WAY back in the day, before I was even thinking about being a chef, I never really had much say in what I ate.

Mom packed my lunch, made my dinner, dad occasionally grilled steaks and the school posted their cafeteria hot food menus in the local paper.

About the only meal choice I ever made was when I was old enough (and brave enough), to bike down to the local corner candy store to score some “highly nutritious meal”…like a hostess cup cake, or a bag of Cheetos.

Even when I began to cook for pay, I still prepped what I was told to prep, cooked what was on the menu and ate the employee meal of the day.

Eventually, not only did I get to decide what I wanted to eat but what I wanted others to eat.

It’s one of the greatest joys of being a Chef.

Taking that one step further, as Corporate Chef at Nino Salvaggio International Marketplace, I actually have 3 opportunities to express that joy.

One, through the terrific recipes we share for you to enjoy at home and second, through the wonderful foods we prepare for you to purchase here at Nino’s.

The third (and sometimes the most fun) is to travel to one of the many professional trade shows to see, taste and experience some of the latest and greatest ingredients and prepared foods our industry has to offer.

Among the many national and international shows we attend are the Fancy Food Show held each year in both New York City and San Francisco, the IDDBA (International Deli, Dairy and Bakery Association) show, The North American Seafood Expo in Boston and the fabulous National Restaurant Show held in Chicago each May.

This year’s NRA show was another wonderful opportunity to sample foods from hundreds of manufacturers and distributers, some of which you may see in our stores in the very near future. Three days of sampling, information and ideas.

Unfortunately, you have to be in the food “biz” to get in to these trade shows but we pieced together a short video to give you just a “taste” of what it’s like to finally get to be a kid in a candy shop.