Atlas

There is no mistake that Atlas is an "upscale" joint, there is no contest that it's a beautiful joint, there is no question that the service staff is well trained... But as with all restos, expensive and inexpensive, they need to evolve to cater towards the ever changing crowd and palates. Hence, they have introduced the Tavern with a new menu with it... I think I will like this. It's a smart move on their part. Not everyone wants to spend beaucoup dinero on dinner to impress some cheap ass hooker you swiped on your phone... But you also don't want to look like a mook taking said hooker for a shitty ass burger at Snatch Shack, either... Err, I meant Shake Shack. God, that place is awful... Who the fuck eats there. One glance at your shit afterwards, I guarantee that you will never eat there again... But it's good for hookers, though. They relate to cheap meat. Ok, I'm getting side tracked here... Talking about hookers always does.
So, we all know Atlas is very swanky, very eloquent, well articulated and they run the joint right... So, what's all the fuss about the new Tavern? I made rez to Atlas but when I got there I was like fuck the dining room, it's too stuffy for this strapping young buck... I, instead, chose to nosh/drink either at the bar or the new tavern area. Shit, it's the same goddamn thing... And the dining room is like two feet away in the same room. The open kitchen is ultra clean and organized, very nice kitchen. The bar is a nice throw back to golden days when drinking was a classy art form... Makes me feel like the fat Gatsby. Ok, the dining room is really nice, too, but it's too dark for me... I hate eating in the dark, can't see if the protein is rabbit or cat. I wanted to eat at the bar because the booze is so close in reach but I also knew I would be sampling a bunch of plates and I didn't want to look like a hobo with plates all over the bar, so, I took a Tavern side table in the corner so I can spread eagle... I need to air out the Jimmy from time to time. Fuck, I'm so crass, what the hell am I doing here?
Christ, why do you talk so much, pouch? It's like you got a case of diarrhea of the mouth. Speaking of brown liquid flows... I needs me a dree-ank! I perused the cocktail menu, while it looked decent, nothing really jumped out at me... So, I started with a simple Old Fashioned... Time to get to work, y'all... You can order from the main menu as well but let's check out the new Tavern menu.

Well made Old Fashioned, simple, classic and tasty. The other thing was some sparkling Rosé that cost more than 2 Popeyes family meal box... That's a lot of fucking yummy cheekan right there.

Caramelized Veal Sweetbreads- Honey Glaze, Charred Broccoli, White Shoyu, Nam Pla, Cilantro, Toasted Benne. Nicely done. The sweetbreads were really good, firm but giving, had a great chew to it and the crispy sweet crust had a nice bite to it. I noticed how they're on board with the new trendy thing with the charred broccoli... Let's see how many other menus it will be on this year. This dish was a nice start... Don't die on me, ese!

Rosemary Roasted Ruby Beet Tartare- Woodsman and Wife Cheese, Toasted Pecans and Walnuts. Another gorgeous presentation. The beet tartare is nothing new but this worked and tasted beautifully. Sweet, crunch, creamy, tart... All the senses and mouth feel was there. Great little dish.

Beet Chips. These went with the beet tartare but they could stand on their own... Paired well with the tartare. Real nice.

Sauteed Snowpeas, Leaves and Shoots- Aleppo Chili, Ginger, Garlic. Snowpea leaves, tips and shoots have been such a big gimmick ingredient on the whitie menus around town for the last couple years... Making this used-to-be cheap ass veggie more and more expensive like the fucking unattainable oxtail these days without draining your wallet. Why do you fuckers have to ruin a good thing for the slopes, c'mon, they have large families to feed on a budget. But anyways, for $7, this was a steal for a place like this. It was bright, vibrant, seasoned well, and tasted great... They sourced some very young pea tendrils. Nice dish.

