TL;DR: If you’re planning to attend the 2026 Shared Kitchen Summit, now is the time to start budgeting. **Summit registration is expected to range from $700–$1,000, with a limited number of Early Bird tickets available soon. For travel, attendees should anticipate round-trip flights to Providence (PVD) in October, averaging $300–$600+, depending on departure city and booking timing. Hotel rates in Providence during October typically range from $180–$350+ per night, with most mid-range options landing around $200–$250/night. All in, organizations should plan for an estimated $1,800–$3,000 per attendee for registration, travel, lodging, and meals — with meaningful savings available by booking early.
Every year, our Shared Kitchen Summit brings together the most passionate, innovative, and forward-thinking people shaping the future of food entrepreneurship. And in 2026, we’re taking the industry’s largest gathering of shared kitchen operators, partners, thought leaders, and ecosystem builders to a city bursting with culinary energy, history, and charm. But more on that later.
If you operate a shared-use kitchen, incubator, commissary, or food hub, you know how rare of a breed you are. Most local events and networking opportunities often don’t have folks who understand what a shared kitchen is, let alone another operator juggling clients, regulations, scheduling chaos, and repairs.
But our Summit? It’s the one place where you’re surrounded by people who get it. No explanation. Instant connection. It’s the one event designed specifically for the work that you do every day.
This is more than a boring conference. It’s an experience. It’s where the entire industry comes together, and the one event you do not want to hear about secondhand. Check out our founder’s in-depth review of our 2025 Cleveland Summit.
The Experience: Built Just for You
Expect big ideas, real talk, inspiration, and the kinds of conversations that spark game changing collaboration. You’ll experience our signature events alongside a few new surprises. Here’s a sneak peak at our agenda highlights:
- Early Check-in and Networking: Kick off the Summit vibes early! Grab your swag bag and jump right into networking with fellow operators, partners, and industry friends before the big event even begins.
- Resource Happy Hour: Unwind after our first day of sessions and meet partners who can streamline your operations, save you time, and support your clients, all while you sip, snack, and connect.
- Shared Kitchen Bus Tour: Hop aboard for an insider’s look at local shared kitchens! Walk the floors, meet the operators running the show, and see the real world solutions, layouts, and workflows in action.
- Lunch with Regional Operators: Sit down with operators in your region for a power-packed lunch. Compare notes, tackle location-specific challenges together, and discover collaboration opportunities that could transform your local food ecosystem.
- Mentoring Madness: It’s back and bigger than ever. Get matched with industry experts for personalized, one-on-one mentoring to solve the questions you need answered.
- Third Annual Golden Whisk Awards: Our grand finale! Celebrate the visionaries, operators, and unsung heroes shaping the shared kitchen world. This is the only awards ceremony dedicated to honoring the work you do, and the celebration you truly deserve.
All of this, and more, on top of insightful discussions, in-depth workshops, and expert-led panels curated from your feedback and goals.
The Proof: Straight from the Operators
Our Summit has built a reputation for being engaging, welcoming, and downright energizing. Don’t take our word for it, here’s what past attendees have to say:
“The 2025 Shared Kitchen Summit was an amazing event for leaders and team members of any shared commercial kitchen and/or business incubator. It was also a great place to be if you’re thinking about opening a shared commercial kitchen. The information that you learn by being in a room of your peers who are located throughout the USA is truly priceless. A great deal of thought and creativity went into executing this event that was a huge success. We are looking forward to what The Food Corridor has planned for 2026!” – Denise Jones, The Commissary
“Attending the Shared Kitchen Summit was such a refreshing experience. It gave me the chance to connect with other shared kitchen owners, operators, and the folks working behind the scenes in a way that felt natural – none of the usual awkward networking moments where you’re searching for something in common. We were all there because we get the work. The sessions were incredibly informative, and I especially appreciated that they were led by people who actually do this every day. Hearing from operators who understand the real struggles and the real wins made the learning feel relevant, practical, and encouraging. And a HUGE shoutout to The Food Corridor team for planning meals that were inclusive of those of us with dietary sensitivities. It meant so much to be able to fully participate without worry. I left feeling inspired, supported, and part of a community that genuinely wants to see each other succeed.” -Sandra Martin, To-Go Kitchen
“I came as a newbie and didn’t really know what to expect. What I found was a community of fellow kitchen people and so much useful and practical information. What I left with was a desire to create a better kitchen with more robust community partnerships.” -Molly Reynolds, Hands on Hartford
