and projected to grow to $65.41 billion by 2034, so NGLmitú's reinvention of Hispanic Kitchen isn't just timely; it's a strong bet on what may be the media's biggest growth vertical, backed by Latinos consumers who consistently outspend the general market on food.
Based in Los Angeles, NGLmitú serves that demographic, specifically the 200% generation (100% Latino, 100% American) – many of whom are part of the or the 37 million U.S.-born Latinos who grew up without media that reflected their experience. Within that audience, there is a demand for representation and, in terms of cuisines, an enormous need for authenticity regarding the multiple ethnicities within Latin American food content.
NGLmitú brought on classically trained chef and digital storyteller Hugo Gamino to lead this effort, and his innovative content strategy is already paying off. Named Brand Lead and Head of Culinary Strategy, the Arizona-based Gamino is no stranger to being on camera and providing short-form video and audio content that people love.
Gamino's content, and, notably, much of the content on HK, is in English, and that's by design. "We are US-born," Vigil says. "We grew up very close to our culture, but growing up Latino in the US is a unique experience. It's not the experience that our parents had growing up in another country and then migrating over." She says HK embraces that dual identity of being American and Latino and offers another path to engage and share.
So why focus on food? "Without a doubt, there is just that cultural connection," she says. "There is the memory, the nostalgia. It's nourishing, and it nourishes more than than just our bodies. It really is about nourishing the soul. HK just feels like a warm hug."
In Latin cultures, she explains, food is rooted in tradition, so the meals and snacks many Latinos grew up with are starting to get lost in the modern world. And since many Hispanic mothers and grandmothers do not always write down their recipes, HK is trying to capture some of those recipes and empower their audience to recreate those memories in the kitchen. "You can recreate that comfort for yourself. And I think that's what's special about food in particular."
HK also wants to build authentic representation in Hispanic food media. "If you look at the media landscape, there isn't a dedicated and strong player representing the Latino perspective. We see HK as a great open opportunity for it to really come from us." She says that Hugo Gamino is the perfect person to bring that representation, not just because he's Latino, but because he's worked in a Michelin-starred restaurant and has a deep respect for the industry and food in general.
He and his team will put their own spin on traditional foods, also getting back to basics and teaching the basics that Latinos didn't learn growing up. "We want this to be a platform that can amplify their work and their voices. We want it to represent and resonate with the diaspora of Latinos," Vigil says.
One series on HK called Los Classicos offers a back-to-basics instruction for things like Mexican rice. "Maybe we missed those lessons when our moms were trying to teach us," she says. Now, it's available in a digital format that followers can refer to again and again. All recipes will be available via social media and website posts, along with features created by Gamino and his signature storytelling style. "It's very poetic," Vigil says. "It's a lot of reverence and respect for the origins of our foods." The HK series, Latin Legacies, will be full of recipes and how-tos with a cultural angle, stories, and the history behind certain foods from every Latin ethnicity.
HK will also include the modern trappings of every food channel, like trends, kitchen hacks, and product reviews. "I like to think of it as making our audience more confident, more comfortable," she says. "We want to be a source of encouragement in the kitchen."
Could HK be the next Food Network? Quite possibly. "We have a lot of ideas for longer form stories that we can tell, especially in the Latino community, that is empowering and fueling so much of the food industry," she says. "But obviously, we're starting with our bread and butter and where we exist right now."
In the meantime, HK and Gamino, in particular, is capturing the Hispanic food scene at places like the Puerto Rico Food and Wine Festival and meeting with local food creators and chefs.
It's an incredible opportunity for Vigil and her team from a branding standpoint. "I'm most excited about how we can empower the audience to get more comfortable with cooking. We want to be a place of enrichment and have fun." She says that food content from the Latino perspective is filling a gap in modern media.
"There is so much content out there - but it's oftentimes not by us, and so you're missing some of that nostalgia." There's also the unmistakable blending of cultures that only Latino Americans would understand. "You will see the mixtures of something very American and something very Mexican mesh together; for us, that's something really normal. And so we love to reflect that."
In June 2025, HK viewers can look forward to new features, like an intimate dinner party series and, later, small classes for a hands-on experience. HK is poised to become a platform aggregating amazing talent, hosting collaborative content, and delivering brand partnerships. Vigil says it's too early to share some of the exciting names and events they've got in the pipeline, but then again, when culture, community, and comida converge in a place like HK, you know it will be delicious.
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