Mr. Speaker, I rise today to invite all hon. members to an exciting conference taking place in Edmonton May 22-24. The first of its kind, the inaugural Host Edmonton conference is focused on supercharging Edmonton's thriving hospitality industry with a theme of “Eat, Drink, Think”.
The brainchild of Edmonton Economic Development, Host Edmonton is a combined conference and festival that puts Edmontonians in the mix with international and Canadian celebrity chefs such as Christine Cushing, Chopped Judge Marc Murphy, and the Spice Goddess, Bal Arneson. From sessions on the finer points of fish to the clash of the cocktails led by the famous Thirsty Traveler, Kevin Brauch, this conference is shaping up to be a great hit.
Edmonton is home to over 3,000 hospitality businesses and is the birthplace of many Canadians favourites such as Booster Juice and Earls, which now operate 64 restaurants in Canada as well as locations around the U.S.
It is a break week, so I encourage all members to join me, without the distraction of the Edmonton Oilers in the playoffs, at this fantastic event and spend some time eating, drinking, and thinking.