National conference sets table for food journalists in Phoenix

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a higher concentration of discerning palates anywhere than in Phoenix this week.

On Tuesday, the Association of Food Journalists kicked off its national conference in downtown Phoenix, bringing dozens of journalists from across the U.S. to Arizona.

The AFJ board and The Arizona Republic’s food and dining team are hosting the conference.

“When we say we are the Association of Food Journalists, we are talking about the 21st-century definition,” said Amanda Miller, AFJ executive director. “It’s not just traditional print writers. It’s everyone in between.”

To that end, the event offers not only skill-building workshops, but also cultural opportunities to tackle topics such as inclusion and ethics. In partnership with Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, the conference also will explore topics such as innovation tools and social media.

Tonight, the group will head to the Farm at South Mountain for Taste of Phoenix, an evening designed to introduce some of the Valley’s top chefs, brewers and winemakers to the unique gathering of food journalists. Featured chefs include Chris Bianco of Pizzeria Bianco, Charleen Badman of FnB, Silvana Salcido Esparza of Barrio Cafe, Nobuo Fukudo of Nobuo at Teeter House and Scott Holmes of Little Miss BBQ.