EVENT REVIEW
Te conference’s opening
party, on the lawn of the historic Wigwam Resort, saw FCSI members enjoy some excellent hospitality, accompanied by dueling pianos.
EXTRAORDINARY COMMITMENT
Day one of the main conference saw chair Sojo Alex FCSI address the 400+ attendees on stage. “Tank you for being here – thank you for this amazing attendance,” she said. “Half of the attendees are consultant members – a terrific ratio,” says Alex, who praised her fellow Conference Planning Committee team for their exceptional organization of an event packed with insight, high- quality speakers and first-rate networking opportunities. FCSI TAD past chair
Christine Guyott FCSI awarded the 2026 Service Award to Kristin Sedej FCSI for her “extraordinary commitment” to the Society and support to the Division since 2009. Meanwhile, new TAD chair Brent Hall FCSI welcomed newly qualified full FCSI Professional members to the stage, before opening keynote and AI expert Dan Chuparkoff presented on the topic of why “AI is
about to change everything about everything,” including commercial kitchen design. “AI will reinvent the way
we share information. It gives us the ability to interact with each other at scale,” he said, before recommending that AI is best deployed to focus on the areas of “investigate, process, and communicate” in the work hierarchy – all of which will free up more time for people to address the critical areas of “problem-solving, decide and imagining.” A series of breakout sessions
addressed topics as disparate as ‘Designing for the Real World: Aligning Foodservice Design with Operations’; ‘Challenges of Ownership’; ‘Elevating Chef Well-Being’; ‘Generating Sustainable Design and Relationships’; ‘Refrigeration in 2026 and Beyond’; and a ‘Tech AI Deep Dive for Consultants’ from Chuparkoff. Te evening was completed
with an unforgettable ‘Evening Under the Stars’ as members were serenaded by three Nashville-based multi-Grammy winning singer-songwriters. Te final day of the
Conference saw long-time TAD members Karen Malody FFCSI,
John Radchenko FFCSI, Harry Schildkraut FFCSI, Howard Stanford FFCSI, and William Taunton FFCSI inducted into the College of Fellows during an emotional Medallion Ceremony. A Product of the Year Award was also bestowed upon Streivor Inc. for its innovative new Smart Trough Technology system, which was voted by members from a shortlist of 12 new products in the Conference’s Innovation Showcase segment.
A FOCUS ON THE FUNDAMENTALS
Kathleen Held, president of the FCSI Educational Foundation, presented on the organization’s latest initiatives, including the great progress being made by students at Western Kentucky University (WKU), plus two new textbooks that will be published this summer. 1473
Media’s Stuart Charlton and Michael Jones later addressed that in more detail. Te first book, Foundations of Foodservice Design, will be both a study guide for students undertaking the Foodservice Consulting Certificate Program course at WKU, and a reference guide for more experienced design consultants on the topics of planning, programming, and evaluating foodservice spaces. Te second, Material
Selection In Foodservice Design, an e-book, will focus on materials and finishes to create environments that are functional, durable and visually compelling. Copies of both publications can be pre-ordered at
tinyurl.com/yc797f6z. Additional conference
breakout sessions focused on Beverage – Conception to Implementation; Critical Attributes of Quality Consulting; and Design Influence on Emotion and Behavior. Keynote speakers restaurateur Kevin Boehm and Te Buried Life’s Ben Nemtin brought the star power to an event that took the black-and-white fundamentals of great foodservice and applied the Technicolor magic of artful hospitality to create an event full of fun, high-level learning, and a sense of real purpose.
58 FOR MORE GO TO
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