Pepperpot sweetbread as prepared at the Fountain Restaurant at Four Seasons Hotel. (Peter Tobia/Inquirer)
About the restaurant
1 Logan Square
Philadelphia, PA 19103
215-963-1500
Philadelphia, PA 19103
215-963-1500
Rating:
Neighborhood: Logan Square
Parking: Valet parking costs $27 for up to 12 hours.
Handicap access: Wheelchair accessible.
Handicap access: Wheelchair accessible.
Hours:
Lunch Monday through Saturday, 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Dinner Tuesday through Saturday, 6-10 p.m. Breakfast Monday through Friday, 6-11 a.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 7-11 a.m.
Prices:
$$$$
Payment methods:
American Express
Discover
MasterCard
Visa
Cuisine type: American; Seafood
Meals Served:
Breakfast
Brunch
Lunch
Dinner
Style:
Philly’s gold standard of posh hotel dining room may now be our last bastion of classic dining luxury, but it’s still shining under the watch of recently promoted chef William DiStefano to lead the Fountain’s kitchen. DiStefano has lightened-up some of the sauces, with a knack for exotic spices and contemporary ideas that lend international intrigue to the elaborate and inventive plates, now served only in three- or six-course tastings. Paired with some of the smoothest, most seasoned service in town, the Four Seasons still delivers a taste of special-occasion opulence that is increasingly rare.
Specialties:
Veal brisket ravioli; oat-crusted arctic char; duck with duck “scrapple”; rabbit tenderloin; frog legs fricassee; steamed halibut; lobster “paella”; Moroccan-spiced grouper; venison with chestnut bread pudding; Meyer lemon basil tart; apple sticky toffee pudding; cheese trolley. Tasting menus: $80 for three courses; $120 for six courses. No a la carte.
Alcohol:
One of the city's major cellars features 400 labels, with a focus on prestige French regions, but also a wide international range, with slightly lower markups than in the past and a 60-bottle list under $60. Superb sommelier advice led us to interesting, esoteric bottles at accessible prices, including an Alquezar Moristel Somontano from Spain ($38) and a fabulous Rhone-style white from Stolpman in California, L'Avion ($70).
Philly.com Dining
The Rating Key
$ = cheap eats
$$ = moderate priced; most entrees $16-$25
$$$ = premium priced; most entrees $26-$35
$$$$ = hey, big spender; most entrees $36 and up
Superior
Rare; sets fine-dining standards.
Rare; sets fine-dining standards.
Excellent 
Excels in every category of the dining experience.
Excels in every category of the dining experience.
Very Good 
Interesting, with above-average food.
Interesting, with above-average food.
Hit-or-miss 
Poor — No bells
If you spend much time in the city's hot new BYOs, it might come as a shock when you crack the menu to see the price of dining at the Fountain Restaurant these days.
Entrees start at $29, and that's just lunch. Count on $45 to $50 at dinner. But you can also count on something else. The Fountain still delivers one of the most impressively lavish dining experiences in the city. The Four Seasons hotel swaddles guests in regal luxury the moment they step through the Fountain's hushed vestibule into the warm wood dining room resplendent with gold and green linens, sparkling crystal, and a grand view of the Swann Fountain. You're also likely to see plenty of power brokers at the poshly spaced tables. But the city's best service staff knows how to make any Philadelphian feel like a big shot with egalitarian warmth and professional grace.
I wish the awesome cellar were more democratically priced. But it is the powerhouse kitchen run by executive chef Martin Hamann that assures the Fountain its place in our culinary pantheon with meticulous haute cuisine built on prime ingredients and clever ideas.
Classic pepper-pot stew undergoes a contemporary deconstruction as its tripe and pepper broth is reduced to rich sauce around sweetbreads and croutons smeared with osso buco meat. A play on brandade brings a potato carved into a hollow tower filled with creamed Dover sole and caviar. And foie gras terrine is a luscious marvel of charcuterie, the Tokaj-marinated liver marbleized with slivered wild mushrooms and a crimson round of squab breast.
I've had only a handful of disappointing bites here. But something as incidental as a leaden pumpkin gnocchi, or a pedestrian french fry with the cheesesteak spring roll, will stand out when perfection is the standard.
Mostly, this kitchen has refined a vision that, a few years ago, seemed bent on overpowering the diner. Butter-poached black bass was divine over a ragout of sweet corn and chanterelle mushrooms. Rare venison offered startling contrast to a sugar-white pedestal of salsify logs. And a two-pound lobster was transformed into triple-take luxury: tucked into a ravioli with truffles; paired with creamed celery root and capers; sauteed with bok choy in exotic Asian lobster sauce.
Desserts are more conservative, but it's hard to complain about a perfect chocolate souffle or rum-soaked baba. Or a cart laden with gorgeous cheeses.
There is something to be said for such pleasures - even at this price. The Fountain may just be the one we can count on most.
