Celebrating Our Crew: GCPS Holiday Employee Appreciation Night

On December 16, 2025, we did something we don’t do often—we shut down the shop. And for a very good reason.

At Grand Central Pizza Station, our people are the heart of everything we do. To celebrate an incredible year of growth, grit, and teamwork, we closed our doors for the evening and treated our crew to a holiday employee appreciation event they truly deserved.

From Pizza Shop to Test Kitchen

Instead of aprons behind the line, our team stepped into a hands-on cooking class, where they were split into four teams and challenged to compete for:

    •    Best dish

    •    Best team name

    •    Best team logo

Let’s just say… the competitive spirit came out strong. 😄

But in true GCPS fashion, even while competing, teammates bounced from table to table—helping, tasting, offering “feedback,” and maybe throwing in a little friendly critique along the way. Collaboration always wins here.

The Menu (and the Winner!)

The dishes were impressive across the board:

    •    Two teams crafted homemade cheese ravioli with pink sauce

    •    One team created a gluten-free chicken stir fry

    •    And the winning team took top honors with a classic spaghetti & meatballs

Delicious food, big energy, and lots of laughs made the kitchen feel electric all night long.

Honoring Excellence: The Grandy Awards

One of the most meaningful moments of the night was honoring our 2025 Grandy Award Winners:

🏆 Ashton Brummer

🏆 Yen Gotay

Both were recognized for their dedication, leadership, and outstanding performance over the past six months. These awards represent what it means to go above and beyond—not just for the business, but for the team and our guests. We couldn’t be more proud.

Holiday Raffle Fun

No celebration is complete without surprises. We wrapped up the night with our annual holiday raffle, giving away:

    •    A 55” TV

    •    Uber Eats gift cards

    •    And plenty of other fun prizes

The excitement (and trash talk) during the raffle may have rivaled the cooking competition.

A Very Memorable Night

From teamwork and creativity to recognition and celebration, the night captured everything we love about our crew. It was loud, competitive, supportive, heartfelt—and a whole lot of fun.

To our GCPS team: thank you for showing up every day, for caring deeply, and for building something special together. A fun night was truly had by all, and we can’t wait to see what we accomplish together in the year ahead. 🎉🍝👩‍🍳👨‍🍳