Attendees of the 2011 National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show in Chicago (May 21-24) will have a chance to see celebrity culinary masters up close and personal at the show's World Culinary Showcase.
The cooking demonstration theater provides event attendees an interactive setting to soak up the passion, innovation, and inspiration shared by world-class culinary artists who perform live on stage.
"We look forward to welcoming some of the world's most talented culinary artists to NRA Show 2011," says C.W. Craig Reed, convention chair for NRA Show 2011 and director of food and beverage at Broadmoor Hotel.
"These chefs operate highly successful restaurants and attribute much of their success to the culinary innovation they apply to their menus," Reed says. "Our World Culinary Showcase will offer a rare glimpse into their creative process."
The showcase, running all four days of the NRA Show, will feature:
Rick Bayless, chef/owner of Frontera Grill and Topolobampo in Chicago—television host, author, champion of Mexican cuisine, and winner of Bravo’s Top Chef Masters Season 1.
Wylie Dufresne, chef/owner, wd~50 in New York City—leading American proponent of molecular gastronomy.
Tiffani Faison,chef/owner, Workshop & Mercantile in Boston—
contestant on Bravo's Top Chef Season 1 and recently on Top Chef All-Stars.
John Folse, executive chef, Restaurant R’evolution— Louisiana’s culinary ambassador to the world.
Gale Gand, partner and executive pastry chef, Tru in Chicago— television star and cookbook author.
Marcus Samuelsson, chef/owner, Red Rooster in New York City and C-House in Chicago—Bravo’s Top Chef Masters Season 2 winner and guest chef for the first Obama Administration state dinner.
Kevin Sbraga, chef/restaurateur—winner of Bravo's Top Chef Season 7.
Rick Tramonto, executive chef, Restaurant R’evolution in New Orleans—
award-winning cookbook author and James Beard Award winner.
A special session, "An Inside Look at Innovation in Chains and Independents," will be held in the World Culinary Showcase on Monday, May 23. Moderated by The Culinary Edge founder, Aaron Noveshen, the session will feature Wylie Dufresne and McDonald's Director of Culinary Innovation, Dan Coudreaut, sharing insights on the similarities and differences between chains and independent restaurants in terms of the rolde that innovation plays in menu development.
Additional chefs will be added to the World Culinary Showcase lineup this spring. Several of these chefs will also be signing their latest books in the Celebrity Book Signing area of the NRA Show, including Bayless, Folse, Gand, Samuelsson, and Tramonto. For a full schedule, visit www.restaurant.org/show.
