Custom Fuel is an indecisive person’s greatest nightmare. With three different crusts, nine types of cheeses, seven kinds of sauces, 19 veggies, 10 types of protein, and 10 varying cold toppings to choose from, the possibilities for delicious combinations are fodder for a statistics quiz. But for creative types, adventurers, and hungry students, the newest design-your-own pizza joint in D.C. is heaven.
Located in Farragut West by the GW Hospital and corporate business towers—and with no Chipotle in sight—Custom Fuel could easily become a new hot spot for young professionals and students alike.
While it is the newest craft-your-own-pie place, Custom Fuel isn’t the only pizza joint of its kind. Located a few blocks down, &pizza on H and 13th Street is a hefty competitor. Despite the competition, Custom Fuel has nothing to worry about.
Each pie is about 13 inches and each crust—whether original, whole wheat, or gluten-free—is as fluffy as the next. While whole wheat and gluten-free doughs usually come out of the oven tough or foam-like in comparison with original crusts, Custom Fuel avoided that mistake.
I created my own pizza, rather than try any of the suggested pies. The overwhelming options pushed me overboard, and I went with a whole-wheat crust, classic tomato sauce, chevre goat cheese, arugula, mushrooms, roasted garlic, prosciutto, and basil. Custom Fuel’s sauce-to-cheese ratio is overwhelmingly in favor of the former, but their cheese still carries enough flavor to hold its own. The toppings are prepared so well that they’re not an afterthought either, so the rich and amply applied sauce doesn’t completely steal the show.
Among the conscious eater’s options include all natural, antibiotic-free chicken, unbleached, unbromated flour, and locally grown vegetables and herbs. For the less creative, there are pre-crafted “Vintage Pizzas,” including pies with names like “Old Bay Shrimp” and “Gorgonzola, Pear & Prosciutto.” Custom Fuel wouldn’t be a pizza place if it didn’t also provide the simpler pleasures like “Just Cheese” and pepperoni.
The cheapest pizza, “Just Cheese,” starts at $6.57, while a Custom Model Pizza starts at $7.97. The gluten-free crust is an extra $2.50, and fresh mozzarella, burrata, daiya, and shrimp, run an extra $.97. Getting creative with toppings can get pricey, but as long as you can restrain yourself, Custom Fuel is worth its price.
The menu offers salads as well, although with so many pizza combinations—including a Nutella and fruit dessert pizza—to get anything other than a pie would be a cop-out.
