Chef Tyler Williams Has Big Ideas at Tap

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Wyatt Williams reviews Tap, which has recently seen a menu revamp under new chef Tyler Williams (no relation). It isn’t a starred review, but Williams says the former Abattoir and Woodfire Grill chef is bringing big ideas to the gastropub concept.

The large, nearly map-sized menu is clearly designed to please more than one master. There are the recognizable bar snacks — corn fritters, chicken wings, a meat and cheese plate — for the happy hour drinkers. There are the relatively light salad entrees, necessary to please the office worker who doesn’t want to overindulge. ... But, in the middle of all of that rule-following, Williams is clearly trying to break out, color outside the lines, and travel all over the map.

Sara Bonisteel of the New York Times reviews My Two Souths, the new cookbook from Spice to Table chef Asha Gomez. Bonisteel praises the Southern American and Southern Indian cuisines that Gomez brings together.

She has a firm grasp on the greatest recipe hits of the American South, but it is her command of the Indian spice box that emboldens her, in dishes like brussels sprouts pachadi and Kerala fried chicken and rice waffles, to kick up the heat in ways that Emeril never will. Hers is Southern cooking, through and through.

THE ELSEWHERE AND THE BLOGS: The AJC’s Bob Townsend takes a first look at Southern Bistro, angry chef Ron Eyester’s new restaurant in Sandy Springs. Creative Loafing says Hampton + Hudson embodies the new, development-fueled Inman Park. Fried Chicken Lips says 26 Thai Kitchen & Bar doesn’t really serve authentic Thai cuisine. Atlanta Food Critic thinks Uncle Jack’s Meat House brings a piece of New York to Duluth.

• All Week in Reviews [EATL]