Edgewood Ave coffee shop Cafe + Velo is a cyclist’s paradise

The new French-inspired cafe offers bike rentals, a mini croquet court, and a rooftop deck
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Cafe + Velo.

Photograph by Demian Torres-Bohl

Cafe + Velo owners Jeff Demetriou (an Atlanta artist and cyclist) and Benjamin Boisson (owner of Atlanta Beltline Bikes) want you to drive your car less. The duo opened a cozy, unpretentious coffee shop on Edgewood in hopes that it would appeal to Atlanta’s cycling and pedestrian community—it’s easily accessible by foot, bike lanes, MARTA, and the Atlanta streetcar, and has rack space for over twenty bikes.

The interior of Cafe + Velo looking out onto Edgewood.

Photograph by Jennifer Zyman

Inside, you cannot escape the cycling theme. Black and white videos of cyclists project on the walls, which are also decorated with the vehicles themselves). A “Wall of All” gallery prominently displays 75 photos of famous cyclists, civil rights leaders, artists, poets, thinkers, and activists. The cafe also rents 8-speed city commuter bikes ($35 per day/$200 per week), and a vending machine, “The Bike Box,” dispenses bike parts, tools, and accessories.

A macchiato at Cafe + Velo.

Photography by Jennifer Zyman.

Since this is a French-inspired cafe (Boisson is a native of France), it hosts an in-house French baker/chef, Eric Dauce, who makes traditional staples such as éclairs, macarons, and croissants. The croissants are the foundation for the cafe’s menu of “crandwiches,” breakfast and lunch sandwiches that are, of course, all named after types of bicycles. (There’s even one named after the old-timey penny-farthing.) While they aren’t traditionally French, the croissant sandwiches are the cafe’s more substantial offering beyond muffins, cookies, and the like. Coffee drinks are exceptionally made and use Atlanta favorite Octane Coffee.

The roof deck looking down to the croquet court at Cafe + Velo.

Photograph courtesy of Jeff Demetriou.

For a location on Edgewood, Cafe + Velo has a ton of outdoor space. There’s a lovely courtyard with lots of tables and chairs, a miniature croquet court, and a roof deck where they’ll hold morning yoga. With the crisp fall weather in the air, this is fast becoming my new favorite place to hang out and work.

Cafe + Velo
381 Edgewood Ave. SE
M-F 7 a.m.-6 p.m.
S-S 8 a.m.-6 p.m.

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