Chef Conventions come in national and regional sizes, sometimes even local sizes. You may be surrounded by huge numbers of culinary minds or be in a cozy hands-on workshop situation with a few dozen of your peers. If this is a first convention, you may be more at ease with a smaller crowd. But if you’re remote from professional support, the sheer excitement of listening to other people who understand what you’re doing will carry you past the fright and hubbub of a large convention.

If you’ve never attended any kind of convention, know ahead of time that the …