Crafted With Love
How it all began…
Before the pandemic became part of our shared reality, Mary Dail and Andreas Waltenburg shifted the center of their universe from New York City’s Greenwich Village to raise their young son in Richmond, Virginia.
Initially shuttling between his bar up in the city and her business as creative agency director, the couple launched Fuel Pump, a coffee station and wine bar on a shady corner in Carytown - inspired by the neighborhood magnets they’d grown to love in the Village.
Curated by Mary’s keen eye for finding unique brands, they strove to celebrate the small businesses that supplied their coffee house, with an eye towards women and minority-owned businesses that shared their passion for social justice and progress.
Six months after opening, the world changed as Covid swept the planet and then sadly, and unexpectedly, Andreas passed away. Fast forward to 2023, Mary has remained in RVA to raise their son and to carry on their shared project as a way to honor Andreas.
With new partnership and a fresh perspective, Fuel Pump is thriving as a welcoming place, filled with carefully selected items to help get your day going or to relax and wind down after your work is done - a way station to help bookend your day.
our vendors
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Intelligentsia isn’t just the premiere roasting house in Chicago, they’re one of the top roasters in the nation. Working directly with growers, they have access to some of the best beans on the planet - sourced ethically and sustainably - that they’ve roasted and blended into a unique brew exclusive to Fuel Stop.
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Sweeten up that latte with a syrup from Pink House - a small, woman owned business in Arkansas specializing in small batch syrups, bitters and shrubs to elevate most any drink. Add something familiar like hazelnut or a bit more exotic like cardamom to help your morning brew set the course for the day.
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In a quiet corner of Brooklyn you’ll find an exclusive little shop, Bellocq Tea Atelier, purveyor of single estate teas assembled whole leaf by hand. The result are brews that can transport you across the globe to exotically remote locales or wherever your mind can take you. Definitely not your grandmother’s cuppa.
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One might not equate small batch with what husband and wife team, Roger & Julia, call their “chocolate factory” but that is exactly what they do. Small batch chocolates created directly from the bean, not the bar, to ensure maximum control of quality and taste. Fuel Pump proudly carries their hot chocolate powder to help take the chill off.
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Flour Garden has been served in the best RVA restaurants and gourmet grocers for over 20 years. Each morning you’ll find an array of fresh, locally baked pastries to sate that sweet tooth craving.
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Feeling a little whimsical? Grab a quirky food themed kitchen towel created by Jodi, a DC graphic designer turned screen printer, whose idea for one year’s family holiday gifts turned into a little something else.
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RVA’s own Molly Reeder has had her culinary and botanical illustrations featured in national publications such as Saveur and Taproot - art done when she’s not busy as co-organizer of Richmond Bakers Against Racism. Pick up one of Molly’s illustrations or watercolors as a gift or to add to your own kitchen space.