General registration has opened for the 12th annual Worlds of Flavor Conference & Festival, to be held November 12 to 14 at the Culinary Institute of America's Greystone campus in Napa Valley, Calif.

This year's theme is Frontiers of Flavor: World Street Food, World Comfort Food, which reflects today's embrace of informal dining and food amid pressure to cut costs and tighten budgets in a global recession. More than 60 culinary experts will present, including street food vendors; market cooks; barbecue masters; grandmothers; fine-dining chefs inspired by street and comfort foods; cookbook authors; and street food chroniclers from Mediterranean, Asian, Latin and American food cultures.

For more information, visit www.ciaprochef.com/wof2009.