Fountain

Fountain Restaurant
One Logan Sqare
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 963-1500
http://www.fourseasons.com/philadelphia/dining.html

The missus and I have always wanted to see what all the fuss is about at Fountain Restaurant in The Four Seasons. There are a hand full of eateries in Philly that continue to top the “to do” list for diners eating in Center City. The Fountain is typically at the top of these lists. Needless to say, this was going to be the splurge dinner.

We arrived at the posh Four Seasons Hotel giddy with anticipation. The interior is decorated in warm colors. For a fancy restaurant decorating is nice but not overly stuffy like some of these places can sometimes be. The Maître de seated right next to the window that overlooks beautiful Swann Memorial Fountain (I’m guessing that’s where the name comes from). *Take a look at the link, some pretty neat stuff about the fountain. Did you know Alexander Calder’s father helped design the fountain? Anyway, back to our regularly scheduled programming.*

The tasting menu was on my mind before we even walked through the door. Our preference is to try as many different things as we can when we go to a place like this. Instead of giving you the play by play I’m going to give you a list of what we had along with some comments.

For Mrs. Dine O Mite:

Grilled Fresh Water Prawns with Stuffed Zucchini Roulade and Soft Polenta, Heirloom Tomato, Opal Basil Emulsion

Roast Veal Tenderloin with Sweetbreads, Wild Mushrooms and Fresh Ricotta Cannelloni, Sweet Garlic and Olive Oil Emulsion

Rhubarb Crisp

For Me:

The Tasting Menu – I don’t remember one thing I had, seriously. Maybe it was that the whole tasting menu aspect of it that didn’t really make things register in my head. I remember the level of quality was very good. The food was good. It just wasn’t food that was so good I can remember it even a week later.

My overall impression is that Fountain is in a gorgeous setting. I think you’d be hard pressed to find anything that comes close to the view. It truly is a memorable and romantic setting. The service was of impeccable quality as it should be at this level of dining. The food, however, left me waiting to be “wowed”. For me I never really felt as though the experience reached that fourth gear.

For me Fountain, for the money, was a let down. For that kind of money I would have rather tried Vetri or 10 Arts. I think if you’re looking for the most romantic setting in town combined with good solid food, (but not very adventurous), then this is your place. If you’re a "food first, service second, setting last" kind of person you should probably try something else.