“The Shared Kitchen Summit exceeded my expectations. Bringing together leaders from across the country, it offered an inspiring mix of seasoned operators, new founders, and industry supporters who are genuinely invested in strengthening shared kitchens as the heart of our food system. The sessions were packed with practical insights, from operations and revenue diversification to branding, partnerships, and funding opportunities. I left feeling energized, informed, and far more confident in the next steps for my own kitchen project. This event is a must-attend for anyone building or running a shared kitchen.” -Jobea Murray, Gather and Grow Kitchens
“Many times in this world I feel like I am the one who people come to for answers and guidance with little time to continue expanding my knowledge or connections. The Summit made me feel not so alone in the world. It expanded my horizons and connections to a group of people that care enough to represent the unrepresented. I will forever be grateful for the friends and colleagues I met this week.” -Scott Edsall, Findlay Kitchen
“The Shared Kitchen Summit was an incredible opportunity to support creating a collaborative community within this growing industry! I no longer feel like I’m on an island. I now know that there are many other people doing amazing things in this space, and I feel plugged into a supportive network of folks that have a shared vision of what shared kitchens can do to support their local communities.” -Seth Lantz, Rebel Kitchen Collective
The Opportunity: Share Your Story
If you’re interested in speaking at our Summit, now’s the time to plan. Our Speaker Interest Form is now open! No pressure, this is merely an interest form, not a session proposal. This is your early access to:
- Be the first to know when official session proposals open
- Receive the calendar invite for our January 8th speaker info session
- Get the recording if you can’t attend live
If you have expertise, a story, a case study, or a strategy that can strengthen the shared kitchen ecosystem, this is your chance to share it.
The How: Get Your Leadership Onboard
Securing approval to attend industry events may take time in your organization. Now is the time to start the internal conversation and communicate the value of attending. Position our Summit as an investment, not an expense.
- Professional development through workshops, expert sessions, and best practices designed for instant implementation.
- Learn how to increase operational efficiencies through streamlining scheduling, onboarding, compliance, maintenance, and revenue models.
- Hear first-hand stories that help you prevent compliance, maintenance, or client issues, reducing your overall risk.
- Meet vendors, service providers, and collaborators who can save your kitchen money and expand your opportunities.
- Represent your kitchen, share your work, and keep a pulse on national data and trends in food entrepreneurship and shared-use infrastructure.
When talking to leadership, share specific goals for attending and knowledge gaps you want to fill or issues you want expert guidance on. Show how bringing these learnings and tools back will strengthen operations, draw more clients, and increase your bottom line. Share our deep dive review of our 2025 Summit to illustrate the impact and education you’ll experience.
Want a script to help guide your conversation, and real ROIs to present to your leadership team? Check out this template we made just for you.
The Tickets & Opportunity: Secure a Free Ticket
Lock our ticket timeline into your 2026 planning calendar and budget. Here’s what you can expect:
- Early Bird Tickets: March 1 – March 31st
- Regular Pricing: Begins April 1st, expect a $100 increase
- Last minute Pricing: Begins two weeks out from the Summit, expect a $200 increase on regular pricing
The earlier you register, the better the rate. The last minute pricing is new for 2026, so allow me to explain. A lot of planning goes into the Summit, and we work with multiple venues and vendors. The two week mark is traditionally when we need to have our final guest counts in for catering, seating, name badges, swag bag items, etc. Securing as firm a guest count as possible within this timeframe helps us ensure we provide the best experience possible and stay on budget.
We recognize that budgets are tight, and may already be established for 2026. Good news, our sponsorship referral program is returning for 2026. What does this mean? If you introduce us to a new sponsor, and they commit to financially supporting our Summit, you earn a free ticket! It’s that simple. Have partners in mind? Please introduce us by emailing [email protected]. If that’s not easy enough, here’s an email template you can use.
The FOMO: Don’t Miss Out
If you’ve ever said, “I’ll go next year,” only to scroll through social posts filled with astonishment and gratitude from attendees, it’s time. This is where your peers are. This is where the industry is evolving. This is where you’ll leave feeling recharged, inspired, and supported.
If you’re serious about elevating your kitchen, your team, and your local food ecosystem, our Summit is the place to be.
So start planning. Start budgeting. Start rallying your team.
The Location: Home of Our 2025 Shared Kitchen Industry Leader Winner
So, where are we headed in 2026? We’re continuing the tradition and visiting the home city of one of our Golden Whisk winners, Hope & Main. A culinary city with creative spirit, deep-rooted history, coastal charm, and an incredible food scene, perfect for our next industry homecoming. Prepare for a Summit experience like no other.
Hang tight for our Summit dates announcement. We’re solidifying a few more details and will let y’all know as soon as we lock them down!
As we share our plans to gather in Providence in 2026, we do so with care and compassion, holding space for the Brown University community and all those impacted by the recent tragedy. Our hearts are with all affected.
Questions? Email [email protected].