Located throughout the exhibition floor at the Las Vegas Conference Center, the Catering & Events Innovations Stage, Show Intel Stage and& Hands-on Demo Arena offer dozens of sessions and demos that will add to the wealth of knowledge you take home!
Tuesday, March 25
Show Intel Stage
Sessions that focus on thought provoking topics important to your success:
| 11:00am - 12:00pm | How to Plan and Cater an Event for 6500 Guests - and Blog About It Kelly Early, CSEP and Vince Early, CSEP, Owners, Thomas Caterers of Distinction, Indianapolis, IN |
| 12:00pm - 1:00pm | Useful Financial Benchmarks for Measuring Your Company’s Performance Anthony Lambatos, Owner, Footers Catering, Denver, CO |
| 1:00pm - 2:00pm | Are We Catering Ourselves to Death? Beyond the Muffin & Coffee Trevor Lui, Director of Operations & Sustainability, The International Centre, Mississauga, Ontario |
| 2:00pm - 3:00pm | Transform Ordinary Buffets Into “Extra-ordinary” Design and Culinary Showpieces Anna Currie and Ed Currie, Owners, Exclamations Catering, Greensboro, NC |
| 3:00pm - 4:00pm | Heat ‘em Up and Move ‘em Out. Taking Your On-premise Menu Off-prem Patrick Cuccaro, General Manager, Shelley J. Pedersen, CPCE, Director of First Impressions, and Nancy Lutz, Senior Catering Consultant, Affairs to Remember, Atlanta, GA |
| 4:00pm - 4:30pm | 1 Million Apps for You. What is Good for Your Business Daniel Anisman, Co-Founder/CEO/CTO and Sandy Hammer, Co-Founder/CMO, All Seated, New York, NY |
| 4:30pm - 5:30pm | Ask Me Anything. An Open Mic Forum Bill Pannhoff, Owner, B&B Catering & Events, Spring Lake, NC |
Catering & Events Innovations Stage
Content-packed live demonstrations:
| 11:00am - 11:30am | Zesty Pickled Foods Add Color and Zing Brian Aaron, Owner, Aaron’s Catering, Miami, FL |
| 11:30am - 12:00pm | Good Stewardship. Using Sustainable Seafood Andrew Spurgin, Principal, Andrew Spurgin™, San Diego, CA |
| 12:00pm - 12:30pm | Mocktails and the Frozen Drink Machine. Adding Special Twists to Bar/Bat Mitzvah Beverages Sheri Jacobs and Jack Jacobs, Owners, Chez Gourmet Catering, Boynton Beach, FL |
| 12:30pm - 1:00pm | Just the Right Size...Mini Desserts Donna Ford, Owner, Sweet Memories Bakery, Apex, NC |
| 1:00pm - 1:30pm | Dessert Solutions for Caterers Trevor Williams, Corporate Sous Chef, Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Northfield, IL |
| 1:30pm - 2:00pm | Color Glaze. A New Way to Color and Customize Disposable Plasticware Paul Edward, Owner and Charity George, Chef Rubber, Las Vegas, NV |
| 2:00pm - 2:30pm | Cured, Smoked and Braised...Appetizers to Dessert Eric LeVine, Chef/ Partner/Author, Morris Tap and Grill, Randolph, NJ |
| 2:30pm - 3:00pm | Retro Cocktail Architecture. Tips, Tricks and What's Hip Andrew Spurgin, Event Architect, Andrew Spurgin™, San Diego, CA; Michael Esposito, Co-Founder and Frankie Thaheld, Director of Culinary Mixology, Snake Oil Cocktail Company, San Diego, CA |
| 3:00pm - 3:30pm | The Underside. Pork Belly Recipes for Catering Tom Dunne, Executive Chef, Common Plea Catering, Pittsburgh, PA |
| 3:30pm - 4:00pm | Cocktail Anthropology. Bar Services for International Events Michael Esposito, Co-Founder and Frankie Thaheld, Director of Culinary Mixology, Snake Oil Cocktail Company, San Diego, CA |
| 4:00pm - 4:30pm | Callebaut's Contemporary Dessert Techniques. A White Chocolate Cherry Dome Alicia Boada, CEPC, CCA, CCE, West Coast Technical Advisory/Brand Sales Development, Barry Callebaut North America, Las Vegas, NV |
