The American Culinary Federation is coming to KC

Kansas City’s most acclaimed restaurants and barbecue joints might have a run on reservations later this month. Chefs from other cities invariably are interested in checking out buzzworthy local spots, and downtown Kansas City will be awash in white chef jackets July 25–29, when hundreds of members of the American Culinary Federation gather for their annual convention at the downtown Kansas City Marriott.

The schedule includes a barbecue competition, in a “Pork 101” class, a workshop in buttercream sculptures, and trends in modern food trucks when the ACF — a national organization of more than 20,000 professional chefs and cooks — meets here. More than 1,000 people are expected to attend the four-day event.

The 2014 convention is the first time that the event has been held in Kansas City, according to an ACF spokesperson, and it’s the reason that the Greater Kansas City Chef’s Association is hosting a barbecue competition for attendees the night before the convention kicks off.

Most of the conferences and seminars will be held in the Marriott, but a two-day trade show, featuring more than 100 food exhibitors and a variety of cooking demonstrations, will be held July 27–28 at Bartle Hall. The public may attend the trade show for a fee of $20 a day, or selected seminars and workshops by registering and purchasing an all-day pass.

Several local chefs, including Gilbert/Robinson veteran and college instructor Richard McPeake (discussing “The art of smokology”) and caterer Lon Lane, will be speakers and workshop leaders. So, too, such national culinary figures as Homaro Cantu, of Chicago’s Moto restaurant, and Rick Moonen, of the Las Vegas–based RM Seafood. Moonen, an advocate for sustainable seafood solutions, presents a seminar on aquaculture.