Western Foodservice & Hospitality Expo

THE 2016 WESTERN FOODSERVICE & HOSPITALITY EXPO SHOW DATES

FREE REGISTRATION FOR GREAT TASTE

The Western Foodservice & Hospitality Expo is a premier 3-day event encompassing everything restaurant and foodservice professionals need to master the emerging trends, up their profits, energize their business and engage their customers in unique and memorable ways. Join 8,000+ peers, and have access to the hottest menu trends, state of the art design and decor, the best in business education and 500 of the leading vendors and purveyors dedicated to serving the restaurant & foodservice community — all under one roof.

• 8:00am – 6:00pm  – Hospitality, Leadership & Profitability Workshop Darren Denington, founder of Service with Style Hospitality Group, and David Scott Peters, founder, TheRestaurantExpert.com, will present a jam-packed day providing independent operators with the tools to drive sales, become a strong leader and create the perfect hospitality team.

• 12:00 – Culinary Demonstration Theater – David Adir, Co-owner, The Carving Board, will demonstrate the Spaghetti & Meatballwich.
• 1:00 pm – Beacon Award Presentation to Kelli Valade, President of Chili’s® Grill & Bar followed by a one-on-one interview.
• 1:00 pm – Rapid Fire Challenge: Appetizer Edition – The three finalists will demonstrate their dish, featuring a local ingredient – cheese, bread, protein, sauce – whatever their secret ingredient is and provide samples for the judges and the audience. One chef will be named the champ after judge and audience voting, and win $1,000 dollars.
• 1:30 pm – Foodservice Council for Women 5^th Anniversary – What tools and resources do you need to be successful? What are the questions you need to ask? What are those true “secrets” that gives your business a competitive edge? These are just a few of the many questions that our winning panel will address in Women Winning in Business.
• 3:00 pm – The Culinary Clash: Battle Los Angeles A fun and interactive cooking competition, presented by Coca Cola, is a fundraiser benefiting the California Restaurant Association Foundation (CRAF) pitting industry heavyweights against each other in an ultimate battle of skill and mettle, and the ultimate prize – The Purse. Restaurant teams will be paired up with a ProStart® student or graduate as a sous chef.  

• 1:00 pm – Torch Award Presentation to Thomas Keller, the chef and proprietor of The Thomas Keller Restaurant Group, which includes The French Laundry and Per Se, is the first and only American chef to hold three-star Michelin ratings, and will receive the TORCH Award.
• 3:30 – Culinary Demonstration Theater – featuring Chef Joseph Johnson, Chef de Cuisine at Charcoal.
• 3:30 pm – Pitch the Press – You are invited to a unique one-hour event to experience presentations from a specially selected group of the most intriguing new products, services, and trends.  Each presenter will be given the opportunity to pitch for 2 minutes, followed by a 1-minute Q&A for press and buyers. Pitch the Press will be held in room 506.
• 4:00 pm – Italian Reception attendees will have the finest Italian food and wine products through ‘The Extraordinary Italian Taste’ campaign, which was launched by the Italian Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Economic Development, with the objective of stemming the spread of Italian food product imitations as much as possible; promoting authentic “Made in Italy” quality under one brand. Stop by the booth, learn about the program and enter your information for a chance to be selected for upcoming all-expense paid educational trips to Italy in the fall 2016 and spring 2017.  

• 12:00 pm Culinary Demonstration:  Kristen Ramsey, Krimsey’s – Cali-Cajun, Vegan Jambalya, presented by Savory Hospitality
• 1:00 pm – The New Normal! Trans Inclusivity in the Workplace presented by the California Trans Workplace Project, this session will cover the business case for inclusivity; creating an inclusive work environment; HR laws and practices as highlighted in the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, and FAQ for Employers
• 2:00 pm – New Product Showcase Awards – Attendees will have the chance to vote on their favorite new products throughout the show.  Awards will be presented by Show Management to the winning companies.

Event includes:
– Exhibit floor featuring over 500 leading companies.
– Educational Sessions in the Ferdinand Metz Foodservice Forum giving
attendees a chance to increase their knowledge on the latest technology and
trends.
– Special Feature Areas on the show floor include the Food Trends Experience,
International Pavilion, Culinary Demonstration Pavilion, Beer, Wine and Spirits
Pavilion, and much more.

The Western Foodservice & Hospitality Expo gathers thousands of restaurant and
foodservice professionals to gain experience and knowledge on how to become more
informed, more educated, more competitive, and more profitable in the industry. The
tradeshow and conference, started in 1936 is produced by Urban Expositions (www.urban-expo.com) and sponsored by the California Restaurant Association
(www.calrest.org).

For more information, visit www.westernfoodexpo.com