Meet The Chefs Who Make Chicago's Restaurant Scene And Eat Great Food

By Anthony Todd in Food on Oct 2, 2015 4:04PM

If you're as interested in learning about food as eating it, there's no better event than Taste Talks, the conference that brings together chefs, food media, restaurant owners, designers, farmers, producers and the public for a day-long extravaganza. Tickets are going fast for this weekend's events, but there are still some available for purchase.

The line-up of panelists is absolutely unbeatable. Do you want to learn about grain? Sit down for a panel with Megan and Dave Miller (Baker Miller), Ellen King (Hewn Bread) and Cameron Grant (Osteria Langhe). How about whole-animal butchery? Fergus Henderson (St. John's), Rob Levitt (Butcher & Larder), Cosmo Goss (Publican Quality Meats) and Chris Cosentino (Cockscomb and Boccalone) are coming together to tell you all about it.

Interested in the business side of things? Christine Cikowski and Joshua Kulp of Sunday Dinner and Honey Butter Fried Chicken will teach you "how to run a restaurant." More interested in the literary side of things? A can't-miss panel recaps the very best of "Between Bites," the foodie reading series, with stories from Chandra Ram (Plate Magazine), Ina Pinkney and Kevin Boehm of Boka Group.

Of course, it wouldn't be a food conference without food. A few tickets remain for tonight's "Mother of Pearl" dinner, features oysters (of course) and courses from chefs at Longman & Eagle, Farmhouse, Local Foods and Hot Chocolate. As part of the regular conference, you'll get access to a toast bar from Publican Quality Meats.

Tickets aren't cheap. A one day conference pass is $100, and an all-access pass including all the special dinners on Friday and Sunday will run you $450. But if you're into learning the stories behind the food business, it's worth a visit. Taste Talks runs Oct. 2 through Oct. 4.