Citrus Cured Salmon Flatbread- Red Onion-Radish Slaw, Capers, Dill, Mascarpone, Everything Bagel Spice. It's such a low rent redneck Applebee's kinda dish but I have never been a trust fund baby, so I always ate shit like this as if it were goddamn truffles and caviar. It's a decent looking specimen... Something that I would serve at a Super Bowl party but since I have no fwendz, I usually go out and have some rube make it for me so I can cry myself to sleep in the corner. The thin crackly flatbread with a plethora of crap on top tasted pretty good, not spectacular but it brought back memories when I lived in a trailer park in Chelsea, next to the Hudson where I warshed my back with a rag on a stick... Ah, the good ol' days in NYC, but the bridge and tunnel crowd can be real assholes sometimes, they don't like simple country folk. I would prolly skip this dish next time and try something else.

Petit Lobster Pot Pie- Nueske's Smoked Bacon, Pearl Onion, Brandy, Puff Pastry, Wilted Romaine. I was looking forward to this little dish... Looks gorgeous doesn't it? Until, I noticed that the puff pastry turned out to be a fucking slider bun... WTF, yo? Turns out that "someone" in the kitchen tossed the entire inventory of puff pastry into the trash... This instantly reminded me of Nexto when that mook tossed out the entire pan of steamed buns into the garbage. Where am I? Someone open a window, I can't breathe... From the stupidity of people. The presentation was nice but that damn dense slider bun really ruined it for me... The rest of the dish- lobster and accoutrements were good, but the celery was a bit raw. It's amazing how one item on the dish can cloud the entire dish. But overall, it was still acceptable, I ain't that much of a dick... Don't you dare say it.

24 Hour Cast Iron Seared Steak- Hand-Cut, Aged Wagyu, Shiitake-Maitre'd Butter, Grilled Croutons, Crispy Onions. When I see wagyu at a some what affordable price point, I'm fucking ordering it... I know $19 ain't gonna get me full but a sweet little manmeat tasting to finish off this Tavern menu preview would be a nice way to end it. It looked glorious when it came out, the rosy beet red meat looked spot on and dericious... I was in for a treat, but cutting off a piece proved difficult. It wasn't as tender as expected even with a sharp steak knife, then I took a small bite and chew and chew and chew some more... Where is that fat girl with the Chewy mask when you need her for some background noise? Then on closer inspection, the piece of meat seemed to be cut with the grain... But still it was wagyu, it should still be tender as fuck and then I was informed that it was sous vide for 36 hours, not 24, at 131 degrees. That long at 131 degs? C'mon, broseph, you would think it would be like buttah, but it was a mystery that meat tightened up as much as it did. I sous vide my ribeye at 120 for like 45 minzies and it comes out perfect every time. I don't know, this was not the way I wanted to go out all up in this piece... This kinda killed my buzz from all the other goodies. Well, this sad manmeat and the slider bun for puff pastry. I quietly mentioned the problem with the wagyu and they quickly and professionally made this disappear from the check. Totally not necessary as I stated to them but they were pretty adamant about it... That's how you operate a resto of this caliber, mofos.

The couple of missteps during this Tavern menu tasting did not totally overshadow the entire evening, I was just fucking around. There were more hits than misses and the service was superb, as it should be. It's just a beautiful space and all the menus are thought out and approachable. It's nothing ground breaking or ultra adventurous but the creativity, attention to detail and execution more than makes up for it. I like this resto and the way they operate it... But will it be on my radar as a destination spot? Is kinda yes an answer? Ok, yes, but it will be a bleep closer to the edge of the radar. It is definitely not an everyday resto but if someone else is paying... Go fucking git ya some! The bar is stocked with a lot of pricey goodies... Now, I know where to go on the next expense account meal. Suckaz!

Just don't valet park, those retarded motherfuckers will fuck up your car... They drive it like they stole it. It ain't their car... Who gives a shit, right? I found the front end of my new car all fucked up underneath like they tried to jump the speed bump like Evel Knievel... They left two giant gashes on both sides of my bumper and those aren't the type of gashes I'm into. What's funny is that they expect money in return for doing you this favor to your car. Park next door and walk over... Fuck the valets.  

88 West Paces Ferry Rd NW
Atlanta, GA 30305
http://atlasrestaurant.com/menus/