Villains might have you rooting for bad guys

Service: order at the counter and take delivery at your table

Best dishes: Odd Job, The Vulture and Montgomery Burns

Vegetarian selections: a few veggie sandwiches and sides

Price range: $

Credit cards: Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover

Hours: 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Sundays-Wednesdays, 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays

Children: welcome

Parking: can be tight; complimentary valet offered in the evenings

Reservations: no

Wheelchair access: yes

Smoking: no

Noise level: moderate

Patio: yes

Takeout: yes

Address, phone: 903 Peachtree St., Atlanta, 404-347-3335

Website: www.villainswickedheroes.com

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I was a geeky kid. I’m OK with this, despite the fact that many of my 12-year-old peers were not as comfortable with it as I was, and I have grown into a very comfortable and proud geeky adult.

There are two kinds of geeky kid — those that loved to imagine themselves in the flowing cape, swooping in to save the day, and the kids drawn more to the evil mastermind of a story. Every good round of pretend must have a bad guy; otherwise, you and your friends would be running around the neighborhood, saving little sisters from nothing at all. And let’s face it — the supervillain always had the cooler hideout, flashier powers and better toys.

Well, Atlanta now has a restaurant for the evil little kid in all of us.

Villains Wicked Heroes, a Midtown sandwich shop opened earlier this year with a decidedly nefarious flair, comes from the evil alliance of Grindhouse Killer Burgers’ Alex Brounstein and partners Jared Lee Pyles of HD1 and Jason McClure, formerly of Flip.

Brounstein, in between opening the Piedmont location of Grindhouse and the newly opened Grindhouse Athens, saw the need for a good neighborhood sandwich shop and was kicking around the idea of making that his next project when he and Pyles linked up. He suggested that they sit down with McClure, as they had been conceptualizing a shop based on famous supervillains, and thus, Villains Wicked Heroes was born.

Instead of the cartoony look, the interior of Villains — formerly a Little Azio’s at the corner of Peachtree and 8th — feels more like an abandon subway station turned evil lair. Across the back wall is a menacing-looking street art mural of a laser-eyed skull, and a blackboard wall with all sorts of wicked blueprints and schemes scrawled across it. Steel bar stools line the crescent-shaped bar that opens up onto the large outdoor patio, where an outdoor bar joins the two spaces. On a nice day, expect the majority of patrons to claim a seat out front.

The bar is surprisingly well stocked for a sandwich shop. The beer list is relatively small, but packed with craft brews like Left Hand Milk Stout ($5) and Hitachino Nest Ginger Brew ($8). And it isn’t often you can choose between top-shelf bourbons like Blanton’s or Bulleit 10-year while enjoying a hoagie. Among their craft cocktails — aptly named “Evil Potions” — are concoctions like the spicy and refreshing Mexico City Ice Pick ($9), a mix of tequila, lime, habanero-ginger syrup, and sparkling wine. And while I really enjoyed the kitsch of the Prohibited at Turner Field ($7) — peanut-infused Evan Williams and Mexican coke, served in the glass bottle — I’d suggest asking the bartender to chill the whiskey first. Mine arrives already halfway to lukewarm, making it a little difficult to finish.

Villains’ menu, a collaboration between the trio but mostly driven by Pyles and McClure, focuses on twists of classic sandwiches across a broad range of influences. The appropriately named Odd Job ($9), an Asian-influenced panko-crusted fried chicken sandwich with a spicy Korean “buffalo” sauce and pear slaw, arrives crunchy and spicy-sweet, if a little chewy. That same chewiness distracted me from the otherwise delicious flavors of the Hans Gruber ($9), chunks of crunchy pork schnitzel with sauteed sage apples, bacon, and herb mayonnaise.

Each sandwich is a hearty portion for the money, so don’t expect to need to order more than one. Villains’ spin on the cheese steak, call the Montgomery Burns ($11), is a mammoth serving of rib-eye, peppers, mushrooms and onions topped with a house-made brie cheese spread and spicy chili ketchup. And some, like The Vulture ($8) – Cajun roasted turkey po’ boy with lettuce, tomato, pickle, and mayo – don’t attempt to fix something that isn’t broken, delivering a classic sub sandwich without messing with the formula too much. However, for an extra savory kick, you should consider adding the duck debris gravy for an extra dollar.

Every sandwich comes with a serving of the perplexing, yet addictive, Disco Volante. These little puffy pinwheels are actually wheat-based veggie chicharones, salted with a chili-lime seasoning. Each bite is a satisfying crunch with that odd, dissolving texture that will have your table swearing that you are eating fried pork rinds.

Perhaps some of the most interesting dishes to come out of the kitchen happen when evildoers are always at their best — after nightfall. For that is when Villains breaks out its bar snacks menu, a rotating selection of $6-or-less apps where Pyles and McClure really come out to play. I love the order of Crystal Lake Camper ($6), a rib-eye tartare on toasted bread, topped with diced peaches, pickled red onions, and habanero. My only complaint here is that the bread arrives piping hot, which isn’t ideal for chilled raw beef, but it only served to make us scarf this down that much faster. Or the Tom Hagen, Consigliere ($3), a deep-fried fritter version of a pastrami Reuben sandwich.

While there are a few missteps with the sandwiches that could stand correcting, overall Villains gives a solid lineup in a fun and unique atmosphere. If you find yourself in the Midtown area, it is definitely worth checking out.