You know that old movie cliché where the inmates use a file hidden inside a cake to saw through the cell bars then make a break for it? What if they flipped the script? What if, instead, the inmate baked a cake, and found his freedom that way

Carrot cotton candy, beet charcuterie, a fire-breathing chef, a big top tent, carnival games, two cheetahs, a bouncy house and a ringmaster named DocSconz. It might sound like a circus, but these are just a few of the memorable moments from Roots Cultivate 2018.

“The Culinary Vegetable Institute,” says Maeve Webster, president of Menu Matters, “truly is innovative, playing an important role in the development of food service. Historically, they’ve focused more on fine dining and independent restauranteurs, so I’m excited to see how, at Roots, the focus is broadening to include the role that food manufacturers and national chain restaurants can play in cultivating healthier eating.”

Chef Jill Vedaa wouldn’t think of asking Vincent Van Gogh to paint his sunflowers purple, and the Cleveland chef said she wants the same respect from guests dining in her restaurant.