COLUMBUS, Ohio — The seventh-annual North America Pizza & Ice Cream Show (NAPICS) will be held Feb. 21 and 22, 2010, at the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio. The event is projected to attract a national audience of approximately 5,000 pizzeria and ice cream shop operators.
NAPICS is a show for pizza and ice cream professionals – owners, managers and operators – and provides a forum for meeting a variety of food and equipment vendors while networking with peers and learning from experts. NAPICS will feature exhibits and demonstrations of new products and equipment, and seminars and workshops covering tried and true “how to” procedures and innovative methodologies.
Approximately 200 exhibitors will demonstrate the latest advances in equipment for pizzerias and ice cream shops and will provide samples of new food products, including a variety of products for Italian dishes, coffees and dessert items, as well as pizza and ice cream.
Educational offerings include workshops that feature well-known experts, along with peer-to-peer teaching sessions. Ice cream and gelato operators will hear from frozen dessert experts about dipping techniques, cake decorating and adding frozen beverages to the menu. Attendees also benefit from “Ask the Experts” sessions, which are held in the Interactive Pizza Test Kitchen where attendees can “Ask It, Try It, Test It.”
Registration is $29.95 per person before Feb. 17, 2010 and $60 per person after Feb. 17, 2010 or on site. Visit www.napics.com to register or call 740-524-4123. The show is open Feb. 21 from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Feb. 22 from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. NAPICS is a trade only event and not open to the public. No one under 14 will be admitted.
Pizza Pizzazz is Primo
The 16th annual North America Pizza Pizzazz, the longest running pizza-making competition in the United States, will feature competitors vying for a cash prize of $7,500 each in gourmet and traditional categories. The gourmet competition kicks off at 9 a.m. Feb. 21 and the traditional competition does likewise at 9 a.m. on Feb. 22, both in the Greater Columbus Convention Center on the NAPICS exhibition floor.
More than 100 contestants (50 in each division) compete in first-round bake offs with the top six in each category continuing on to the championship rounds where they again prepare their original entry. A panel of judges rules on appearance, marketability and taste.
Student Chefs Perform
The seventh annual Gordon Food Service ProStart® Student Invitational will be held Feb. 21-22, 2010 at NAPICS in the Greater Columbus Convention Center. The event, only for Ohio ProStart schools, is the premier competition for high school culinary arts students in Ohio.
More than 160 students comprising 34 teams from 21 schools will compete in culinary and management competitions. The culinary competition showcases each team’s best recipes. The management competition challenges teams to develop a restaurant concept. Teams are comprised of two to four students and can be mixed with juniors and seniors. The goal of the competition is to give students additional exposure to the foodservice industry through competition and the chance to view a world-class industry trade show.
The winning team from each event will be sent all travel-related expenses paid to the National ProStart Student Invitational in Overland Park, Kan., April 29-May 2, 2010.
SPECIAL NOTES:
Trade Show Only – Not Open to General Public
Excellent visuals available on NAPICS exhibition floor, at the Pizza Pizzazz Competition and during the GFS/ProStart® Student Invitational.
MEDIA PASSES AVAILABLE:
Contact Mark Glasper at 614-246-0323 or mglasper@ohiorestaurant.org.
