The 56th annual MUFSO conference kicks off in Dallas on Sunday with a slew of panels, a celebration of the hottest emerging concepts and a bartender showdown.
The 2015 Hot Concepts award winners — emerging restaurant brands on the leading edge of foodservice and positioned for significant growth — will be honored at an awards celebration in the evening. Show attendees will sample the honorees’ signature dishes at a cocktail reception.
On Sunday afternoon, entrepreneurs behind the 2015 Hot Concepts award winners will talk about how they build brands that resonate with today’s consumer.
The Hot Concepts panel will include Brett Schulman, CEO of Cava Grill; Dominik Stein, co-founder and chief financial officer of VertsKebap; Michael Heyne, co-founder and CEO of VertsKebap; Euripides Pelekanos, CEO of Bareburger; Manny Valdes, CEO of Tortas Frontera; and Paul Frederick, co-CEO of Eureka! Sarah Lockyer, editor-in-chief of Nation’s Restaurant News, will moderate the panel.
Other Sunday panels span marketing, finance, menu, technology and operations topics, including how tackle how to source customer data and what to do with it, how chefs balance customer choice with food quality, and how franchisees can respond to regulatory challenges. There are five education tracks: operations, culinary, marketing, entrepreneur and ideas.
The day will also include a mixologist showdown — Shake, Sparkle and Stir — where contestants will create cocktails using Coca-Cola products and Seagrams Specialty Syrups.
MUFSO is produced by Nation’s Restaurant News, Restaurant Hospitality and Food Management, each part of Penton's Food & Restaurant Group.
Contact Jenna Telesca at [email protected]
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The MUFSO Premier sponsor is The Coca Cola Company.
Presenting sponsors are: Dinova, Fishbowl, The Beef Checkoff and The Coca Cola Company
Keynotes/general sessions are presented by: Avocados from Mexico, e*Restaurant from Altametrics and the Texas Restaurant Association.
Pillar sponsors include: Heinz Soups, Sweet Street Desserts and Tyson Foodservice (Culinary); Ventura Foods (Entrepreneur); Smithfield Farmland Foodservice Group (Ideas); and Paytronix (Marketing).
The Monday night awards reception and awards presentation are sponsored by: Avocados from Mexico.
Coca Cola presents the Shake, Sparkle & Stir event, and Texas Pete® are sponsoring the MUFSO Kitchen Hero Cook Off, benefiting Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry Campaign.
Hot Concept/Best Concepts Celebration is sponsored by e*Restaurant from Altametrics.
MUFSO Breakfast sponsors are Community Coffee, Ole Mexican Foods and TABASCO®.
MUFSO Room Key is sponsored by Arby’s; Badge Holder Necklace is sponsored by Service Management Group.
Welcome Package is sponsored by Whirley-DrinkWorks!
Refreshment breaks are sponsored by Emmi Roth USA, Royal Cup Coffee, Saputo Cheese USA and Wrigley Foodservice.