What's bubbling about the Fountain?
The Four Seasons says its signature eatery is not going the way of other high-end Four Season restaurants elsewhere.
The restaurant world is settling into a more casual business model.
Now the local rumor mill is grinding with talk that the Fountain, the Four Seasons Philadelphia's quadruple-belled extravaganza, is due to be downscaled or eliminated -- much as the Four Seasons corporate masters did with Aujourd'hui in Boston and last month, with Truffles in Toronto.
FS Philadelphia spokeswoman Farra D'Orazio today dashed talk of a closing, and added: "We're always looking for the best interests of our guests while keeping in mind what's going on in the world."
So hmmm.
Meanwhile, the Four Seasons' Swann Lounge on Wednesday (10/7) will start a bistro menu including such dishes as ahi tuna Nicoise salad; classic French onion soup; Muscovy duck confit; beef or turkey burgers; braised short ribs Bourguignonne and bouillabaisse, priced at $8 for salads, $11 for many appetizers, $20 for sandwiches, and in the mid $20s for meat and fish entrees.
This menu will reflect pricing strategies employed at the "new kids" in town: Palomar's Square 1682 at 17th and Sansom and Le Meridien's Amuse at 1421 Arch St.