Columnist Muriel Stevens: A return to Philadelphia freedom

Wednesday, June 6, 2001 | 8:24 a.m.

Muriel Stevens' dining column appears Fridays. Her shopping columns and travel columns appear Wednesdays. Reach her at 259-4080 or muriel@ lasvegassun.com.

Philadelphia, my hometown, was once considered so dull and predictable it was the favorite target of such professional wits as W.C. Fields. If only he could see the vibrant, exciting metropolis it has become. Four days in the "City of Brotherly Love" is hardly time enough to spend time with my brother, visit favorite haunts and take stock of the renaissance taking place here -- especially in Center City, where I stayed at the Four Seasons Philadelphia.

Seventeen years ago when the Four Seasons Philadelphia pioneered its choice location it was alone. Situated at 18th Street and Benjamin Franklin Parkway (One Logan Square), it now has many neighbors. But none intrude on the position and serenity of this elegant award winner. Four Seasons Philadelphia is the only 17-time, AAA five-diamond hotel in Pennsylvania. It's an easy walk from the hotel to the shops and restaurants on Walnut and Chestnut streets and to Rittenhouse Square, a small, lush park that defines the stylish residential and business area that surrounds it. The vista from my spacious room took in parts of the lovely gardens, historical buildings and the parkway.

Unlike the Four Seasons Las Vegas, room prices are highest on weekends. At Four Seasons Philadelphia, weekend packages start at $260 for a standard room. Included are a club breakfast for two and valet parking -- no small deal since parking is $16, even when dining at a Four Seasons restaurant -- the going rate at most downtown hotels.

Locals have embraced the Four Seasons Philadelphia as their own, filling the dining rooms and party facilities year-round. And in a city enjoying a surge of glorious new restaurants, the Four Seasons Fountain Restaurant is at the top. Chef Jean-Marie Lacroix was recently named the James Beard award winner for the mid-Atlantic States (more about Lacroix in Friday's column).

Downtown Philly is full of surprises. The Rittenhouse Square area boasts a city-designated French Quarter complete with street signs. Not much more than two blocks long (maybe smaller) this pocket-sized French Quarter is named in honor of the back-to-back French eateries and shops that have been opened by an influx of French immigrants. Sidewalk cafes flourish on sidewalks so narrow passersby can barely navigate. Chinatown is, at long last, official. Street signs previously in English only are now in English and Chinese, and a mini version of San Francisco's Chinatown gate leads to the heart of Chinatown. Every Wednesday at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (on the Parkway) the doors stay open until 8:30 p.m.

Themed events with food, drink, art lectures, music and a movie are offered. The first Friday of every month in Old City (downtown) more than 30 galleries keep late hours and provide refreshments. A walk around Rittenhouse Square is still one of my favorite pastimes.

Alas, one of my favorite things is gone from Center City. The soft pretzel vendors are no more; nixed by the city for being "too dirty." What do they know? The bit of soot that came with the streak of yellow mustard, daubed on with a wooden swab, imparted all the flavor. Did so -- ask any kid from Philly, like me.