Congratulations to Nolan Wynn, chef of Bib Gourmand Banshee and the 2024 MICHELIN Guide Atlanta Young Chef Award Winner!
Banshee’s compact and quirky menu never fails to leave an impression on locals and visitors alike thanks to Chef Nolan Wynn. Raised on a farm in Moultrie, Georgia, he brings hearty and satisfying food to the fun East Atlanta Village neighborhood (full of bars and dance clubs). His food is whimsical, nostalgic, and comforting all at the same time.
What inspired you to become a chef?
A lot of people have the same iterations of this, but a lot of people in my family are really good cooks – it’s intuitive for them. For a lot of people, I think cooking is intuitive, maybe you have it, or maybe you don't.
In the summer between college, I got a job at a restaurant in my hometown of Moultrie, Georgia, and initially fell in love with the culture and how fast paced and exciting it was. I realized that I had a knack for cooking, was pretty good at it, then that curiosity grew, and I kept going to different places and trying to learn more.
What is your favorite dish on the menu?
We change the menu seasonally, a fluid rotation. As fall creeps in, we'll start transitioning a few items every week or two until we've got a fall menu. By then, we start transitioning to winter.The only dish that has never been changed on the menu is the fry bread and pepperoni butter. I think that there would be an uprising if we decided to change it anyway. It’s become something that we're very much known for and leaves a big impression with everyone.
What motivates you in the kitchen?
Talking with my teams about dishes that we want to come up with and new things that we want to implement motivates me. Also, teaching and helping other people to do the best that they can and come up with really good food and be inspired and put up something that they're proud of.What do you eat for breakfast?
I'm not much of a breakfast guy. I have a very large iced coffee, and I think it's probably years of conditioning in this industry. I usually don't eat until midafternoon, around two or three, which is usually when restaurants have a family meal. Even though I work more mornings now, bouncing between our restaurants, I still just go by that lifestyle.How do you wind down at the end of a shift?
We have a late night here at Banshee on Fridays and Saturdays. Our kitchen will close at 10, and the bar stays open, and we'll have a DJ come in. It gets pretty vibrant. Probably a shot and a beer after a very busy shift is the best go-to for me.
Favorite food-related show, book, program, etc?
Culinary Artistry. I used to reference it all the time because the first bit of it is more philosophical about what it's like to be a chef or be in a kitchen or run a restaurant, and thinking about visually, how something would be beautiful. But then the last half of the book was a lot of things that you could reference like classic flavor combinations.When you work all that information into your self-conscious, it helps you be very fluid with being creative, because you over time know what will work in your head, and then you just have to make it.
How do you motivate your team?
I've learned that I don't like to micromanage. I like to talk with people about their ideas, and maybe we hash it out. We work through what would be a hold up, or what could be difficult or finicky about executing that dish, and then sort of let them learn by doing it. Over time you do that, people learn to think alike and come up with things that are “Banshee” and fit the vibe, and they learn to do it on their own, because they're not being self conscious by everything always being nitpicked.
What sustainable initiatives do we see at Banshee?
I grew up on a farm, so I was constantly hunting and fishing. I was always taught that if you kill it, you have to eat it. At a pretty young age, I was butchering fish and breaking down deer, and learning and experimenting with different ways to make it taste good. Another thing that I ate and cooked a lot as a kid (10 - 12) was frog legs that my buddies and I would actually catch ourselves.At Banshee, we have a few farmers that we work with and try our very best to make sure that we are working with what they have, and that's what we work our menu around. Trying to buy local and take care of the people that grow food for you is the best thing.
What advice would you give to a young person who wants to become a chef?
Work very hard at different places, spend at least a year or two at a place so that you can get as much out of it as you can, and then go to a new place that you're going to learn new things at. Having gone through all that hard work and having paid your dues, you get to a point where you can do your own thing and create your own space. Implement what was good, and also be aware of what you didn't like about places and try to make your place better. It doesn't have to be stressful and chaotic. It can be organized if there's communication and if there's systems in place.Hero image: Banshee / Nolan Wynn
