Innovations, our annual trade show, is returning this April. For Dot Foods national account operators, the show is an opportunity to speak one-on-one with suppliers and their chefs while trying products available to source through Dot.
Operator Insights is another big draw to our show. At Operator Insights, national accounts attend thought leadership seminars geared towards their unique business needs. They also get the chance to view some of the exhibitor booths before any other attendees.
Last year’s Operator Insights kicked off with a keynote from Datassential founder and CEO Jack Li. Flavor & The Menu Editor-in-Chief Cathy Nash Holley then spoke with a panel of national account operators from Buffalo Wild Wings, CAVA Grill, and McAlister’s. For the final talk, Holley sat down with Chef Roy Choi, restaurateur, bestselling author, and star of Netflix’ “The Chef Show.”
Before registration for Innovations 2022 opens, let’s revisit a couple of the main points from Jack Li and Chef Roy Choi.
Location, Location, Location
Jack Li has shared Datassential’s illuminating findings at Operator Insights for five straight shows and will join us for a sixth time at Innovations 2022. His 2021 keynote gave a thorough look into the current environment for national account operators. Datassential reports showed that delivery, automation, and other trends that were starting to gain traction before 2020 exploded throughout the pandemic. In particular, he called attention to migration patterns that had been accelerated by COVID-19.
With people—especially millennials and Gen Zers—moving out of cities to the suburbs, “location plays a bigger role today than it ever has before,” he argued. Suburbia has surpassed urban regions in restaurant traffic, and young populations are bringing their culinary tastes with them. For suburban restaurants and chains, that means menus need to focus more on adventurous, global cuisine to attract an increasingly young clientele.
Food From the Heart
Cathy Nash Holley had a lively conversation with Chef Roy Choi about his multifaceted career. He discussed sharing his culture through food, feeding people in need during the pandemic, and his new Las Vegas restaurant Best Friend.
Holley asked Choi to give advice to operators and chefs about drawing inspiration from global cuisines without crossing the line into cultural appropriation. For Choi, the problem often comes down to the quality of the food. “A lot of the time, the food is not bomb,” as he put it.
He elaborated that it’s important for chefs to do their research on the cuisine they’re drawing inspiration from, respect the culture, and use this research and respect to create food from the heart. He later demonstrated this respect when speaking of the Los Angeles loncheras that inspired Kogi, his Korean BBQ taco truck.
Your Sourcing Solution
As Li emphasized, “Innovation is back in a really big way.” Restaurants aren’t just developing solutions to keep their doors open; they’re serving creative, heartfelt dishes that get diners excited to eat out again. Like Choi said when addressing our national account audience, “You guys are the future.” National accounts feed the masses and have the power to dictate where food is going.
This April, we’re excited to welcome David Chang to Innovations and hear more insights from Jack Li. Join us at our trade show for an exciting line-up of vendors, speakers, and entertainment. Check out the agenda, and get ready to register on February 1.
See what’s on the menu at Innovations 2022 in St. Louis.