The Sandwiches at This New Edgewood Restaurant and Cocktail Bar Look Seriously Legit

The owners of East Atlanta Village restaurant Banshee open sandwich shop and cocktail bar Bona Fide Deluxe Tuesday, February 14, bringing Edgewood and Candler Park an all-day hangout. And, yes, the bar stays open for cocktails, wine, and beer after the kitchen closes for the night.

Located on La France Street, steps from the Candler Park-Edgewood MARTA station, and next door to wine shop and tasting room VinATL, expect hefty deli-style sandwiches chock-full of meats, cheeses, vegetables, and condiments, hearty salads, and bread bombs filled with garlic butter, cheddar cheese, bacon, and scallions.

The idea behind Bona Fide Deluxe was born from necessity during the first few months of the pandemic. Chef and partner Nolan Wynn launched a drive-thru service offering sandwiches and other comfort foods for takeout from Banshee to keep the restaurant afloat until the dining room could reopen again.

For Bona Fide Deluxe, Wynn took inspiration from the pandemic pop-up at Banshee, creating hot and cold sandwiches for the menu like the New York-style Cold Cut stuffed with pepperoni, finocchiona, mortadella, pepperonata, and provolone garnished with lettuce, tomato, and pepperoni mayonnaise. The vegan banh mi comes with sweet and sour shiitake mushrooms, julienned carrots and cucumbers, and jalapenos. The roast beef sandwich sees thinly shaved top round roast smoked and cooked medium rare and dressed with pickles, fried onions, steak sauce, and horseradish creme fraiche.

Meats and condiments are all made from scratch by Wynn and his team.

Bona Fide Deluxe

Bona Fide Deluxe

Bona Fide Deluxe

Cocktails offered include hat tips to Banshee in an eponymous drink mixing gin with apertivo, cocchi di torino, and lemon and to MARTA with the mezcal-based Rapid Transit. Look for zero-proof drinks, six beers on tap, and a tight list of wines.

For the design, the Banshee team once again tapped Elizabeth Ingram. At 60 seats between the dining room and bar, Ingram describes Bona Fide Deluxe as a relaxed space that’s “comfortable” and “not overly grown-up.”

A custom-made world map hangs on the wall leading to the order counter. The dining room features original art pieces, flea market finds, and clusters of vintage chandeliers and lighting hanging above tables. Design nods to Banshee come in the form of diorama boxes containing tiny plastic dinosaurs.

Marie Wu

“You can make this place what you want; take a seat at the bar for a date, or your whole family can pile into one of the middle, community-style tables,” Ingram says. “I aimed to make it look like everything had been here for a minute.”

Picnic tables are available out front on the green space, complete with lawn games and eventually space for hosting live music.

In 2018, Wynn and longtime friends Peter Chvala, Faielle Stocco, and Katie McDonald opened Banshee on Glenwood Avenue, taking over the space once home to lesbian bar MSR My Sisters Room. Wynn, Stocco, and Chvala worked together for years at Ford Fry restaurants around Atlanta, while McDonald was a manager at Wrecking Bar Brewpub in Little Five Points. Banshee chef de cuisine Chance Cooper is also a partner in Bona Fide Deluxe.

Take a look at the menu for Bona Fide Deluxe below:

Open Tuesday - Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Kitchen closes from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. to prepare for dinner. Bar remains open after kitchen closes at night.

1454 La France Street, Atlanta.