PERFORMANCE GRILL; AUBURN, WA
All new Performance Grill delivers

By Ty Hughes

Best known as GeoDaddy, George Hobson, hosts a lively karaoke show at the newly remodeled Performance Grill in Auburn seven nights a week with the assistance of his good friend, DJ Bat and KJ Jeni on weekends.

Bill Kost, owner and long-time stock car racer, has completely redone the interior of the restaurant in diamond plate metallics and chrome to better assimilate the image of the car racing industry. After decades in the stock car business, Bill assumed sole ownership of the Performance Grill and began making upgrades from top to bottom. The menu is completely revamped to appeal to families of all ages and served in full until 12:30am every night of the week. This ensures that your karaoke is not performed on an empty stomach.

Bill is featured in the Guinness Book of World Records for the fastest speed record in his car class for three years running. He’s been a member of the Oldsmobile team for many years and prefers his Olds 440 on the track.

Bill and his cast of friendly cohorts, including GeoDaddy, team up to bring you the best in bar and restaurant experiences right here in Auburn, Washington. Formerly the Prime Time, the Performance Grill is located at 1525 A Street NE, just off the 167.

From 9pm-1am, the massive lounge area satisfies the karaoke enthusiasts “bug” for singing, along with a string of four pool tables featuring league play, two dart boards, video games, pinball and a big dance floor to get your groove on.

GeoDaddy calls his show the O.K. Show which stands for “It’s Only Karaoke” Show. The point being that it’s just for the fun of it all – don’t take yourself too seriously, just relax and have a good time. This is just the invitation some of us newbies need to get up and give it a shot for the first time, and George makes the first-timers feel comfortable and relaxed, calming their apprehensions. He makes his living by tuning in his singers on his Yamaha sound board so their voices come out of the well-placed Mackie speakers at optimum levels. The singers here get to feel like stars for minutes at a time, and GeoDaddy is glad to make their aspirations of singing in front of an audience come true. His gentle and accepting nature enables even the most uncertain first-time singer feel like they’re in their very own shower at home. In fact, George is planning on bringing in an actual shower curtain that will be backlit providing that much needed anonymity to quell even the most inhibited singer. The “It’s Only Karaoke” Show is just what the neighborhood needs and now that it’s being offered seven nights a week, you have no reason to get out there and give your voice a trial run. Owner, Bill Kost says, “Karaoke seven nights a week just works here”. And it no doubt has plenty to do with his quality hosts, staff and food selection.

Jason, a regular from Puyallup, whose wife Kris tends bar here, says that GeoDaddy is a favorite and draws huge crowds for his karaoke shows. His brooding rendition of Apologize by One Republic from a bar stool brought down the house.

Jeska gave several performances throughout the evening in high style, later relaying the story of her live auditions to the TV hit show, “Don’t Forget The Lyrics”. After long hours of recording, traveling and auditioning, she was told she was basically overqualified because she was too quick and knowledgeable.

Tammy and her mom, Angel, tore the place up with friends Jim and Larry, each taking turns on the mic and on the dance floor. Together, they brought the party to another level, thoroughly enjoying themselves and the atmosphere at the Performance Grill. Jim’s version of You Are So Beautiful was done in classic Joe Cocker fashion and was dedicated to Kelly the birthday girl.

John and Jill performed a great duet in an admirable imitation of Huey Lewis and Paltrow’s Cruisin’.

The music is awesome and the Chicken Quesadillas are the bomb! Happy hour runs from Sunday through Thursday from 10pm-1am and features drink specials and ½ price appetizers. They’ve got tons of seating and room to roam, plus a huge projection screen with the lyrics so you can follow along.

Bill plans on starting in on a complete remodel of the bar this Spring. Since the restaurant was only closed for a total of ten hours during its remodel, I’m sure there will be no downtime to speak of for the bar, but the finished product sounds like it will be an amazing sight to behold.

Come on down and check out the Performance Grill in Auburn and join in the O.K. Show with GeoDaddy at the helm – these folks know how to party!