Pastry Live 2016!

2015 National Showpiece Championship Winner. Team Kengo Akabame and Toshinori Akishiro won “Best Overall,” “Best Chocolate,” “Sponsors’ Choice,” and “People’s Choice.”

It’s that time of year again folks- Pastry Live! In just one month, August 20-21, 2016, the kings of pastry will be visiting our hometown of Atlanta, Georgia for a weekend of competition, seminars, and shopping! Chef Nicholas will be back as a judge again this year, and Renshaw is one of the event sponsors! Yay!

Chef Nicholas’ 2015 seminar sponsored my Nielsen-Massey Fine Vanillas & Flavors.

I love Pastry Live. Mainly because it was the first pastry show I was able to attend, and because it’s here in Atlanta (don’t need to buy a plane ticket!). I also really enjoy all the different competitions that are going on over the weekend. There are seven competitions: National Showpiece Championship, Art of Cake, Chocolatier of the Year, Signature Plated Dessert, Dessert Cup, Pastry Atlanta, and the Student Chocolate Challenge.

Team Kengo Akabame and Toshinori Akishiro working on their winning chocolate showpiece.

Chef Nicholas, as in past years, will be judging the Art of Cake competition. I’m not going to lie, I wish I could be a judge. I have a major sweet tooth, and I get pretty jealous watching the judges in all the competitions trying all the sweet treats created by the competitors!

2015 Art of Cake, sculpted division.

There are also some fantastic seminars hosted by some big names in the pastry world! I believe at this time there are nine different seminars on the schedule and include demos, tastings, and vendor information. Chefs Scott Green, Peter Gyorgyicsek, and Kanjiro Mochizuki are hosting seminars on Saturday, August 20th. On Sunday, August 21, Pastry Live attendees can learn from Chefs Lauren Haas, Anhil Rohira, and Amanda Haba. On Monday, Chef Jérôme Landrieu and Kanjiro Mochizuki will be presenting their seminars. I am pretty excited about the Amanda Haba’s edible flower seminar and Jérôme Landrieu’s snack attack seminars!

Tickets are still available and on sale for Pastry Live 2016. The show is open to both professionals, and to the general public (if you love watching pastry competitions on television, you will love watching the National Showpiece Championship!). There is also special pricing for culinary students. You can find information on pricing, and buy tickets through the Pastry Live website. If you are coming in from out of town you can also find information on accommodations on their website.

Also, if you haven’t yet nominated Chef Nicholas Lodge for the Cake Masters Award for Best Learning Experience, please consider doing so. And, while you are nominating Chef Nicholas, the entire ISAC family would also like to ask that you please nominate Scott Ewing in the Best Cake Support category. Thank you everyone, for your continued support of Chef Nicholas, ISAC, and Scott, too!