Category: Speakers Page 4 of 11

Chief Culinary Officer, Executive Vice President of Culinary Operations
Lazy Dog Restaurants

Paul Muller’s resume includes chef positions within the Clyde’s Restaurant, and was an integral part of the growth and expansion of P. F. Chang’s China Bistro, Inc. becoming Director of Culinary Operations. After PFCCB he became Chef Partner of Culinary Operations for Paul Martin’s American Bistro. He then was named the Director of Culinary R&D for the Cheesecake Factory Inc. an integral part in menu development for the international expansion of the brand.

Vice President of Culinary Development/Corporate Executive Chef
The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated

Prior to his 30 years with The Cheesecake Factory, Chef Bob Okura worked in a variety of operations, ranging from small ethnic restaurants to the fine dining rooms of 4-star hotel/casino resorts. He has received numerous awards among them are the National Restaurant Association’s Menu Development and Innovations Award 2012, Research Chefs Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award 2008, Chef Magazine’s Chef of the Year 2007, Menu Masters Chef Innovator Award 2003 and Nation’s Restaurant News Top 50 R & D Culinarians 2002. Chef Bob is a founding board member of the International Corporate Chefs Association and has been affiliated with other culinary organizations such as The American Culinary Federation, Les Amis d’Escoffier, the Chaine Des Rotisseurs; and the Research Chef’s Association.

Senior Manager, Product Development
Golden Corral Corporation

Debra has been in Culinary Research and Development for national restaurant chains for over 25 years. Debra is currently Senior Manager of Product Development for Golden Corral Corporation the category leader in the Steak, Grill and Buffet segment which she has been a team member of for over 20 years. During her tenure at Golden Corral Corporation, she and the Vice President of Food and Beverage Department have introduced system wide over five hundred new products/recipes.

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Executive Director,
Culinary Visions® Panel and Y-Pulse®

Sharon Olson has been immersed in marketing for the food industry for more than 35 years. She was a Vice President at two leading foodservice agencies prior to forming Olson Communications in 1988 and the Culinary Visions Panel in 2002 that surveys opinion leaders and consumers on emerging trends in the food industry.

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Founder and Editor-in-Chief
Produce Business

Jim Prevor is widely recognized as a leader in assessing the state of the perishable-food industries and analyzing the prospects for the retail and foodservice venues in which perishable foods are bought and sold. His comments and insights on a broad range of subjects — including food safety, genetically modified organisms, irradiation, consumer dynamics, the state of food prices, sustainability and the competitive dynamics in the fresh-food retailing industry — have been seen and heard on CNN, the Fox Business Channel, the BBC, NPR, many network affiliates and over 100 newspapers, magazines and associated websites, including The Washington Post, The New York Times, USA Today, The Times of London, The Chicago Tribune and The Los Angeles Times.

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