Fuse Cafe Imbibery & Events opens at Point Defiance Casino in Ruston

Fuse Café Imbibery and Events opened Saturday inside the Point Defiance Casino in Ruston. The restaurant is a small operation and will keep weekend-only hours for now. I had a brief conversation with owner Laurie Kimmel, formerly of Tacoma’s Il Fiasco, just before Fuse opened over the weekend and here’s what she had to say:

The food: “We’re going to work closely with local growers (and serve) sustainable foods. Everything will be hand cut and house made.”

Who are those local farmers? “Because I come from Vashon; I’ll probably focus on Vashon farms,” she said. She’s about to start sourcing ingredients from Stop Sign Farms on Vashon; she’ll get her tofu from Island Springs, a Vashon farm.

Her background: She formerly waited tables at Il Fiasco, and worked at Jake’s in Steilacoom, too. She previously operated a catering company on Vashon.

A family affair: Those are Kimmel’s children working at the restaurant. Her son Alex Gateman, a Washington State University student, will work when he’s visiting from college. Her son, Tyler Gateman, is manager.

Chef in the kitchen: Seth Hicks, formerly of Tacoma’s Il Fiasco and Gig Harbor's Tanglewood Grill.

Front of the house: In charge of things in front of the eatery is Haley Ladenburg. Kimmel said she considers Ladenburg, who has been there since the beginning, a daughter.

Catering: The restaurant is starting a catering company and so far has created some snack plates for Gig Harbor’s Wine Studio. Stay tuned for more details on their catering.

For the non-meat eaters: They’ll have vegan wraps and roasted vegetables sandwiches and other things that are veg or vegan friendly. Meals can be customized vegetarian or vegan, just ask.

Coffee: Comes from Vashon Coffee Company. They’ll serve the Point Defiance blend.

Fuse Café Imbibery and EventsWhere: 5037 N. Pearl St., Ruston Phone: 253-722-8712 (message phone) Hours: Breakfast, lunch and dinner served Fridays-Saturdays. Brunch served 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Sundays. Open weekends only.

Here are the breakfast and lunch menus. Click to expand the views.

This story was originally published October 5, 2010 at 7:51 AM with the headline "Fuse Cafe Imbibery & Events opens at Point Defiance Casino in Ruston."