Red, White & Unique

April 2017
Written By: 
Paul Grimshaw
Photographs by: 
Scott Smallin

American Tap House offers an eclectic menu that’s anything but ordinary

At first glance the gastropub American Tap House presents a star-spangled canvas painted with craft beer and sports on two dozen big screens within a large, open, rustic space—pure Americana. But hidden just beneath all the exposed brick, industrial lighting, reclaimed wood and red, white & blue décor is a menu as worldly and diverse as America herself—a veritable melting pot of international flavors and options that seem to suit just about everyone.

This new “craft food & brew” concept, which opened last year in the still-developing Celebrity Square section of Broadway at the Beach, comes from the growing Wicked Tuna restaurant group based in Myrtle Beach and Charlotte. It’s the same team behind Wicked Tuna, Good Time Charley’s, Rooster’s, Beach House Bar & Grill, RipTydz and Moe Moon’s.

Open daily for lunch and dinner, the restaurant features a chef-driven menu, including small plates: Asian Style Pork Belly with kimchi and garlic aioli; Butter Chicken, which is an Indian curry-marinated chicken dish served with Naan bread; and some 18 additional small plate choices. You can also choose from meatballs, Creole Mussels, Smoked BBQ Sliders, Braised Short Ribs and Dry Rubbed Chicken Wings. Of course you’ll find four or five burger options, Wisconsin Bratwurst and other more typically “American” fare.

The extensive and eclectic menu also features creative salads and flatbread pizzas. Sandwiches, seafood plates, tacos and five chophouse and steak entrees round out the menu, with most small plate prices in the $10–$13 range, sandwiches and burgers $13–$17 and seafood plates and steak entrees are priced $21–$30.

More than 40 craft beers, many of them regionally sourced, are on tap, along with domestics, wine and plenty of liquor choices, all served at a giant L-shaped bar, maybe the largest in Myrtle Beach. High-top lounge tables, overstuffed booths and clever décor are all anchored by creative cuisine, which sets American Tap House apart from so many cookie-cutter concepts with the same ol’ play-it-safe menus. Sure, you could order Fish & Chips or the Morning After Burger. But why not eat a Cubano sandwich? It features Cuban-seasoned roasted and shredded pork shank, sliced ham, ale mustard and Swiss cheese. Or Korean BBQ Shrimp Tacos with handmade tortillas stuffed with fried shrimp, Asian BBQ sauce, tomatillo salsa and queso fresco? Now that’s American!