Restaurant Innovation Summit Brings Together the Latest in Tech Thought Leadership, Digital Media and the Future of Food

WASHINGTON, Oct. 1, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Restaurant Association today announced its agenda for this year's Restaurant Innovation Summit happening October 27^th and 28^th in San Diego, CA. The Summit will focus on "Reinventing the Restaurant Experience" and bring together some of the industry's most compelling thought leaders to showcase the latest in restaurant tech and innovation trends.

"This year's Summit will be an exciting gathering of some of today's most prolific innovators that are changing the way restaurants do business," said Phil Kafarakis, Chief Innovation Officer for the National Restaurant Association. "The NRA is showcasing today's top tech subject matter experts to offer restaurant professionals a chance to engage and interact with the latest advancements in tech which will enable  them to stay competitive, grow their business and enhance the dining experience by leaps and bounds."

The Summit, which will take place over two days at the Westin Gaslamp, will feature IBM's Chef Watson,  a cognitive discovery system designed to augment people's creativity by pairing Watson's knowledge of food chemistry and taste preferences with what its learned about recipes to generate new and unexpected flavor and ingredient combinations. Chef Watson is an example of how people are collaborating with cognitive systems to accelerate new discoveries in any industry.

On-demand delivery will be front and center with interactive discussions featuring some of today's most recognized delivery services like Postmates, Caviar, DoorDash and delivery.com.

The Summit will also feature today's top experts that will focus on technology trends for restaurants, personalized experiences via geofencing, data analytics for restaurant marketers and what's new in mobile payment. The Summit will also feature sessions on the most cutting-edge alcohol-serving innovations and a discussion with acclaimed Futurist Edie Weiner, founder and CEO of Future Hunters on the future of food. Celebrated author and Digital Futurist Amy Webb will kick off the event with a presentation on the top tech trends for restaurant operators.

The highly anticipated 2015 Foodable Five Star Awards, will showcase the champions of the foodservice industry that elevate food, service, brand, digital, and leadership to the highest level as analyzed by social media consumers and peers. The nominees include top talent throughout the industry including renound Chef Marc Forgione and Randy Garuitti, CEO of Shake Shack. For the full list of nominees and more information about the awards click here. The night will be capped off with a performance by musical artists "The Lonely Biscuits."

To view the Summit agenda and speakers in their entirety and to register for the event click here.

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SOURCE National Restaurant Association