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If you don’t know what Ford’s Filling Station is, then you don’t live anywhere within 200 miles of Los Angeles. This is the latest venture by Ben Ford, who previously ran Chadwick and now currently has two Filling Station locations. The original one is in Tulsa, Oklahoma and the new one is in Culver City. We flew out to Tulsa to check out what all the buzz is about.

Of course we didn’t. I happen to be lucky enough to work not too far from the Filling Station, and they have now opened for lunch. Seemed like the perfect Friday lunch. My first recommendation is reservations are mandatory if you want to get anywhere near the place. At one o’clock, it was bustling, loud and packed. Business is great, owing to it’s pristine status of being a hot new restaurant, his reputation for adherence to a fresh, organic product, and Ford’s notoriety (again, if you’re within 200 miles of Los Angeles, the fact is apparent).

Inspired by the rugged and sweeping landscape of Wyoming’s ranch country, he has brought a midwestern sensibility to the menu.

I have read mixed reviews about the service and portion size, so I wasn’t sure if I would be giving the Filling Station a wholesale endorsement. Indeed, upon arrival, we were greeted by a relatively intimate space overflowing with people. It had the energy and liveliness of The Border Grill, and 1/3 the space. We were promptly sat, and found the need to scoot the table a couple of inches for me to fit. When you see below, you’ll note I have gained weight as a result of all this gluttony, but not that much.

So, I was starting to think maybe the cramped point was well taken. Not really. We both found the table to have plenty of room, and enough personal space to have a conversation without having to shout at each other. Also, a restaurant can’t be held responsible for the dramatic onslaught of people vying to get a reservation. In fact, it solidified my thinking that business is doing damn well.

The lunch menu is a no-holds-barred gallery of hearty American food. Fancy enough to peak a gourmand’s interest, but lacking any sort of pretentiousness. One side of the menu is devoted to selections of a variety of salami and cured meats, the other side introduces the diner to appetizers and entrees.

Another criticism I had heard was portion size related to cost. I don’t know which Filling Station these people are referring, but it wasn’t Ford’s. It may have been an AMPM, and that would make sense.

The portions are large and satisfying. I started with a three salami combo: Coppa, Sweet Sopressata, and Winter Salami. It was an amazing contrast in how three meats are prepared to produce such varying flavors. The Winter Salami was hard and spicy, perfectly sweating as some of the fat starts to warm and bead.

The Coppa was rich and fatty, embodying a perfect balance of spice and saltiness. The Sweet Sopressata was a very unique flavor that I can’t even perfectly describe, but had a nice punch of flavor.

All this came accompanied by a bowl of olives bathed in infused olive oil. The infusion is a biting mix of orange peel, pickled fennel and garlic. It made an incredible dipping sauce.

My co-worker ordered the wedge of butter lettuce salad, topped with creamy blue cheese, shaved red onion, grape tomatoes croutons. Wedge salads have been growing in popularity the last few years, and this is one of the better one’s I’ve tasted. Fresh, crisp with a nice bite from the bleu cheese.

It is at this moment I will arise a cry of caveat emptor. The portions are generous. So generous, in fact, I took only one bite of my hamburger before calling it quits.

The shame I felt. I knew upon reheating later it would never taste as good, but I was firmly stuffed. However, the burger was an enormous, delicious patty of ground chuck, crowned with caramelized onions and bleu cheese.

I’ve had this combination before, but never so well executed. I will have to have another to determine where in the top tier of burgers it belongs, because it is definitely a contender.

Liya ordered the pulled pork panini, pressed with melted jack cheese and a hot pepper relish. If I did not re-read the menu, I would have sworn it as a creamy horseradish sauce. They paired very well.

Subtle smoky flavors of the pork married with the cheese and pepper relish without any one flavor being overpowered by another. Learn that people, it’s called complimenting flavors! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve ordered a sandwhich where the primary ingredient is completely overpowered by an overzealous chef looking to impress his audience or add enough ingredients to justify the markup.

Yes, it’s not incredibly cheap, but do you want to eat at McDonalds every day? Spend a little for crying out loud. $14 for a lunch entree isn’t a very high price point, especially with the quality and volume of food. I don’t have a problem paying for good food, and I walked out of there completely stuffed.

But not before I barged in on Ben, obviously having a meeting of some sort. Although he was busy, I had a few questions I wanted to ask, and I took the chance he would tell me to pound sand.

Not so. He was accomodating and friendly, and I have to say very patient and informative. He walked over with me to provide me with some information, took a photo, and was eminently cordial.

A good leader exhibits the qualities they want their crew to possess. If they take his example, and it seems like they do, Ford’s will be around a long time.

Ford’s Filling Station
9531 Culver Blvd
Culver City, CA 90232
(310) 842-8372

By Zteve (see more of his posts). You can find more of Zteve's writing at his own website Gastrologica