Don’t miss the conference’s esteemed speakers, Pati Jinich and the East End’s own Colin Ambrose.
We’ve got great news: The Fourth Annual Food Lab Conference will return to Stony Brook Southampton on September 14 and 15, 2018. The theme of this year’s conference will be a timely one, as the issue of diversity continues to dominate dinner table conversations nationally and abroad: “Eat Global . . . Cook Local.”
This theme, of course, is perfectly reflected in the conference’s choice of esteemed speakers. On Saturday, September 15, Pati Jinich—a Jame Beard Award winner and Emmy nominee for Outstanding Culinary Personality and Outstanding Food Series for “Pati’s Mexican Table”—will keynote the conference. Earlier that morning, acclaimed local chef and owner of Sag Harbor’s beloved eatery Estia’s Little Kitchen Colin Ambrose will open the conference in a conversation with Biddle Duke, a journalist, writer and founding editor of EAST magazine.
Sessions will include Florence Fabricant in conversation with the founders of League of Kitchens, Lisa Gross and Sonya Kharas. Other conference speakers and panelists will include Dr. Frank Lipman, an integrative medicine coach, health expert and bestselling author of The New Health Rules and How to be Well. Seamus Mullen, an award-winning chef, restaurateur and cookbook author, will also participate in the conference’s Health and Nutrition session. Additionally, Dr. Shawn Cannon, Director of Medical Education at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital, and Stony Brook University Assistant Professor Chrisa Arcan will participate, providing a strong local, practice-informed perspective on the topics at hand.
The conference’s panels will include: “Nourishing Diversity: Our Social, Emotional and Spiritual Relationships with Food”; “Nutrition and Health: Old Ways, New Science”; “Local Food—Really?”; “Diversity in the Bottle”; and more.
The star of the show, however, will—rightfully—be the food. On Saturday evening, the conference will conclude with a feast fit for the ages and enjoyed fittingly, considering the dinner’s title, at “One Long Table.” The dinner will feature wine, beer and spirits, alongside a small plates-style buffet full of dishes from League of Kitchens and guest chefs, prepared by Chef Carolina Neves-Santos and coordinated by Kate Fullum, executive director of the Amagansett Food Institute.
The food will also assume a starring role on Friday, September 14, prior to the start of the conference, as Chef Nicholas Poulmentis will be offering a cooking class/demonstration on updated Greek classics. The class will be offered in the South Fork Kitchens space of the Amagansett Food Institute, located conveniently at the heart of the Stony Brook Southampton campus. The demonstration and hands-on class will be offered from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.
In the kitchen along chef Poulmentis, the chef at Akrotiri in Astoria and a champion on the Food Network’s Chopped, will be League of Kitchens’ Lisa Gross and Sonya Kharas, and Chrisa Arcan, who in addition to being an assistant professor of nutrition is an avid cook.
Tickets to the Food Lab Conference are on sale now and can be purchased online. Through August 30, tickets are available at the early-bird price of $100 per person. On August 31, the cost will rise to $150 per person. Included with every ticket is admission to the welcome reception on Friday, August 14, as well as all panels on Saturday, August 15, breakfast, lunch, cocktail party, and dinner.
Participation in the cooking class on Friday, August 14, is an additional $50 per person. Space is limited, so reserve your spot today.
Want to learn more about this year’s Food Lab Conference? Please visit the event’s website: www.thefoodlab.org.
