Big City, Big Show!

Megan Rowe

If you've never been to the National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show, you have missed the Super Bowl of foodservice trade shows.

This sprawling convention, which dominates Chicago's McCormick Place for four days every spring, is a sensory overload of products, services and ideas, all of them focused on the $537billion foodservice business. More than 2,000 exhibitors in 900 product and service categories will be on hand during the May 19-22 event.

The association decided to pump up the star power of the show this year by introducing the Celebrity Bookstore. Food TV-caliber personalities and renowned restaurant operators are scheduled to appear throughout the show schedule to sign their latest books and share some of their secrets with attendees.

"Chefs and restaurateurs have more star power now than ever, as Americans discover the restaurant industry's finest through the Food Network, consumer foodie magazines, network and cable television shows and many other channels,"says William Anton, this year's convention chairman and chairman of Anton Airfood. "We are excited to feature some of the most well-known industry celebrirites and provide show attendees with the opportunity to meet them. Chef/authors dropping by will include Rick Bayless from Chicago's Frontera Grill and Topolobampo, who will sign his book, Authentic Mexican: Regional Cooking from the Heart of Mexico; Seattle Chef Tom Douglas (Dahlia Lounge, Etta's, Lola), who will have on hand his latest, I Love Crab Cakes: 50 Recipes for an American Classic; and Thomas Keller, chef/owner of The French Laundry and Bouchon and penner of The French Laundry Cookbook.

Roadmap for the Show
The key ingredients of the show, as always, are the massive exhibit areas; the contests, ceremonies and networking functions; and the behind-the-scenes educational programs. There is so much going on that often only a coin flip can help in deciding between competing events on the schedule.

To help navigate the sprawling exhibit space, the show is once again dotted with specialty pavilions that spotlight specific product categories. Be sure to check these out:

As always, a full complement of educational sessions will provide many opportunities to learn about cutting-edge trends and develop professional knowledge. Among the highlights of this year's educational program, which includes more than 60 sessions from Saturday through Tuesday:
• "Alcohol Profit Primer," a panel discussion of techniques to promote sales and responsible service of alcohol.

Besides getting a glimpse of the latest products and learning about trends in the business, attendees have a number of chances to network and honor the best in the business. The 20th annual Salute to Excellence, hosted by the NRA Educational Foundation, celebrates the best and the brightest in foodservice by spotlighting esteemed leadership and extraordinary academic accomplishments. The daylong event includes a student forum bringing together more than 200 of the country's most promising restaurant, foodservice and hospitality management students and more than 100 educators as well as the Salute to Excellence Awards Gala and Banquet.

Each year during the show, the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association presents nine outstanding industry professionals with the Silver Plate Award. One of the winners is further honored with a Gold Plate Award and the title of Foodservice Operator of the Year at a banquet.

It probably goes without saying, but perhaps the nicest bonus to attending the show is the chance to sample Chicago's world-class restaurants. Don't forget to book a table early—remember, your competition will be scouting out top operators, too.