| 4:30pm - 5:00pm | Savory Application for Traditional Sweets Ken Barrett, Executive Director, Broadway Gourmet, Boston, MA |
| 5:00pm - 5:30pm | Two Birds and One Stone Approach to Event Design Don Blyler III, Event Specialist, The JDK Group, Camp Hill, PA |
Hands-on Arena
Jump right in and experience doing rather than watching. Hands-on demos will include:
| 11:00am - 11:30am | Take Time Out to Smell (and Taste) the Herbs Keith Lord, Director of Culinary and Operations, The Wild Thyme Company Catering & Events, San Diego, CA |
| 11:30am - 12:30pm | Service Fundamentals. A Hands‐on, Confidence-Building Clinic Brian Palazzolo, Consultant, Catersource, Chicago, IL |
| 12:30pm - 1:30pm | Setting the Dining Room Quickly with Consistency & Flare Roy Porter, Owner, Be Ready for Service, Los Alamitos, CA |
| 1:30pm - 2:00pm | Dress Up That Platter. Garnishing Ideas for Buffet Platters Ken Barrett, Executive Director, Broadway Gourmet, Boston, MA; Adam Gooch, Executive Chef, Purple Onion Catering, Vienna, VA; Karen O’Connor, Executive Chef, Daniel et Daniel, Toronto, ON |
| 2:00pm - 2:30pm | Dress Up That Butler Passed Hors d'oeuvre. Garnishing Ideas for Passing Trays. Ken Barrett, Executive Director, Broadway Gourmet, Boston MA; Adam Gooch, Executive Chef, Purple Onion Catering, Vienna, VA; Karen O’Connor, Executive Chef, Daniel et Daniel, Toronto, ON |
| 2:30pm - 3:30pm | Fun and Effective Team Building Exercises Anthony Lambatos and April Lambatos, Owners, Footers Catering, Denver, CO |
| 3:30pm - 4:30pm | Getting the Perfect Shot. Learn How to Take Better Food Photos Cade Nagy, Owner, Catering by Design, Denver, CO |
| 4:30pm - 5:30pm | The Great Game of Business Mini Games Workshop Kevin Walter, Principal, Tasty Catering, Elk Grove Village, IL and Steve Baker, Vice President, The Great Game of Business, Inc., Springfield, MO |
Restaurant Showcase Stage
| 12:30pm - 1:00pm | Social Media Dos and Don’ts Debbie Harris, Founder/President, DoWeComply.com, Las Vegas, NV |
| 1:00pm - 1:30pm | Affordable Care Act. How it Affects Your Business Steve Salinas, COO, Bridgeport Benefits, Las Vegas, NV |
| 2:30pm - 3:00pm | Taking Care of Guests with Allergies Keith Norman, Assistant Executive Chef, South Point Hotel, Casino and Spa, Las Vegas, NV |
| 3:30pm - 4:00pm | The Tao of TAO Mark Marrone, Corporate Executive Sous Chef, TAO Asian Bistro, Las Vegas, NV |
Wednesday, March 26
Show Intel Stage
Sessions that focus on thought provoking topics important to your success:
| 10:00am - 10:30am | Thirty Minutes with a Tech Guru and a Technophobe! Daniel Anisman, Co-Founder/CEO/CTO and Sandy Hammer, Co-Founder/CMO, All Seated, New York, NY |
| 10:30am - 11:30am | Juggling Your Way Through the Sales Circus Elizabeth Parsons, Event Planner, and Karyn Rose, Event Planner, Culinary Capers Catering and Special Events, Vancouver, Canada |
| 11:30am - 12:30pm | Event Technology ROI. Are Your Tech Investments Contributing to Your Bottom Line? James Zilli, CEO and Gary Coleman, Director of Information Technology, Zilli Hospitality Group, Waukesha, WI |
| 12:30pm - 1:00pm | The Word of Mouth Marketing Myth Jon Wool, President/Owner, JHW Hospitality, Chicago, IL |
| 1:00pm - 2:00pm | Contemporary Culinary and Trendy Designs Moderator, Jack Milan, Catersource Consultant and Owner, Different Tastes, Boston, MA |
