Name: Lunch & Learn: Convivium Central Kitchen - Launching Food Dreams
Start: 2026-04-01T12:00:00-05:00
End: 2026-04-01T13:00:00-05:00
Location: Convivium Urban Farmstead

Lunch & Learn: Convivium Central Kitchen - Launching Food Dreams

Ever wonder how to start your own food business? This free class explores what it takes and how you can use our space to launch your dreams!
About this Event

Learn how Convivium’s community kitchen can help bring your food business ideas to life. Convivium Urban Farmstead’s Culinary Resource Director, Chef Cena, will explain how our licensed kitchen space supports entrepreneurs, caterers, and small food producers in getting started. Discover how renting the Convivium Central Kitchen provides access to professional equipment, guidance, and community connections to grow your business.

Tim Link, one of the food safety inspectors for Dubuque, will be co-presenting and available for questions about the food licensing process.

Those wishing to dine during the presentation will order at the front counter and their food will be brought to them in the Learning Center. You may also choose to eat in the restaurant either before or after the presentation. For participants planning to order food to eat during the presentation, please plan to arrive 15-30 minutes ahead to place your order at the front counter.
Registration is appreciated but not required for this free event.
Instructor Cena Sharp, Convivium Urban Farmstead’s Culinary Resource Director, is a talented chef and a true force of nature. Whether she’s leading one of her many cooking classes, processing harvests in the training kitchen, or drafting her next Lunch and Learn, Cena brings energy, enthusiasm, and a passion for sharing everything she knows about food.

She began her culinary career at the age of sixteen and went on to serve as executive chef in two kitchens. Along the way she also earned a bachelor’s degree in history, a field she loves to intertwine with food in her engaging Lunch and Learn presentations.

Cena is an avid traveler, having explored Italy, Greece, France, and many parts of the U.S. Her travels continually inspire her creativity and deepen her appreciation for global cuisine. When she’s not at Convivium, Cena enjoys spending time with her husband, Ryan, and their four children: Dominic, Fiona, Evolette, and Sylvia.