The food was OK. Pricey. Small portions. Dinner for 3 was $280. Loud music, dark atmosphere. uncomfortable seats. Waiters were accessible. On balance, I do not recommend. read more

The food was tasty but not exceptional, a bit fussy, and the portions were so small that we actually left sort of hungry. The "roots" salad was good, the lobster was average but quite petite with a tiny spoonful of potatoes and a little celery stalk. Scallop ceviche starter was spicy, tasty overall but a confusing variety of things on the plate, most of which overwhelmed the taste of the bay scallops. Hangar steak was good and nicely rare, with rather standard sour cream covered potatoes and a grilled onion slice. One exception was the pumpkin tortellini which was outstanding. The service was pleasant. Overall, I was disappointed in our experience at Fork, although maybe we just went in expecting too much. read more

Been three times now and each time the food is just wonderful. Black and White Pici, Duck, Cod are all excellent. A tasting sensation. May need a deeper wine list. read more

Fork is still one of the most lovely restaurants in Old City. We frequently dine there before attending a play at the Arden, and if you let the waiter know in advance, you will be served in plenty of time for the curtain call and also receive a dining discount as Fork is a partner with the Arden. Our most recent visit was last week - loved the kale salad - fresh and flavorful - it doesn't taste anything like other kale dishes. I must say that I wasn't wild about the other dishes created by current chef Eli Kulp and miss the prior chef Terrence Feury. But we'll try it again - we can't give up on Fork. read more

I went here the other night and my overall experience was good. The ambience was lively and my manhattan was delicious. I shared the muscovy duck for two which was tasty and a good experience for a date. The only negative was my apple crisp dessert left much to be desired. As pricing goes, you can get better bang for your buck elsewhere. read more

This was the most fun, entertaining, enjoyable, and delicious meal that we have had since going to Spring in Paris last summer. We chose the House menu, which I highly recommend for the value. Our pasta course was so unique and delicious that it's worth calling out as an example of the inventive food preparation: it was black and white pici, with each piece half squid ink, with a striped appearance. The unique, mostly bite-sized tastes of bread between each course were "over the top" delicious and unique, with different types of butter that paired in ways I would never have considered. Bravo to the chefs of Fork for offering such a spectacular labor of love! read more

Fork is excellent! A deserved recent winner for best service in Philadelphia magazine, "Ed" our waiter and the entire staff made this dinner for my mom's birthday a smashing success. I am VERY critical of restaurants and entertain my clients at high end places regularly and Fork offers a great experience both in adventurous cuisine and stupendous service! I will go back ASAP, and likely again, and again! read more

Tried twice- once for Sunday brunch, once for Friday dinner. Unimpressed. Will not go back. Overpriced and underwhelming. Left regretful of decision to eat there. read more

Sunday night, we were a table of four for The Chef's Tasting and Wine Pairing. The smoked trout caviar w/ dilled cucumbers were perfectly paired with Clavelin Brut Comte Jura Chardonnay. The Roots was one of my favorites, carmelized root veggies w/hazelnuts and quince paired with Girard Sauvignon Blanc. Autumn Greens Gnudi paired with Gautheron Chablis, Chardonnay. Country-Time Suckling Pig, delicious, black walnut, 3-hour pair, kohlrabi paired with Isole e Olena Chianti Classico was great! The best food I've had in recent memory. Service was great. Can't wait to go back again. read more

This is a fun restaurant with great service, and an enjoyable dining experience. The food on the other hand is just OK. Nothing stood out, nothing wowed me at all. The flavors etc were very modest, almost like everything was watered down. The food isn't awful, just lacks flavor. We ordered the four course dinner. read more

I tried the polenta w. mushrooms and broccoli rabe for brunch. The polenta was the consistency of runny grits (not what I expected) the veggies were fresh, but sparse. What a disappointment! Worst of all, the flavor was bad. At times I've fallen on an unexpected delight (the teacake), but all in all, Fork is overrated. read more

I've came here a few times over the course of a couple years when i travel to this side of the country as a chef myself and a passionate foodie i must say hands down great food great place great staff keep up the amazing work ill definitely be back read more

For the most part, my friends and I had an excellent dining experience. We thought the food and service were top notch. I was pleasantly surprised with the food portions. They are not getting 5 stars because the host was very pretentious and their alcohol prices were outrageous. Will likely return if I have another special event. read more

the food was amazing. and the service was like nothing I have ever experienced. The service alone is worth experiencing. +++

This is possibly the most over-rated, over-hyped restaurant in all of Philadelphia. We ate there last night. Complained about noise being seated next to the dishwasher. We were moved to the bar as punishment... Gee, folks, if we complained about the noise in one place, why would we want to sit in a noisy bar? Very rude! Soup tasted like dishwater and the fish was overcooked. Wait staff was obnoxious. Will never go back! read more

Went as a party of 4 with my in laws. We were excited to show them a good meal and this meal did not meet expectations at all. We did the house menu and were able to try different dishes. We all were very disappointed. Philadelphia has great food and this place was not in the same league as some of the other amazing restaurants. Service was also off, our waters were mixed up so my husband who ordered still water was given sparkling to top off his still glass. read more

