In 1980, a group of civic leaders planned a Texas-style BBQ and chili cook-off as a fundraiser. Local attorney and recent New Orleans transplant, Bob Caswell, became the festival's founder when he proposed a gumbo cook-off instead. The festival grew until, in 1990, its name was officially changed to the Medina Lake Cajun Festival in recognition of its broader celebration of Cajun culture.
Although it attracts thousands of visitors from the surrounding region, many of the participants, including the musical acts, drive over the border from Louisiana to participate. The festival now attracts some of Louisiana's finest Cajun and zydeco bands, who play non-stop on two stages. In the past, the lineup has featured such acts as Don Fontenot & Les Amis de la Louisiane and Cajun Joe Douglas & the Bayou Temps Band. Bob Caswell also typically offers a history of Cajun dance, demonstrating the Cajun two-step, the Cajun jitterbug and zydeco dancing. There are also more than 50 arts and crafts booths, as well as a variety of midway games.
The centerpiece of the festival is still the gumbo cook-off, in which members of the public try samples and vote for a winner. Seeking added points for showmanship, many cooks turn out in crazy outfits. In addition to gumbo, there are also vendors selling such classic Cajun dishes as crawfish etouffee, jambalaya, crawfish pie, shrimp on a stick, sausage on a stick, boudin, barbecued shrimp, fried catfish, Cajun popcorn shrimp, red beans and rice, bread pudding and whiskey sauce.
The festival, held at the Lakehills Civic Center next to Lake Medina, runs from late morning until late at night. Admission, at time of publication, was $10, while children 10 and under were admitted free. To get there from San Antonio, take Highway 16, driving 8 miles past Helotes to Park Road 37. A left turn and 14 more miles takes you to the festival. Free parking is available at the Malone Ranch on Park Road 37, about 3 miles from the festival site, and at the Lakehills United Methodist Church on 8th Street. Shuttle service to the civic center is free. The closest accommodation to the Civic Center is the River Front Motel in Bandera, a 25-minute drive. Many more hotels and motels are found in San Antonio, less than an hour away.
