The 2010 Forbes Travel Guide (formerly Mobil Travel Guide) as awarded the Fountain at the Four Seasons 5-stars. It’s one of just 21 restaurants in the United States and Canada to receive the prestigious honor. The last Philadelphia restaurant to hold 5-stars was Georges Perrier’s Le Bec-Fin but he relinquished the shiny stars last year as he went a la carte.

Inqlings: Fountain gushing with 5 [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Fountain Restaurant [Official Site]

Tomorrow, Chefame is hosting a giant clambake behind the Piazza at Schmidt’s. There will be clams, mussels, sausage, lobster and crabs cooked in big pots and 5 tons of sand on Hancock Street. The clambake kicks off at 6 and tickets are $25 per person.

The BIG Clambake [Chefame]
Tickets for the Clambake [Dining By Design and ChefAMe]

The Oyster House is kicking off Fish & Chips Tuesdays between 5 and 11 pm. The $14 platter comes with beer battered day boat cod and hand cut fries. Add a Yards Brawler to the mix for $3.

Oyster House [Official Site]

Craig LaBan checks out the new interpretation of the Oyster House on Sansom Street and though he finds some classics off a bit there is more than enough to recommend.

There are more than enough touchstones done right here, however, to warm a fish-house fanatic’s heart. The grilled blue fish was the freshest I’ve had, the dusky meat updated with a summer salad of limas and heirloom tomatoes in vinaigrette. The clam chowder and lobster bisque were also unthickened, but their Lancaster-cream broths were vividly rich. The shrimp and lobster cocktails were pure raw-bar decadence, far superior to the too-lightly-grilled lobster entree. Steamed soft-shell belly clams were was the definition of New England clam-ocity.

The gumbo and fisherman’s stew, meanwhile, were satisfying seafood meals in a bowl. A Pernod-scented broth for the stew was the next best thing to good bouillabaisse. And then, of course, there is that quintessential Philadelphian odd couple: fried oysters with chicken salad.

Two Bells – Very Good

Oyster House [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Oyster House [Official Site]

Eric Smith at UWISHUNU points us towards this bargain. On Tuesdays at Smiths you can get a dozen mussels doused in a garlic-butter, served with chopped tomatoes and accompanied by slices of bread for just $2.

Mussels @ Smiths: $2 Tuesdays [UWISHUNU]

Joy Manning finds a little bit of California in this rendition of the Oyster House. She also finds a fish house menu worth diving into.

The heart of the menu, the oyster list, changes every day. It usually features five to seven varieties, with options from both coasts. Mink thought about confining the list to East Coast specimens, but his love of the Westerners, like the tiny, succulent, cucumber-scented Kumamoto, mandated that both regions be represented. Servers offer spot-on descriptions and guide newbies through the oyster-ordering process. During one visit, I fell head over heels in love with the Wellfleet from Cape Cod.

Food: B+
Service: B+
Vibe: A

East Meets West [Philadelphia Magazine]

Adam Erace visits Sam Mink’s Oyster House and finds the food to be “shucking good.”

With oysters as good as these, any ostentation further than classic mignonette would be like covering a grass-fed filet mignon in Heinz 57. Or so you’d think. It’s ironic that chef Greg Ling, last of sushi den Raw, showed real finesse with the cooked oyster dishes. Let the purists scoff; you and I will be tossing back the roasted ones Español style, having the last laugh through mouthfuls of Delaware Bays electrified by fiery, finely diced, house-made chorizo and cilantro-lime butter. Here was the injection the Delawareans needed, the sausage grease and melted butter enrobing each one in a crimson aurora of liquid fat (in a good way) balanced by the citrus and herb.

Oyster House [Philadelphia Weekly]
Oyster House [Official Site]

Mike Stollenwerk’s Fish is aiming for just after Labor Day at 1708 Lombard. Meal Ticket has an early look at the menu.

Skate with truffle spaetzle and a parmesan broth sounds great. Escolar? No thank you!

Sample menu for Mike Stollenwerk’s Fish [Meal Ticket]

Adam Erace heads to Smitty’s in Somers Point as much the experience as the food.

Sure, you can put your name in with the hostess for a table in the charmingly shabby dining room, but the bay breeze, harbor view and setting sun on your back is only available outside. First, claim your stool by sitting directly behind it in one of the rickety wooden benches that flank the bar. When the diner on the stool in front of you leaves, that spot is yours-unless of course another patient saint was there before you, and then you must defer.

On the Clam [Philadelphia Weekly]

Michael Klein reports that Dmitri Chimes is adding a third location to his Dmitri’s empire. The grilled-octopus emporium is going in to the old Elixir Cafe on North 2nd Street. Opening is set for late September and like the original, it will be BYOB.

A third Dmitri’s [The Insider]