Introducing Our Advisory Board!

Katherina (Kathie) Griley is a seasoned professional with over four decades of experience in the foodservice industry. Throughout her extensive career, Kathie has tackled every aspect of restaurant operations, garnering invaluable expertise along the way.

Her professional contacts within the restaurant industry introduced her to the California Restaurant Association Educational Foundation in 1998, where she dedicated almost a decade to enhancing the industry through professional development training. Today, she is the Vice President of Member Services, overseeing CRA chapter management and acting as the liaison for the annual trade show.

Hannah Lopez is a visionary leader in the realm of hospitality and a true enthusiast of the Plant Based Industry. With an unwavering passion for promoting healthier choices and sustainable living, Hannah has taken on the pivotal role of Food Service Director at the Plant-Based Foods Association (PBFA). PBFA is the nation's premier trade association for leading plant-based food companies and Hannah is dedicated to championing, fortifying, and uplifting both members and the entire plant-based foods sector.

Hannah's journey has been guided by her innate dedication to bettering the food industry. Her fervor for plant-based products has led her to the forefront of this transformative movement. As a trailblazer, Hannah's mission is clear: to infuse the Food Service industry with the vitality of plant-based options. She firmly believes that the key to monumental decisions lies in attentive consumer engagement – a principle that aligns seamlessly with PBFA's mission. With her understanding of market dynamics and an unwavering commitment to fostering positive change, Hannah, along with PBFA, is here to offer invaluable guidance, ensuring the seamless integration of plant power into menus across the Food Service landscape.

Michael Scinto is a dedicated advertising and marketing specialist with over 23 years of experience in foodservice marketing and media. Currently serving as the Vice President of Sales for Total Food Service magazine, he bridges the gap by connecting foodservice brands to foodservice operators. Staying abreast of new marketing techniques marked by a combination of a strong work ethic and an unwavering commitment to success, Michael is always eager to help his colleagues and clients.

If Rachael Ray, Kelly Clarkson, and Nicole Byer had a baby, you'd have Deanna "Bomb Chica"! Her talents on stage, screen, and in the kitchen have been merged into one delicious treat for her audience! Her parents, Nicola and Mary, raised her in an Italian restaurant north of Boston. In spite of the fact that she has no formal culinary training, she often refers to herself as a graduate of the "Culinary School of Hard Nicks". In the family restaurant and at home, she learned authentic Italian cuisine.

When Deanna was 15, cooking took a back seat to her passion for music. Berklee College of Music awarded her a full tuition scholarship. She left the family business after graduation to pursue a career in entertainment. Deanna may be familiar to you from her appearances in national advertisements for "Jardiance", "Pepsi", or "Big Lots". Additionally, she achieved the status of quarter semifinalist on Season 8 of America's Got Talent, and has composed and performed over 200 songs for Radio, TV, and Film. Her vocal talents have been featured in national commercials and alongside some of the most prominent figures in the music industry, including Celine Dion, Justin Bieber, and Nick Jonas, among others.

Deanna auditioned for MasterChef Season 10, and was selected as one of the Top 20 contestants by Judges Gordon Ramsay, Joe Bastianich, and Aarón Sánchez. It was following her participation in the show that her fervor for cooking was reignited.

Deanna’s cooking show “Go Fork Ya Self” on Tik Tok has garnered close to 300K followers in a short amount of time and a lot of attention from huge food brands, like General Mills, and she is the official Chef of Dreo’s Chefmaker Combi. Deanna is booked nationally for Chef demos, sharing kitchens and stages with culinary giants like Alex Guarnaschelli, Andrew Zimmern, Rocco DiSpirito, Jet Tila, Robert Irvine and Maneet Chauhan.

Deanna has appeared on Food Network’s “Battle of The Decades”, was a Judge & Chef on 5 episodes of SLING’s show Hot Mess Express, in an ad for Facebook/Oculus, as well as for Imperfect Foods.

In 2024 she is already booked to host culinary events for the New York Restaurant Show (formerly known as the International Restaurant & Foodservice Show of New York) and for several food festivals at the Ilani Resort in WA. She also will be competing Supermarket Stakeout with Alex Guarnaschelli.

Deanna is constantly working on partnerships with a multitude of culinary brands and developing her own tv projects.

Deanna is an entertaining dynamo - Whether on a stage or on a plate, Deanna oozes BIG FLAVOR!

Sara Perez Webber is the editor-in-chief of Catering, Foodservice & Events, previously named
Catering Magazine. Sara has written more than 300 articles about the catering, foodservice and
events industries, and has interviewed scores of catering professionals. She is co-writing a book
with caterer Bill Hansen, Plating Up Profits: Miami’s Catering Icon Dishes Up Lessons for
Business Success, which will be published in January 2025.

A graduate of American University in Washington, D.C., Sara has worked as an editor and writer
for nearly 30 years. She’s been on the staff of such publications as Caribbean Travel & Life
magazine and Travel Agent magazine, and she continues to write freelance travel articles. Sara
lives in South Florida with her husband and three sons.

Darren S. Denington, CFBE has been in the hospitality industry for over 37 years.  With a degree in Food & Beverage Management and being a Certified Food & Beverage Executive, he understands the importance education plays in the hospitality industry.  Darren has an extensive background in the restaurant industry, including Owner, Executive Chef, Food & Beverage Director, District Manager and General Manager.  His understanding of management, operations and startup, has taken him across the country to speak to companies seeking his expertise. Darren has presented his expertise at over two hundred seminars including most of the nation's most popular trade shows.

During the past twenty-six years, Darren has owned and operated a secret shopping, restaurant coaching and hospitality team training company, Service With Style. He has focused on guest service and employee training as well as team building while helping over a thousand establishments nationwide to understand their guests’ perspectives.  He works closely with operators helping them implement the right systems to improve their establishments. 

As founder of Cali BBQ Media, Shawn Walchef (@shawnpwalchef) helps brands leverage the new Business Creator Economy with Smartphone Storytelling.

His restaurant Cali BBQ (@calibbq) opened in 2008 and has multiple locations in San Diego, including at Snapdragon Stadium, Maker Kitchen, and the Navy Exchange.

Shawn is the host of multiple digital series, including Toast’s Family Style show. His Restaurant Influencers video podcast published by Entrepreneur Media has reached more than 30 million people
since debuting in 2022.

As a keynote speaker and industry leader, he has influenced lots of people to start creating their own B2B content and improving their digital presence.

Shawn’s strategies have led to Cali BBQ Media (@calibbqmedia) being featured by the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, New York Times, Eater, and other local and national media outlets.

Cali BBQ Media: www.BeTheShow.media
Cali BBQ Restaurant: www.CaliBBQ.media

Joe Reinstein is the Executive Director of the non-profit Digital Restaurant Association (DRA), an independent coalition of restaurants advocating for a fair and sustainable restaurant technology ecosystem. Joe helps restaurants move from digital disruption to digital transformation. 

Joe’s ensures the DRA provides public policy advocacy, educational resources and technology solutions for DRA restaurant members. Joe is dedicated to helping restaurant owners increase online revenue, improve restaurant performance and streamline operations.

Joe’s passion is amplifying the collective voice of restaurant owners and operators to influence change in the digital restaurant business. He loves sharing restaurateur stories with elected officials about the issues that are most important to restaurants and help lawmakers understand how their policies affect restaurants, consumers and the economic vitality of their local communities.