I’d be hard pressed to come up with another city I have visited with more frequency in the past five years than New Orleans. It’s fantastic. So, imagine my delight when I learned that Catersource had its first conference there 25 years ago, and to honor that—we’d be returning, and bringing the Art of Catering Food with it!
A couple of weeks ago, I was able to take another trip to the Crescent City, test drive a few restaurants, see the Monday Night Party venue (NOLA Motorsports), and assist with final preparations and details for a spectacular week. I also appeared on WVUE-FOX8 morning news while I was there, talking about catering and event trends, and most importantly, the conference and tradeshow.
Cochon Butcher is walking distance from the Convention Center: a must visit on my list every time I am in NOLA.
Our education is solid with many inspiring speakers and seminars, the tradeshow floor is filling fast with the products you will need to grow and/or enhance your businesses, we have a full roster of great chefs for our tradeshow floor competitions, 25 ambassadors to help you find your way or offer advice, a Creole luncheon (yes, I had to taste that, too) that just about made me swoon, book signings, a forward-thinking tech breakfast, a half day deep dive into growing business with corporate drop off catering, the Spark industry awards celebration...My, my—it’s going to be a packed four days.
The warm and wonderful bar at Emeril's is also very close to the Ernest Morial Convention Center. I had a great meal there with ICA members in January. And a great cocktail.
In print, we can hardly scratch the surface regarding all of the activities and education you will be experiencing; so while I wholeheartedly encourage you to read everything in this issue, I would also like you to visit catersource.com with more regularity, as well as sign up for any of our e-news products that interest you. I’ll be putting a lot of information in these digital products over the next month, right up to showtime.
These are exciting days, my friends. I really hope to see you soon in one of my favorite cities in the world, as Catersource heads home to NOLA.
