Dining Reviews	Lunch Counter	Restaurant Guide

E-mail story

comment

Printer-friendly version

FUEL could use some tweaking, still a lot of fun

The rise of the automobile changed the way America eats. From drive-ins to drive-thrus, human fueling took on a whole other nature.

Along the way, the gas station morphed into a "C" store — a convenience store that together with a refrigerated case and a microwave provided man another fast venue to get his meal. The scions of the petroleum industry realized they had in the words of real estate agents, "location, location, location." And so today, you will hardly if ever see a "filling station" that looks like FUEL.

The flip side of this has resulted in many small mom-and-pop gas station operations being converted into restaurants, bars and sandwich shops. FUEL is a fitting example. Owners Trevor Whitmire and Justin Broome were friends in search of a restaurant. They found it at Rutledge Avenue and Cannon Street. With elbow grease and sweat equity, a former Exxon station got its oil changed, tires rotated and a new engine revved a tropical note: FUEL rose up from its crude.

There is no mistaking its former life and Whitmire, with more than a decade of experience in the food and beverage industry, and Broome, a Johnson and Wales graduate, let the setting drive the set. Salvaged gas pump nozzles dispense illumination, not petrol; rusting pumps provide yard art, and oil cans frame the rafters of the covered outdoor patio.

Sunset orange-colored silhouettes of pumps and attendants are painted on a stark white wall, azure-blue trim conjures up the tropics and the skeletons of the property's past are apparent in table tops, building materials, and glass garage door fronts.

They have managed to create a beach effect without the sand, installed a bocce court, planted tropical plants and palms and found more creative uses for bamboo beach mats and placemats than a class at Michael's craft store. Fresh potted herbs line the patio, lavender plants adorn the outdoor tables, and a colorful painting of a bus load of tourists lends a festive note to the exterior kitchen wall of white cinder block.

They cleverly priced FUEL beer according to the price of a gallon of gas, but the computer system could not keep up with this marketing gimmick. They serve a pinto Margarita ($4) and a varied menu of tropical drinks. And fans of Belgian beers can find the devil in Duvel and a Houblon Chouff at $22 a bottle.

The menu remains true to its Caribbean cantina metier — ducuna ($5), ceviche ($6), jerk, black beans, hearts of palm, plantains, tostones, and rum.

It serves a tasty Buffalo Burger ($13) and an interesting Chorizo Burger ($12) that combines ground pork, paprika and chiles on a toasted bun with green chile, aioli and roasted tomato ketchup. The sandwich was marred by a bun that was ice-cold on one side and over-grilled on the other, and its side of pickled cabbage with celery seeds had oxidized to an unappetizing shade of brown. Too bad, because the pork burger did some talking to your tongue.

A Black Bean Soup ($3, $5) could benefit from a seasoned broth but the beans were tender and the garnish of diced tomatoes, onions and crema with a wedge of lime was refreshing.

Patacones ($2) (tostones) were crisp and greaseless but bland. This "potato" of the tropics needs salt and seasoning to unearth its starchy charms. Fried Sweet Potatoes ($2) spent too much time in the fryer.

The BBQ Duck Confit Tacos ($11) were quite nice. They needed more filling but their topping of corn chipotle salsa was a step up from a lettuce garnish; however, their tortilla wrapper was over crisped (burnt) on one side.

Try the Ducuna ($5) for dessert. These sweet potato dumplings are seasoned with cinnamon and brown sugar, lightened with egg whites and fried to a crisp exterior shell with a soft, sweet center. Drizzled with crema and partnered with tamarind chutney, they make a great dessert, not appetizer.

The kitchen is slow (understaffed, perhaps?) and the master recipes need tweaking. Someone needs to be minding the grill and expediting the orders. But this is a fun spot. They should get the lead out of their appetizers and have higher octane bar food nibbles; pay more attention to the timing belt of their cooking and get a better handle on managing service.

The flies and the heat can make outdoor dining a battleground; come winter, the small indoor area provides limited seating. But add one more restaurant player on the opposite corner joining Lana and Hominy Grill, and this intersection could very well become Cannonborough's four corners of food, and that would be a good thing.