Vegas restaurateur tapped as 2014 NRA Show chair

Veteran restaurateur Sam Facchini has been named convention chair for the 2014 National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel show and International Wine, Spirits & Beer event.

As this year’s convention chair, Facchini, co-founder/co-owner of Las Vegas-based Metro Pizza and a member of the NRA’s board of directors since 2005, will advise the Association on how best to meet the needs of attendees at this year’s show, the largest and most comprehensive annual event geared toward the restaurant and foodservice industry. He has served on the convention committee since early on in his tenure as a board member. The show, which is attended by more than 65,000 people from around the country and more than 100 countries worldwide, will be held May 17-20 at McCormick Place in Chicago.

Dawn Sweeney, the NRA’s president and CEO, said Facchini’s appointment illustrates one more way in which the Association is working to ensure the show successfully meets the needs of constantly evolving and changing foodservice industry.

“Sam will provide our team with leadership, perspective and insights from the operator community that will guide the NRA show and IWSB experience toward products, services and programming that can help operators realize their potential in today’s market,” she said.

Facchini’s restaurant company, an independent pizza operation, has been in business since 1980 and has been named to the “Best of Las Vegas” list 20 times as well as being selected as a “Hot 100” independent U.S. pizzeria for the last 15 years.