New London — Hot Rod Cafe owner Roderick Martin Cornish came full circle when he returned to his hometown more than a decade ago with the idea of opening his own restaurant.

And now that Hot Rod on Bank Street has celebrated its 10th anniversary, a few months after the downtown restaurant won a second-place award in the National Buffalo Wing Festival, he is looking ahead to opening a second restaurant in the area, perhaps as early as this year.

He mentions Niantic and Mystic as two possible locations.

"I'm looking in a 20- to 25-mile radius," he said.

Cornish, previously an executive for Merrill Lynch, said he would like to replicate the same cool, casual style that has worked so well in New London.

But he promised the Whaling City would always be the center of his business universe and said he wasn't interested in franchising.

"This will always be my main focus," Cornish said.

In any case, a second restaurant will be good news for chicken-wing fans who swoon over the 26 different flavors on the menu.

Cornish figures about half of his overall food sales are for wings, and he offers free wings to regulars for their birthday.

An all-you-can-eat wing night has customers competing to down the most chicken, and the current record holder — a regular known as Mad Dog — once ate 73 wings in one sitting.

"It fills you up," Cornish said. "You don't leave this place hungry."

Cornish, a University of Connecticut undergrad with a master's degree in business administration from the University of Michigan, spent several of his younger years living the fast life in New York City, working his way up to a vice president at Merrill Lynch's headquarters in New Jersey.

But he had been plotting an escape for a while when the 9/11 attacks occurred and he was able to take a severance package to return home to pursue his dream of opening a restaurant.

Locally, he spent nine months in a Grasso Tech culinary program, where he was mentored by Mario Longo, a chef who encouraged him to learn the management techniques at chain restaurants.

Cornish helped open Outback Steakhouse in New London, 99 Restaurant in Groton, among others, learning portion controls and other cost-saving measures.

Finally, in December 2005, he opened Hot Rod, thinking to cash in on the NASCAR craze at the time, not thinking that the name might lead to the association of his restaurant with a biker bar.

He initially opened at 357 Bank St., where Dev's on Bank currently is located, before moving five years ago to his current building at 114 Bank St. that he now owns.

"I've always liked comfortable and fun," Cornish said. "It's a come-as-you-are type of place."

The current location has room for 120 people inside, with an extra 48 on the patio during warmer weather. The staff totals 17, including longtime chef Carlos Paucar, who has been at the forefront of expanding the wing menu.

"We have people that really like people," Cornish said. "I like to keep it a friendly place with great food."

Cornish, a strong-looking guy with dreadlocks, keeps a cool vibe inside, with music heavy on reggae and Motown. He hosts occasional bands and DJs but never imposes a cover charge.

"Wings, beer and atmosphere" is the restaurant's tag line, and the bar comes through with about two dozen different beers available, including offerings from Outer Light Brewing Co. in Groton, Two Roads in Stratford, Stony Creek in Branford and City Steam in Hartford.

About 100 people are part of the Hot Rod mug club that gives regulars significant savings on their beer consumption.

Cornish said he likes to provide a convivial atmosphere but he also is sure not to let anything get out of control. He asks people politely but firmly to leave at the first sign of trouble, he said.

Cornish, 50, learned his work ethic from his dad, downtown real estate investor William Cornish. His dad's motto, "If you work, it works," has defined how he approached the restaurant business, he said, and only recently did he hire Hot Rod's first general manager.

The restaurant owner said he also took seriously advice from Stew Leonard, who once told him "It doesn't matter what you wanna sell; it's what they wanna buy."

Customer service, he said, is a huge part of the Hot Rod way, as is his philosophy "everyone eats," meaning that good fortune should be shared with the customers and staff.

"Although people kid me about it, I rarely stay open to last call trying to wring every dollar out of the day," he said. "My experience has shown that often the 1 a.m. to 2 a.m. business isn't business we necessarily want."  

Cornish said he believes in the future of New London, and is hopeful the National Coast Guard Museum will be good for downtown, but he's not expecting any one enterprise will be the city's salvation.

"It's the food you put out and keeping a nice, clean place," he said. "It's a very loyal town as long as you treat people right."

l.howard@theday.com

Twitter: @KingstonLeeHow

WHAT: Hot Rod Cafe

WHERE: 114 Bank St., New London

WHO: Rod Cornish, owner

YEARS IN BUSINESS: 10

EMPLOYEES: 17

WEBSITE: hotrodscafenewlondon.com

HOURS: Opens 4 p.m. Mon.-Thurs.; noon Fri.-Sun.