HIGH POINT, N.C. -- Fire trucks and patrol cars took a break from serving to support their fellow firefighter Daniel Gray, also known as Chef MonkonJay and Uncle Cheesecake.

  • High Point firefighter Daniel Gray is a contestant on Food Network's Chopped. 
  • A viewing party and cooking demo was held at the High Point bus terminal before the show. 
  • He says a simple craving for chees3cake turned into a hobby, then a passion. 

“I mainly do traditional chef work, that’s what I mainly did before and I kind of just became Uncle Cheesecake because I wanted to create a cheesecake recipe for myself,” said Gray.

The High Point native is a contestant on the Food Network's Chopped. He hosted a cooking demo and a viewing party at the High Point bus terminal before the show.

Gray says he never thought a simple craving for cheesecake would turn into a hobby and lead to his passion that would land him a spot on national television.

“I wasn’t expecting it at all," he said. "This kinda happened a few challenges put out by people, a couple challenges I put out on myself.”

On Tuesday’s episode of Chopped, Gray competes with three other first responders for $10,000 on the “Fire It Up” episode.

“We are competitive by nature we like to dig into each other a little, so I knew it would be a fun competition anytime you get four firefighters in a room,” said Gray.

He says community support is a big factor in helping him get to the next level.

He makes and sells his cheesecakes out of Baby Cakes bakery in Archdale. The owner, Angela Beasley, says Gray treats are hot cake and her customers love it. She’s glad to be apart of his journey to national TV.

“Daniel is a very charismatic, very respectable young man and he very much cares bout the people who helped him get to where he’s at,” said Beasley.

Monkonjay says he hopes his appearance on Chopped is motivation for the Triad community.

“This area, High Point in particular, we are really really good at the things that we do as long as we as a community stay together. We can accomplish anything that we like,” said Gray.

His cooking smoked the competition through the first two rounds. However his strawberry cheesecake dessert wasn't enough to win the final round.