A Talk with Chef Bob Blair of Fuel Cafe

Hi all,

This week we post a few questions we asked Chef Bob Blair of Fuel Café after our dinner there with Hush Denver.


1. What attracted you to cooking?

Process of elimination and stubbornness. I thought I was always supposed to go to college. I failed miserably as a student. I am actually pretty smart, I just hate to study. After being in college for 7 years without a degree, I finally quit school and started waiting tables and cooked for friends and family. I was catering a few parties from my home when a friend said his dad wanted me to move out of Colorado and open a restaurant for him. I had no idea why someone who never ran a restaurant would be asked to do it now. He said, I have seen your work ethic and the way people react to your food. That is all I need to know that you have some serious potential in a kitchen.

The stubborn side of me would never let me listen to my Mom or old girlfriends when they suggested I go to cooking school, or try cooking as a profession.
They eventually wore me down though.

2. What is the philosophy behind your cooking, or in your kitchen?

Never be afraid to try something. Always be fearless about new techniques, cuisines and especially about contributing ideas. Everyone in the Fuel kitchen has to come with ideas. Just dont take it personally when we shoot them down. We are always trying to bring something interesting to the table, try not to bring trends, or the same old same old.

3. What is the biggest influence on the way you cook?

Sentimentality. I selfishly cook to transport myself to Italy, Spain, France, or my Mom's kitchen. I dont get to travel much these days, so I cook to take myself there. My parents died about ten years ago, and I always have something on the menu that reminds me of them.

4. Is there a chef living today you would like to work with? and why?

Pep Manubens of Cal Pep in Barcelona. He cooks the purest Spanish food I have ever eaten. My wife and I honeymooned in Spain. We spent our first few days in Barcelona, and went to Cal Pep. It was amazing. We then traveled up north to San Sebastien and when we came back to Barcelona, we went straight back to Cal Pep. He is probably 65 years old now and still works the bar, waiting on customers and cooking at the bar too. I will never forget the baby squid with lentils, cooked in squid ink. One of my most powerful flavor memories.

5. Is there a particular ingredient you like to cook with more than others?

Whatever I did not cook with yesterday. I hate leftovers, I hate cooking the same thing day after day. I always want to cook something new and interesting.

6. If stuck on a desert isle and could have one meal from then on out what would it be?

Homemade pasta with Ragu Bolognese

7. Is someone asked you for two Colorado restaurants to try other than your own what would you suggest?

Z Cuisine and Six 89 in Carbondale

8. How about one restaurant any where in the world?

Arzak in Spain. Most people think Ferren Adria started the contemporary Spanish movement. Juan Marie Arzak came first. Ferran Adria may have taken it to a whole different level, but Juan Marie is the man.


9. What do you think about the Hush dining concept of going to different location types for their meal events?

I love Hush. I dont like going back to the same restaurant on a regular basis, I hate eating the same thing day after day. Hush is ideal for me. I love the mystique, the surprise, and especially the willingness of the guests to trust us as cooks, and Phil and Chance, and their crew to prepare an experience for you.


Thanks for visiting our food blog. If you have any questions, you can leave comments here or email us at jonathan or barbara@milehigheater.com.

shhh!... The Hush secret revealed

Well, the secret was revealed last night when we went to our Hush dinner. Last Wednesday, Jonathan got an email about where we would be going. We ended up at the Fuel Cafe. But, we did not eat in the Fuel Cafe. We ate outside where a table was set for 85 people. We were surrounded by the Fuel Cafe garden and railroad tracks and an open field. You might say, "railroad tracks" how odd, but I must say that it gave the outdoor setting a rustic feeling as the trains went by. We thought we might get rained out, but once the storm cloud dropped a few raindrops, it moved on and the night became a lovely evening making new friends, eating wonderful food, listening to a fantastic guitar player, and sharing tales with new people.

Here are a few pictures of the area where we were:







We were served four different appetizers: Raw Scallop marinated with Ouzu Citrus, Cilatro and Beet Chips.

He says: Ok, not sure about this one. It had a nice citrus taste with a spicy kick at the end but something about the slippery rawness of it just did not go well. It was ok but don’t think I would want it again.

She says: I'm allergic to scallops...so I passed.

The next appetizer was a Harissa Fritter with Harissa Aioli and Anchovy.

He says: The small fish sitting on top of the fritter really threw me off but the smell was amazing and then when you take a bite… YUM!!! Just an incredible mix of flavors I quickly looked over almost hoping the anchovy would make Barb pass on hers but..

She says: Anchovy?? Ewww....but decided to be brave and give it a try. The anchovy was cold and the fritter was hot and crispy and gooey, so the mixture of the two was good. You didn't get an overwhelming taste of anchovy, because they blended so well together.

Our third appetizer was an cooked oyster.