| 2:00pm - 2:30pm | Taking the iPad to a Higher Level. Creating Proposals, Portfolios and Presentations Harold Kelly, Director of Sales and Marketing, Melange Catering & Special Events, Houston, TX |
Catering & Events Innovations Stage
Content-packed live demonstrations:
| 10:00am - 10:30am | Lettuce Show You Some New Ideas! Creative Salad Recipes Adam Gooch, Executive Chef, Purple Onion Catering Company, Vienna, VA |
| 10:30am - 11:00am | Composing A Culinary Concert Meryl Snow, Catersource Consultant and Owner, Feastivities Events, Philadelphia, PA; Jen Delaye, CEO and David Everett, Senior Wedding and Event Producer, The JDK Group, Camp Hill, PA |
| 11:00am - 11:30am | Sushi 101. Making Sushi In-House David Sandler, Executive Vice President, Catering by Michaels, Chicago, IL |
| 11:30am - 12:00pm | Pasta Blitz. A Fast-paced Session Featuring Pasta Recipes for Every Kitchen Michael Purpura, Executive Chef, Lackmann Food Service at Wagner College, Staten Island, NY |
| 12:00pm - 12:30pm | Cooking Chemistry. Kool Ideas for Using Liquid Nitrogen Rachanee Keovorabouth, Executive Chef, Thomas Caterers of Distinction, Indianapolis, IN and Justin Riege, Executive Chef, Zilli Hospitality Group, Waukesha, WI |
| 12:30pm - 1:00pm | Under the Big Top. Large Events in Large Scale Tents Doug Quattrini, Event Producer, Feastivities Events, Philadelphia, PA |
| 1:00pm - 1:30pm | The Ever-evolving Dish. Cross Utilization of Recipes Chuck Friedhoff, Chef de Cuisine, Butler's Pantry, St. Louis, MO |
| 1:30pm - 2:00pm | Cooking Chemistry. Kool Ideas for Using Liquid Nitrogen Rachanee Keovorabouth, Executive Chef, Thomas Caterers of Distinction, Indianapolis, IN and Justin Riege, Executive Chef, Zilli Hospitality Group, Waukesha, WI |
Hands-on Arena
Jump right in and experience doing rather than watching. Hands-on demos will include:
| 10:00am - 11:00am | Brush Up on Your Front of the House Service Skills Roy Porter, Owner, Be Ready for Service, Los Alamitos, CA |
| 11:00am - 12:00pm | Flower Power. Learn Design Principals and Techniques for Making Simple Centerpieces David Everett, Senior Wedding and Event Producer, The JDK Group, Camp Hill, PA |
| 12:30pm - 1:30pm | Stay Out of the Weeds. Organize Field Kitchens and Practice Plated Service for Large Groups Roy Porter, Owner, Be Ready for Service, Los Alamitos, CA |
| 1:30pm - 2:30pm | Different Strokes for Different Folks. Exploring Alternative Plated Service Styles Ken Barrett, Executive Director, Broadway Gourmet, Boston, MA; Adam Gooch, Executive Chef, Purple Onion Catering, Vienna, VA; Karen O’Connor, Executive Chef, Daniel et Daniel, Toronto, ON |
| 2:00pm - 2:30pm | Dress Up That Butler Passed Hors d'oeuvre. Garnishing Ideas for Passing Trays. Ken Barrett, Executive Director, Broadway Gourmet, Boston, MA |
Restaurant Showcase Stage
| 11:00am - 11:30am | Remove the Strings. How to Build Guest Loyalty with Email Marketing Joe Gabriel, Association Alliances Manager, Fishbowl, Alexandria, VA |
| 11:30am - 12:00pm | Responding to Yelp Reviews Debbie Harris, Founder/President, DoWeComply.com, Las Vegas, NV |
| 12:00pm - 12:30pm | Food and Wine Pairings Ronnie Rainwater, Chef de Cuisine, Delmonico Steakhouse, Las Vegas, NV |
| 12:30pm - 1:00pm | How to Easily Prepare Tasty Food Onsite Daniel Mumau, Owner/Executive Chef, A Catered Affair, Las Vegas, NV |
