Banshee, coming to East Atlanta Village this spring, will offer a “hyper-seasonal” menu and bold cocktails

The restaurant from former Ford Fry and Wrecking Bar employees targets a May opening
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Smashed cucumbers with Castelvetrano olives, pine nuts and a shallot-thyme vinaigrette

Photo by Sharif Hassan

Former Ford Fry employees Nolan Wynn, Faielle Stocco, and Peter Chvala, along with former Wrecking Bar Brewpub manager Katie McDonald, have teamed up to open a restaurant named Banshee on Glenwood Avenue in East Atlanta Village. Opening in May, it will offer a succinct, hyper-seasonal menu for dinner and late night, as well as Sunday brunch.

Banshee owner and executive chef Nolan Wynn

Photo by Sharif Hassan

Previously a sous chef at No. 246 and King & Duke, Wynn will lead the kitchen, focusing on vegetable-driven dishes and house-made pasta. For dinner, there will be seven appetizers, five composed entrees, a couple of simple vegetable sides, and three desserts.

“I want to break the mold of how we do pasta. It won’t always have a traditional sauce,” Wynn says. “One dish I have in mind uses Italian style pasta with an Asian influence. Think pasta stir fry with broccoli, snow peas, and orange duck.” He also mentioned a dish that would incorporate black garlic into the pasta dough itself.

Wynn will be making the desserts himself. “I want them to be homey and simple, like panna cotta and tarts,” he says. “Maybe [we’ll have] a strawberry and rhubarb tart with semolina streusel.”

The late-night menu will be more casual with a breakfast spin. “We’ll give people their Waffle House fix in EAV,” Wynn says. The menu will be limited to five items and may include fried mortadella on a bagel with a sunny side up egg on it. He describes Sunday brunch as “industry-friendly,” noting that it’s a departure from the usual biscuits and gravy. Options may include a breakfast carbonara and a broth-based noodle bowl with a soft egg.

Stately Hag cocktail

Photo by Sharif Hassan

McDonald and Stocco are collaborating on the bar menu, focusing on strong, sturdy, yet approachable cocktails. “There are a lot of great dive bars in East Atlanta. We want to bring more cocktail culture to it while staying true to the neighborhood that we love so much,” McDonald says. “We want you to be able to sit down and feel welcome whether you want a beer and a shot or a negroni with a flamed orange.”

There will be six or seven cocktails on the menu, ranging from bold and boozy to fun and flirty, she says. They’ll range in price from $9 to $12 and include a number of homemade ingredients. Options include the tart Stately Hag (with Reposado tequila and Strega) and the bold, amaro-forward Blackest Heart.

A level one sommelier, Stocco is working on an “approachable yet eclectic” wine list that “speaks to Nolan’s menu and gives people an opportunity to experience something they might not have had before,” she says. The list will include both new and old world varietals sold primarily by the glass. There will be a selection of amari and vermouths, too.

The Blackest Heart cocktail

Photo by Sharif Hassan

Just want a beer? Four to six local craft varieties will be available on tap, in addition to domestic standbys like High Life and PBR by the bottle or can.

Designed by Elizabeth Ingram Studio, the company behind the decor of Golden Eagle and Beetlecat, Banshee will have a simple, rustic vibe with hardwood floors and a whitewashed brick wall that aims to stay true to the roots of the Glenwood Avenue building. The 2,000-square-foot space will seat 57 guests inside, including at the bar, and 30 on the patio.

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