Tuscaloosa Restaurant Week: Innovation Drives Excellence at Central Mesa
Good Sunday morning and welcome to Tuscaloosa Restaurant Week, where we are kicking things off with Brandon Tribble, the owner of downtown's Central Mesa.
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For many great restaurants, the key to long-term success is to be as constant as the North Star, with menus, flavors and decor unchanging as years become decades.
At Central Mesa, though, in the heart of downtown Tuscaloosa, the recipe calls for something different. Brandon Tribble, owner and operator since October 2021, embraces innovation and the creativity that sparks it.
"I think the core of who we are is set and it's not going to change, but we like to offer new things every season," Tribble said. "We mix it up."
Even the restaurant's ownership has shifted - Central Mesa opened in 2017 as the second concept from Craig Williams, who had launched Avenue Pub a few years before.
In 2021, he sold it to Tribble, a Huntsville native and a self-described food industry lifer who had worked in countless Tuscaloosa-area restaurants but dreamed of owning his own.
NOT YOUR AVERAGE MEXICAN RESTAURANT
The menu at Central Mesa looks a lot like one you'd find at any Mexican restaurant - it features tacos, tequila, quesadillas, guacamole and much more. But Tribble will be the first to tell you they're cooking up something a bit different.
"We are not an authentic Mexican restaurant, we don't claim to be we don't try to be," he said. "A couple of white guys who love Mexican food came up with the menu and put our own spin on some classics. We feature a lot of bold flavors, a lot of variety and we keep things interesting with some season rotations."
So you probably won't find a Cuban sandwich at most Mexican restaurants, and the tacos in Yucatan would taste different than those at Central Mesa, but that's Tribble's point - they're doing their own thing.
The menu has evolved since Tribble and his late business partner Scott Harless took over the brand in late 2021 but the core concept remains unchanged.
The team, led by outgoing general manager Megan Hefty, serves elevated Mexican-inspired dishes made right with the finest practical ingredients.
"We focus on high-quality fresh ingredients. We prep everything in-house. All of our sauces are made here, and we're using fresh produce to create good flavors," Tribble said.
So while the long-loved brisket quesadilla may be off the menu for good, new additions like the Mahi rice bowl and the steak birria tacos are no consolation prizes.
"There's a lot of cost that goes into making food this way," Tribble said. "It takes more time. It takes better ingredients. You know, you're spending a lot of time prepping when you're not necessarily open for service. It's a different mode and it's hard to make it successful, you've really got to want it, but the result is worth it."
A BAR ROOTED IN INFUSED TEQUILAS
The bar at Central Mesa is no afterthought, either. Captained often by shift leader Matthew Carpenter, the bar features a deep and wide selection of tequilas including four that are infused with flavors in-house, like their original strawberry habanero infusion or the fan-favorite blackberry mint.
As in the kitchen, Tribble believes the components poured into a drink control its quality, so they don't cut corners.
"Our margaritas, our juices, our sour mix are housemade and our lime juice, lemon juice, orange juice grapefruit juice - all that is fresh-squeezed," Tribble said. "Fresh quality ingredients is kind of our hallmark and I think you can taste it when you eat here, and especially when you drink here. We just want to do the right things the right way."
The bar is also a place of innovation and Tribble said during Happy Hour the staff is rolling out a new frozen avocado margarita inspired by something similar at a Florida theme park.
"It's the only frozen product we have, it's only available during happy hour," Tribble said. "It's really, really good. A lot of people don't know what to think about it but I'm telling you once you try it, you won't stop."
Keeping Culture Consistent
The staff at any Tuscaloosa restaurant is ever-shifting and coupled with a malleable menu, some restaurants would struggle to build and maintain an identity. But Tribble said Central Mesa can do that by the quality of the ingredients in every drink, dish and dessert and by maintaining a consistent culture among employees.
Tribble was effusive with praise for Creative Director Sarah Ferguson, who implemented the restaurant's vibrant Day of the Dead theme, plus Hefty and Carpenter, Daniel Owens in the kitchen and all the rest of his staff.
"We have an incredible staff and a great culture and this place does not exist without any of those folks," he said.
Tribble said when you do it right and have a little luck, your senior staff understands and adopts the mission and the culture and in time, it's your managers who are teaching new hires, communicating expectations and holding them accountable.
"I've always been of the mindset that you hire the right people, you take care of those people and everything else will fall into place," Tribble said. "if you don't have a good staff, a good culture and people who care about what they're doing, you can't give the customer what you want. So it's got to start that way."
Keeping that culture consistent can be tough, constant work, but Tribble said doing so means he doesn't have to worry as much about what happens when his GM Megan Hefty leaves this month. It also means if Central Mesa ever expands outside Tuscaloosa, like to Tribble's hometown of Huntsville, there will be a North Star to a new staff to follow from afar.
Tribble said with that consistent culture and great food, people will be able to recognize the Central Mesa magic - even when the menu changes.
Central Mesa is located at 519 Greensboro Avenue and opens at 11 a.m. every day of the week. Happy Hour is 2 - 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and brunch is served until 3 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. They are offering a 15 percent discount off the checks of anyone who mentions Tuscaloosa Restaurant Week before it wraps up.
This profile is the first in a series as part of Visit Tuscaloosa's Restaurant Week 2024, which is presented this year by UA Online.
Stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread for more features every morning this week - we'll be back Monday morning with the legendary Bo Hicks at Druid City Brewing Company and their new Ell's Kitchen concept.
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