Restaurant Show booth furniture has to work harder than at most trade shows. The National Restaurant Association Show fills McCormick Place from May 22 to 25, 2027, with more than 2,000 exhibitors, and most booths are sampling, pouring or demonstrating something. That means counters, bars and standing tables doing real work all day. This guide covers how to bring your own furniture vendor, what the booths need and when to act.
The Restaurant Show lists furniture among the services an Exhibitor Appointed Contractor (EAC) can provide. The process, based on recent shows:
In 2024 the deadline was April 16, about five weeks before the show. The 2027 date hasn’t been published yet; check the Restaurant Show exhibitor service kit when it opens and plan to designate your vendor by mid-April 2027. Our McCormick Place EAC guide explains how the process works across shows in the building.
The show warns exhibitors about unsolicited offers from companies without its Official Service Provider Seal. That warning is aimed at vendors who contact you uninvited. Choosing your own furniture company and designating it through the EAC portal is the show’s own route for outside vendors, and the portal is where the show checks that vendor’s insurance.
Furniture used inside Chicago, including McCormick Place, is subject to the city’s 15% lease tax as of 2026; see our Chicago rental tax guide. For complete booth packages, see our trade show furniture rental page, and for customer dinners and receptions during show week, our guide to hospitality suite furniture rental.
The 2027 Restaurant Show runs May 22 to 25, 2027, at McCormick Place in Chicago.
Yes. Furniture is one of the services an Exhibitor Appointed Contractor (EAC) can provide. The exhibitor designates the EAC through the show’s online portal before the deadline, and the EAC then submits its insurance documents.
The 2027 deadline hasn’t been published yet. In 2024 it was April 16, about five weeks before the show, so plan to designate your vendor by mid-April 2027 and confirm in the 2027 exhibitor service kit.
In recent years the show has required general liability coverage, workers’ compensation and, for contractors bringing vehicles onto the floor, auto liability, with the show and its partners named as additional insureds. We supply our certificates once you designate us.
Yes. Rentals used inside Chicago, including at McCormick Place, are subject to the city’s 15% lease tax as of 2026.
Modern Event Rental provides event furniture for trade shows, conferences and corporate events across Chicago, from lounges and LED bars to custom branded counters. Tell us about your event and we’ll put together a quote.
