My first impressions of the stark room were not as favourable as Degan’s account above, reminding me of someone’s unfinished basement in the eighties with bare light bulbs hanging from wires, unfinished concrete walls, and exposed beams—but not in the ubiquitous retro style we all enjoy, but more of an in progress construction site sense. Although I heard they bought the building, it feels to me like they either ran out of money or didn’t to spend too much on the finishing the interior. Even though the wood along the bottom of the walls is nice and lights cast a warm glow, the room seems to lack warmth and personality to me. Since my return visits I’ve warmed up to it slightly, but prefer the cosier wine bar in the back and feel the whole place at least needs some decent art to liven up the walls.

Frankly, I have similar complaints about the Fuel location too, seeming rather over-lit and stark, with too much white blanching the room’s interior—odd considering how hearty and inviting the food itself is.

Clearly I’m in a critical mood, so take this with a grain of salt, but I find the websites for both Fuel and Campagnolo to be…uh…lacking (I’m being polite) and completely off-brand compared my dining experiences at both restaurants. I’d love to redesign them!

I live a few blocks from Campagnolo, so we have been there 5 times already. Sometimes the service has been a bit off – new staff – but I have enjoyed everything I’ve eaten there.

The wine bar in the back looks promising – when I passed by on Friday night it was packed to the rafters.