A new sandwich spot just opened in Augusta.
Rude Boy Deli is in an unassuming house tucked away off Peach Orchard Road. But its bright features and white picket fence indicate its 1950s diner aesthetic before setting foot in the interior, which boasts a checkered tile floor and colorful memorabilia displays.
“That little white fence and these big windows… it just made me think of just old school charm,” said owner Russell Garrett, who opened the new eatery earlier this month. “So I really wanted to play up. It’s not big and grand, but for what it is, it works pretty nice.”
The menu is anchored by a series of robust sub sandwiches with names like “The Meathead”—a toasted meatball hoagie with mozzarella and marinara sauce—and “The 3 Stooges”—a BLT on toasted white, prepared with in-house ranch.
Rude Boy’s corned beef Reuben sandwich is called “The Deli Staple.” That and the Italian selection complete with pepperoni, salami, ham and provolone, named “The Wise Guy,” are two of the shop’s signatures.
“I feel like it carries the deli legacy,” Garrett said. “When you think of New York deli, you just think of fat pastramis and Reubens.”
Garrett has been working in food and beverage since right after high school, in kitchens and with private caterers during the Masters, and unlike many of his co-workers, felt drawn to stay in the industry.
Originally intending to start a food truck before finding a small brick-and-mortar to work from, his first idea for Rude Boy—a moniker taken from a nickname he’s had since childhood—was a concept like the Dick’s Last Resort restaurant chain, in which staff are intentionally rude to customers as a novelty.
Once the shop’s current location became available, he opted to take a more straightlaced approach to service and lean into its present nostalgic style.
Much of Garrett’s work experience has been downtown, but the small parcel on Lumpkin Road proved beneficial, as its closer to where he grew up. His parents still live close, and his sister preachers at a church nearby.
“Now I get to see all my family again, coming back to this side of town,” he said.
Its location didn’t stop curious customers from lining up outside the door on its soft opening, he says, and it enjoys steady lunchtime traffic. The diner’s chicken sandwiches are among the most popular among customers, such as the “Hey Honey,” which pairs grilled chicken breast with a hot honey on a brioche bun.
The aforementioned house ranch is a sweet and spicy concoction Garrett developed himself, prepares from scratch and intends to bottle and sell.
In the future Garrett hopes to open a larger location and include more of what makes the shop unique, such as booths designed to look like classic cars and retro uniforms for servers, along with alcohol selections and brunch offerings.
“I do a lot of traveling. Every time I go to a place, like New Orleans or somewhere, I get this culinary experience, and I come back here and things just taste foreign,” he said. “I’m hoping once we get a little bigger we get to expand, even specialists here too as well… just do unique things that people aren’t doing around here.”
Rude Boy Deli is located at 2111 Lumpkin Road. For more information, visit the Facebook page for the restaurant.
Skyler Andrews is a reporter covering business for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
