The 9th Annual Food Show

The Annual Guest Services, Inc. food show is THE place for team members to see the latest industry trends in action, taste the newest culinary creations, and, overall, learn about new offerings and other best practices available to each Guest Services’ property throughout the United States.

This year, Guest Services’ 9th annual Food Show, featured everything from succulent fall-off-the-bone meats to innovations in packaging and container storage. Chefs, managers, and team members from all across the country converged in Fairfax, VA for the opportunity to learn about what our vendors have to offer, to hear from Guest Services, Inc. leadership and share in the comradery of the overall experience.

The event began with an address on the status of our organization from our executive team. “Everybody should know that the first words out of my mouth when I get a group like this together are ‘thank you.’ And I never want to miss an opportunity to say it. We want to make sure you all know how much we appreciate you,” said Mr. Gabrys, setting the tone for the evening.

This year, vendors showcased solutions designed with a focus on health, nutrition, and sustainability to more closely align with our vision, objectives, and values as an organization. Judy Caplan, Guest Services director of nutrition & wellness, shared an insightful preview into Guest Services’ soon to be launched company-wide nutritional program (GoBeFull). Guest Services’ purchasing resources are now stronger than ever. “The key to this show is to offer all of our team members an opportunity to see one another, share best practices, and, of course, take in the educational factor – how can each unit and property expand their offerings and leverage new best practices as well as on-trend products. ‘I didn’t know we could do that’ or ‘I didn’t know this was something we could offer,’ are statements that summarize how we want the Food Show experience to be,” said Bob Douglas, our director of purchasing. “The Food Show takes everyone behind the scenes by providing the unique opportunity to experience exciting new products firsthand.”

Bob, along with Jennifer Willingham, our purchasing analyst, are the event’s main orchestrators. Together, they make up the team that prepares, plans, organizes, and executes the Food Show each year. Bob says, “It’s a fun, exciting day! It’s very rewarding to see everyone share in the event and leave excited about the new ideas and concepts they are bringing back to their property.”