He says: Ok, to be honest when I saw the oyster shell I was nervous, as you may have guessed from my comments on the scallop I am not a huge fan of slimy lumps of fish meat. However I was very happily surprised by this creation which had a wonderful texture and a taste that made me sit up and look for more. Once again I looked over to see if Barb had wimped out and not eaten hers but no she saw the oyster shell and passed altogether, so I couldn't steal hers....sigh.

She says: OK, I wimped out on the oyster. I can only be so brave in one night. I just didn't think I could do it. But after what Jonathan said, I wish I had been brave! hehe

Our last appetizer was Peach wrapped in Prosciutto.

He says: Well, I can’t really add much that the picture doesn’t say for itself. A perfectly ripe peach and an incredible prosciutto, if your mouth isn’t starting to water looking at this nothing I can say could sway you.

She says: This was yummy. One quick bite of sweet peach and savory ham.


Course 1: Ajo Blanco Soup with Striped Bass, Membrillo, Avocado Ice cream, Tobiko, Chive. Wine pairing was Jean-Babtiste Adam - Riesling Reserve.

He says: Seriously? Fish avocado ice cream soup? Reading this I knew there was just no way I was going to like this. WRONG - it was another major Yum, maybe even YUMMMY. This was an amazing dish, the tastes and textures were just so good that you wanted to hunker down and just eat the soup. I have had many soups at restaurants, some have been hits and some misses, but only a very few are something that I think back later and just crave. This is one of them.

She says: First off, I didn't know what tobiko was and found out it was Flying Fish Roe Caviar. This dish was delish. As we've mentioned many times you have to get a bit of everything on your spoon to appreciate the flavors together. Sometimes when you only get one or two components you don't understand the dish. This dish had it all, soft, hard, sweet, savory. Just a great combination of flavors.

Course 2: Tomato Confit, Bottarga, Purslane, Tomato Gel. The wine pairing was Three Rivers - Sauvignon Blanc.

He says: Hmmpff! It's tomatoes on a plate…oh boy. You may guess I am not a huge tomato fan, so this did not do it for me. But talking to several of the people around us after the meal, several of them said this was one of their favorites.

She says: I am not a big tomato fan, so this dish for me was not that memorable. The tomatos were beautiful and the purshane fresh from the Fuel Cafe garden was good, but overall, this just wasn't my favorite dish. But, the people around us who were tomato fans loved this dish.

Course 3 - Zucchini Linguine, Sea Urchin Sauce, Chicharrones. Wine pairing was Pepiere – Muscadet.

He says: Bite one, hmm, not sure about this one. Odd flavors that stick around a bit. Bite two, wait a minute did someone switch out my dish? I kind of like this. Bite three, mmmm I really like this. I don’t know why it grew on me so much but it really did. I'm so glad I gave it a second bite. At the end of the dinner I thought this actually was my favorite course, but I think the soup has left an over all bigger impression as time has passed.

She says: At first I was dreading the sea urchin sauce idea. But, once you started eating it, that dread went right away. The sauce was delicious, it smelled wonderful and tasted even better than I could imagine.

Course 4 - Halibut Cheeks, Beans, Rutabaga, Vanilla Garlic Ice Cream. Wine pairing was Guffens Heynen White.

Ok, was getting pretty dark now so the next two pictures are not great - sorry.

He says: Garlic ice cream…re-read course description. Yes, that’s what it says. First the avocado ice cream, and now this. I like ice cream, I really do, but this mad scientist of a chef puts things in ice cream I would not dream of even in a nightmare ... and I am so glad he does, because it just works. Everything blended well together, the flavors and textures to make a fantastic dish.

She says: I have to say that when we got to our fourth course, the sun had disappeared and the tiki torches and candles were not illuminating as much as they could have, therefore I have to rely on Jonathan's pictures to know what I ate! But, even though I couldn't see it, it tasted delicious. The beans were crisp and tasty blended in the vanilla garlic ice cream. The halibut cheeks were soft and melted in your mouth.


Dessert - Apple Confit Cake, Creme Fraiche, Caramel and Lemon Tuile. Wine pairing was Bonny Doon Vin Ferno.

He says: This was good, but not a huge standout for me. Probably because it was the end of a very filling meal. I remember thinking it was good but that’s all I can really report about this one.

She says: Again, I couldn't see what was on the plate, but I ate every bite! Crunchy and light and very fulfilling for the end of the evening.

We forgot to mention that we were served Champagne upon arrival, and we didn't say much about the wines, since neither of us are real wine drinkers - but the pairings went very well together. I think I was even a little tipsy by the end of the night.

And finally we will leave you with a picture of the chef from Fuel Cafe, Bob Blair and Phil Armstong, one of the two partners who put together the Hush events.


Thanks as always for stopping by our Colorado restaurant and food review and blog. If you have any questions or comments feel free to contact us here or at jonathan or barbara@milehigheater.com