THOUSANDS OF RESTAURANT AND FOODSERVICE INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALS FROM THE SOUTHEAST WILL GATHER AT THE 2014 FLORIDA RESTAURANT & LODGING SHOW - SEPTEMBER 7-9 IN ORLANDO Emeril Lagasse to Present Culinary Demonstration on Monday, September 8

The Florida Restaurant & Lodging Show, the source to gain knowledge from insightful education to palate-pleasing food and drink trends; new product options and idea generating special events will bring together thousands of restaurant and foodservice professionals from Sunday, September 7 - Tuesday, September 9, 2014 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. This three day trade show and conference, sponsored by the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association,offers educational programs, special events, new food products, and equipment and services from over 400+ exhibiting companies

"We are thrilled to be offering several new and exciting special features at the upcoming Florida Restaurant & Lodging Show including the Fresh from Florida Pavilion, the Roam Food Truck Academy, culinary demonstrations from Celebrity Chef Emeril Lagasse, and others as well as returning highlights including the Ferdinand Metz Foodservice Forum, the Food Trend Experience, the prestigious ACF Culinary Competitions and much more," said Ron Mathews, Vice President, Restaurant and Foodservice Events Portfolio. Urban Expositions. "We look forward to this year's gathering where thousands of industry professionals will see the most innovative new products and trends in the restaurant and foodservice industry."

Highlights for the upcoming Florida Restaurant & Lodging Show, include:

Fresh from Florida Pavilion - The top restaurant menu trend is focused on local sourcing and The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services will sponsor the new Fresh from Florida Pavilion. This new pavilion, which will be part of the Food Trends Experience on the show floor, offers tantalizing organic, sustainable, artisanal, gluten-free and ethnic ingredients giving restaurant and foodservice operators the opportunity to source local, Florida offerings.

Culinary Demonstrations - Emeril Lagasse, American award-winning celebrity chef, restaurateur, television personality, and cookbook author will be conducting a culinary demonstration at the Show on Monday, September 8 at 1:00 pm. He will be joined by Chef Ryan Vargas, Chef de Cuisine at Emeril's Tchoup Chop, located at the Loews Royal Pacific Resort at Universal® Orlando. The chefs will come to together for an exclusive demonstration that will focus on the local and seasonal offerings from Florida.

Food Truck Academy and Pavilion - Mobile vending continues to grow in cities all over North America and now represents $1Billion in revenue. For those restaurant and foodservice operators wanting to open food trucks or carts will now find practical education and support services at the Roam Food Truck Academy which will be held in conjunction with the Show on Monday, September 8th. The one day fast track mini Roam Food Truck Academy will give restaurant and foodservice professionals all the fundamentals they'll need to launch a successful mobile food business. Attendees will have the opportunity to learn from national experts about business planning, permitting, equipment, production and food ideas, profits, sales and marketing. To register, click here: http://ftafl.brownpapertickets.com/. In addition, Prestige Food Trucks will be organizing a Food Truck Pavilion on the show floor.

The Ferdinand Metz Foodservice Forum will offer dozens of sessions focused on operational excellence, winning teams, maximizing profits, hot trends, and building loyalty. Sessions include the Foodservice Council for Women, Fine Dining - Is It Dead?, Making Menus Matter for Healthy Diners, Airport Franchising, What's Hot in the Social Media World for Restaurants, Trends in the Industry, and many more. For the complete conference program visit http://www.flrestaurantandlodgingshow.com/133/Education.htm.

The 2014 American Culinary Federation Culinary Arts Competition presented by US Foods. Chefs will compete in the R.L. Schreiber Apprentice/Jr. Member Florida State Championship Team Skills Competition; Taste of Elegance Pork Signature Recipe Competition, sponsored by Iowa Pork Producers Association; the USA Culinary Cup Team Competition, sponsored by Bari Beef International, Creekstone Farms, Dole, Rich's, Maple Leaf, MillerCoors, Barry Callebaut, McIlhenney Co., Wisconsin Cheese, Fresh from Florida, and Bar Harbor Seafood; The Florida Pastry Challenge, sponsored by The Culinary Source and Barry Callebaut; and the Florida Department of Agriculture Shrimp Signature Recipe Competition. Many of the award winning meals will be served during the Chef's Table Luncheons, a four-course surprise lunch prepared by the participating chefs.

The Food Trends Experience is where attendees will have direct access to product, flavors and ingredients driving the most recent trends in the market - healthy, organic, sustainable, ethnic, artisanal, and more. A few of the companies participating in the Food Trends Experience include: Amoroso's Baking Company, Captain Foods, Carmi Flavor & Fragrance Co Inc, Fresh Origins LLC, La Chiquita Tortilla, Northfork Bison Distribution Inc, Teaspoon Willie's, in addition to 50 more.

$35K Giveaway - Show Management will be giving away $35,000 in product vouchers - redeemable from the 2014 Distribution Partners. Attendees can win $500 or $1000 vouchers to cash in for new products or menu items.

The 2014 Florida Restaurant & Lodging Show is sponsored by the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association (www.frla.org). For more information on exhibiting or attending, visit the official Show website at www.flrestaurantandlodgingshow.com. The tradeshow and conference is managed and produced by Kennesaw, GA based Urban Expositions, which offers a complete roster of trade show management services, including exhibit sales and marketing, operations, exhibitor/attendee promotions and services, media relations, seminar and event coordination, database development and management. Through a logical, hands-on approach, Urban Expositions has become one of the fastest growing and most successful trade show companies in the United States. Contact Urban Expositions at www.urban-expo.com.