It’s morning. You’re cranky, not yet completely awake, and severely under caffeinated. You and your equally sleepy love walk into Fuel Coffee on North 45th Street in Wallingford with your coffee mugs and matching half scowls.

“You want your quad Americanos? White chocolate and sugar free vanilla?”

You don’t even have to order. Moments later (as few moments as takes to pull eight shots of perfect espresso), two steaming mugs are set in front of you.

That’s what it’s like for me at Fuel Coffee nearly every day. On this day, the barista is happily singing along with The Bangles song Manic Monday. The door is propped open letting a quick blast of nearly spring air wash over me as I sip the sweet, sweet caffeine. The mood is light, happy, and as low stress as a weekday morning can be. I’m catching up on my email and planning out my day. When traffic on 520 clears a bit, I’ll head into my office on the east side.

I first discovered Fuel Coffee when my boyfriend was out of work for a couple of months. The sign and the name reminded him of a pizza joint back in Charlotte, North Carolina. We started going there a couple times a week. I was comparatively a coffee wimp back then. We’d go in and order two nonfat 16 oz lattes (double shots) with flavor. They were relatively inexpensive and always consistently good. Then he got a job that required us to get up at 5:30 am. Needless to say, we started getting coffee every day and graduated to triple shots. A week or two later, I walked in and stood in line. When I got to the counter, I was all set to order. I opened my mouth…

“Two triple non-fat lattes, one with sugar free vanilla and one with caramel.”

My mouth was still open. I hadn’t spoken a word. Dani Cone, the owner of Fuel Coffee, who still works the counter at all three locations, had just set my order in front of me. I paid, tipped, and walked in a half daze out to the car. I’m surprised I remembered to bring the lattes.

“They knew our drinks,” I marveled.

When Dani opened a second location on 24th Avenue East in Montlake, I was worried that Fuel would lose their quirky local coffee shop feel. It turns out I was being silly. All three locations are slight variations on the same great formula. They showcase local artist’s work on the walls (If you want yours considered they’ve got a long waiting list). Their pastries, from several local bakeries, are fresh, with day-old’s selling for only a buck. Fuel feels very much like the painting of the Fuel logo on the back wall of the Wallingford shop - new, modern, and completely broken in and comfortable.

Fuel Coffee

610 19th Avenue East
2300 24th Avenue East
1705 North 45th Street