The kitchen staff at Gecko’s Grill & Pub isn’t just catering to your appetite. They’re trying to outdo each other.
They’re teammates by day, working to take your orders and cook you a delicious meal. But when they go home, they’re plotting how to put their own stamp on the menu.
Gecko’s Grill & Pub has been holding its annual Iron Chef competition for the past few weeks, inspiring its back-of-kitchen staff to flex their creative muscles and transform the regular menu.
There’s more on the line this year than most; the competition hasn’t been held since 2019, and four-time defending champion James Veldhouse has moved out of the competitive fire.
That means that the competition is wide open, and three-time winner Dana McCormack, the kitchen manager at Hillview Gecko’s, is excited about the opportunity to shine.
“This is a time where you want to try and step it up and do something a little fancier, show some skills you may have,” he says. “You also try and do something that’s feasible for the restaurant. What if you want them to take your recipe and put it on the menu? You try and use stuff you already have in house.”