fuel cafe

excellent place to eat. we stopped in for lunch with our two large dogs and found a table outside under the covered porch. theservicewas excellent. i had a vegetarian walnut meatloaf sandwich. what a delight! it was the best veggie burger i ever had. my husband had red bean and quinoa chili and he loved it. said you would never know there was no meat in it. it was a great experience and a pleasant way to enjoy just one of the special places in memphis. you need to try it....you won't b disappointed.

taco truck. i tried there mobile truck not the location on madison, theservicewas top notch, the chicken tacos were good. the price was good very clean.

fuel cafe is located in an early 1900′s gas station in the midtown neighborhood.  i asked about the history of the building while we were dining and was told it had indeed been aservicestation, then part cafe/part gas station, then a greek restaurant before finally becoming fuel cafe.  the folding automotive bay doors original to the gas station have been left in place but didn’t appear to open any lo

had a pretty good lunch at fuel this past friday. we sat outside. i convinced my mother to try their veggie burger. she loved it. i should've ordered one too. my vegetarian meatloaf sandwich didn't have as much veggie loaf as pictured on their lunch menu online. i also didn't care for the homemade sweet chili ketchup, which i had told our very nice server that i didn't want on the sandwich. not her fault. next time i'll make sure to get my money's worth if i order that sandwich again. we ordered a slice of their vegan chocolate and strawberry cheesecake for dessert. it was delicious and extremely rich. fuel definitely has the best homemade veggie burgers in memphis. i've had them before and they are incredible. our server, a very pretty young lady with short red hair, was very nice and attentive. we'll be back.


-----25 may, 2013-----

the best veggie burger in memphis. i haven't been to fuel cafe in a very long time. i really enjoyed my dinner there last night. the place was packed, which didn't surprise me. they were featured on action news 5 wednesday night. i started off with their homemade vegan chili. pretty good. the tomato base was a little overpowering and there weren't as many beans as i would've liked. for my entree, i chose their homemade veggie burger, which was simply amazing. the best in the city. that's not an opinion. it's a fact. anyone want to prove me wrong??servicewas excellent. prices are worth it for the healthy delicious food they serve. can't wait to try some new items on their new menu, like vegan banana pudding.


-----10 aug, 2011-----

22 great reviews. 1 bad review. you be the judge!!. ignore jared, who left the only bad review of fuel. can't believe he didn't like the food. great homemade food at reasonable prices. you won't find quality like this for less. the great reviews speak for themselves. i just had their homemade veggie burger and it was the best i've ever had!!! i'm a regular. don't be turned off by one bad review. judge for yourself.


-----24 feb, 2011-----

delicious. went there for the first time tonight. felt welcomed the second i walked in. the atmosphere is pleasant and homey. the staff are very friendly and attentive. i chose the vegetarian loaf, which is the non-meat version of meat loaf, with mushroom gravy and mashed potatoes, and i am so glad i did. the homemade veg. loaf, made with cheeses, walnuts and oats, was awesome. topped off with homemade mushroom gravy. it was very tasty and filling. i can't wait to try more wonderful entrees @ fuel. excellent healthy homemade food.

middle of the pack. we decided to try fuel on a late saturday evening, knowing other places down madison would be busy and loud. it was a mild experience. they were out of certain beers and appetizers but we did arrive fairly late in the evening. we started with the shrimp salad tostada which was nothing more than shrimp, avocados and oranges on tortilla chips. we also got a cup of the veggie chili which i found to be really good. i ordered the bison burger and my friend ordered the seafood paella and a side of potatoes. for $12, i expected a bigger burger but we had more than enough food. the burger was ok. ordered medium, it wasn't very juicy but that's to be expected from lean bison meat. it's nothing i would crave and order again. the fries were perfect, just how i make them at home. the potatoes gratin were awesome and the seafood paella was pretty good as well. theservicewas good and the ambiance for being in an old gas station is pretty cool and original. i would return, but would order something else.

interesting concept. poor execution as food was fair.servicewas bad. had to ask for more water. outdoor furniture dangerous! hope they can turn it around. would love the reality to equal the hype.

never, ever, ever again.. i had an absolutely horrible experience at fuel. a few friends and i were excited to go for the first time last october, but the manager (who was also our server) was extremely rude. he refused to take both our food and drink orders when we asked politely and repeatedly referred to my female friends as "sweethearts." we told him we felt patronized and also spoke to another waitress who insinuated this was a common issue.

we paid, even tipped him (for some reason) but as we walked outside, one of my male friends said, "bye, sweetheart." this was obviously somewhat out of line; however, the manager told us loudly that we were the worst table he'd ever served and we're lucky he even did so. we said we wanted our tips back, then, and he threatened to call the cops on us. and then he did. while shouting at us across the entire patio of people.

we asked for the owner's number, which he would not provide. we later found his information through another source and called/left a message that was never returned.

i'm mostly just confused by the experience -- we all work in theserviceindustry or have friends that do. we are aware of what constitutes an awful table. but i don't think my overpriced veggie burger was amazing enough to return or encourage anyone else to try it out.

the chili looks better than it tastes. it was watered down and bland. but props for looking picture-worthy.


-----30 oct, 2012-----

nothing special. theservicewas good, but i was not impressed by the food at all. you can do better (for much cheaper) at home.

dissapointing. after reading the incredible reviews, me and my boyfriend went to check out fuel café last night. the weather was nice so we took a table outside.
most of the reviewers said that the fries with three sauces and ceviche at fuel cafe were amazing, so we took those as an appetizer. the fries were fine, but not close to 'the best we've ever had'. the sauces where everybody was so excited about, were a bit boring to us - the 'red spicy tomato sauce' was just ordinary thai sweet chili saus from a bottle.
the ceviche was a serving of fresh vegetables, but not so much ceviche. since we were already pretty dissapointed by the appetizers, and we were not very impressed by the menu, we decided to ask about the chef's special vegan entree. the waitress told us that "it used to be something with pomodori sauce, but the cook ran out of pomodori sauce and was talking about that he could make something else with 'different vegetables'." we do like surprises, and we do like vegetables - and nothing else on the menu really appealed to us - so we took the vegan entree to share. i will have to say that there were only three tables occupied while we were there, and it was only 7:30pm, so we found it a little strange that the cook already ran out of the 'special' sauce at that point.
when the entree came to the table, we kinda felt that we just paid $12,- for a omelet with stir fried vegetables, but then without the omelet... it were just a couple of different beans and bamboo sprouts, stir fried and covered with minor herbs and spices. the plate was only half covered, so it was obvious that something was missing (the pomodori sauce) and that the cook had not been very creative (nor succesful) with finding a substitute. theservicewas good, but not outstanding either.
so -sadly enough- we did not really enjoy the food and it did not at all meet our expectations. we were very dissapointed and will not return to fuel cafe.

times are changing. i used to love this place, but the last few times i have eaten at fuel, the food wasn't very good (charred meat), and theservicewas terrible. i forgave the problems and returned more times than i should have. the last time i went, the server was over-the-top rude! it's definitely not like it was the first couple of years after they opened. try the elegant farmer or three angels for a better experience, overall.

awful service, but food was worth the hassle. it is a small cafe, but only 1 table was occupied in our section, so we thought we arrived at a good time. it took over 20 minutes to get our iced teas! i considered walking to the bar top and getting it myself. i am certain they lost our order because other nearby tables, who ordered after us, started getting their food about 40 minutes later. we didn't even have our appetizer yet! we received apologies from the server, but still no food.

we finally got our food almost an hour after we ordered, and we had decided to never return to fuel. i considered walking out. however, the bison burger, vegetarian chili and brie were really good, so we will give it another shot. i'm still dreaming of that chili! but if you like crispy fries, these aren't for you. they reminded us of the fries at steak escape.....limp and greasy.

based on all the great reviews, something had to be very off that day. i just hope that theservicematches the food next time.

what a fantastic place to eat. not only was the food wonderful, but the atmosphere andservicewere exceptional! the building is most unusual, and beautiful, the decor unique and interesting. the menu is diverse with the ability to accommodate the carnivore in me and the vegitarian/vegan in many of my friends and family. being from south louisiana and having traveled the us and abroad, i have eaten at some of the most prestigious restaurants, served by the likes of emeril lagasse, paul prudhomme, john folse and others of their caliber. i can truly say this is by far one of the best restaurants i have been too. my favorite dishes- any of their bison dishes, veggie burgers and fried potatoes with their special dipping sauce. omg, their food is to die for! thank you eric and carrie for a most wonderful dining experience. i will be back, with friends and family!

just not worth it..servicewas good, but the place was disorganized. cleaning rags and supplies left int he bathroom. i could see lots of random food bits under the kitchen that couldn't possible have accumulated over a single breakfast shift. the whole place felt a little dirty. then the manger/owner promised to check on my salad...never saw him or the salad again. my husband got the autumn sandwich which was essentially an granny apple sandwich with a few springs of arugula. i had an omelet and it just wasn't very good. our meals certainly weren't worth $30. the best part was the building and ambiance but that wasn't enough to make the experience one i'd like to repeat.

delicious. our lunch at fuel was absolutely delicious. so many items on the menu looked entincing, but we settled on the veggie burger; the grilled cheese; and the mozzarella, tomato and arugula sandwich. all of the sandwiches were delicious and the fries were incredible. if you can imagine, the mozzarella, tomato and arugula sandwich was like a caprese salad on a really good french baguette...yum. we also tried the apple yum stuff dessert, and it too was great. everything was fresh and flavorful, and theservicewas attentive. it really is a place that can satisfy vegetarians and carnivores alike. i really wish there was a fuel location in east memphis so i could go more often!

lovey and fabulous. the food, the ambiance, theservice-- all are terrific! i went when fuel first opened, and there was one young server that wasn't professional. since then, we have been served by a professional young man who is fantastic. the food -- ah, the food. it's delicious, healthy and a great value.

we went on new year's eve and had a wonderful dinner that was perfect before a new year's eve party!