Not going to write a long review but Fork dazzled for our 34th anniversary dinner. Thanks to Open Table they knew it was a special event and complimentary champagne greeted us. A wonderfully prepared drink for my wife just based on telling the ingredients, let us know we were in good hands.The menu is not deep but Wolf (our wonderful and knowledgeable server) walked us through a wide expanse of Fork's culinary language. The trout caviar was as good as advertised and the barrata a specialty item we have not seen and superb in taste. The pica ( a thicker pasta strand) layered into fresh calamari and smaller seafood pieces was also a delight. A special side of snap peas, cold, fresh and drizzled in oil with a light cream side was an unexpected treat. A chicken breast, moist and covered in a a nutty barley topping was perfect and my pork loin, pork belly entree was also superb. Not cheap but the quality of food, service, and atmosphere makes Fork a perfect dining experience. read more

I went out for dinner at Fork for my birthday this year, and it was a wonderful experience. The food, drink, and service were exceptional. We chose to go with the house menu and selected three courses. The kitchen sent out delicious little tasting surprises throughout the meal. We were really encouraged to take our time to enjoy the food and the atmosphere. I will absolutely be back! read more

My review is based only on brunch. I had the lobster omelette which was very good with a side of smothered potatos (covered with onions). My three friends has the steak and eggs which they all said was delicious, however, two of the orders were not cooked to their specifications. Normally this wouldn't be that big of a deal but I feel that if they ask you how you want something cooked and paying higher than average prices the kitchen should make the effort to get it right. The service was excellent and offered to prepare the dishes again but we had already begun to eat. They made it up to us by removing a cocktail from the bill and gave us complimentary pastries for dessert which were very good! I'd recommend Fork and would go back to try dinner. read more

Waited 18 minutes for someone to take our order for Sunday brunch. Had to ask twice for sweetener for coffee and salt and pepper for omlettes. Menu some limited. Food not bad but not real good either. read more

I just came in for an iced americano. Is double-pulling shots the norm in philly? Cosi's does that too.

Had the chef's tasting but I found overall menu uneven. Sea bass is delicious but the "lasagna" is coated in greasy cheese & inedible. There's a bread course between every main course which was overwhelming & overkill. Wait staff too anxious to clear table btwn courses, which meant we had to continually wave them off. Overall it was unappealing. read more

One of the best meals in philly I've had. Rivals restaurants in NYC.

Where should you go after you eat at Fork? Somewhere for dinner! We were a party of 10, racked up a $1,000 bill, and all left there very hungry. The meals were delicious, but there were incredibly small portions. The $40 lobster entrée was disappointing at best. While it had 3 tiny pieces of lobster over potatoes, it had to be returned because it was raw. The pasta entrées each had about 3-4 "fork"fulls--not enough to satisfy an appetite. Philadelphia has some of the best restaurants--unfortunately this wasn't one of them! read more

boo. sad to read so many bad experiences. fork has been one of my favorite old standbys for a long time. I have had many amazing meals there, and some standardly good. Service can be up and down.... BUT.... if you are ever interested in using their private room for an event I PROMISE you will not be disappointed. We threw our wedding rehearsal dinner there for 35 people on 2/8/08. The room was stunning, set with candles and perfect lighting, as well as gorgeous customized menus with our names on them. Great, i know it doesn't take a rocket scientist to run some menus through the printer with the bride and grooms name on it. The attention to detail did not end there, luckily. We were able to pick a three course menu (5 choices per course) that reflected our food likings and no one was disappointed. We have some major foodies in the family, along with some truly picky eaters and everyone was pleased. Highlights were two first course items: 1) duck confit with frisee salad and 2) roasted beet salad with tangerines, avacado and a passion fruit vinagrette and 3 amazing second course choices: 1) a vegetarian clay pot with sobas tofu and veggies 2) the hanger steak with yucca frites and chard, and lastly the salmon with fork kim chee and sushi rice. Ellen, the owner accomodated both servere milk allergies and my best friend's gluten free diet, all the way down to customizing a dessert for us. She also allowed us to pre select wines for pouring during dinner and did not try to upsell us on anything. She and the servers made us feel like family and seemed genuinely excited about our celebration. All that would be great, but wouldn't really matter if the food weren't spectacular. it was. Our guests are still raving about it. I will continue to celebrate milestones and regular sunday afternoons at fork. read more

It speaks volumes for Fork that, despite the following complaints, which I simply should not have to make, we know that we will return because we love the restaurant's quiet and genteel, yet relaxed and subtly hip, feel. We've been to Fork before but were most recently there Xmas Eve 2010, and the restaurant was full. Noise level, lighting, decor, and clientele (more like a NYC crowd, if a little on the mature side) were a delight to experience. Now to the partially negative. For a restaurant of its price-level and reputation, Fork's food was disappointing, and this is representative of our several-times experience there. Nothing was bad, but only three dishes were very strong-- the duck confit and the crab cake on the chef's tasting menu, then the semi-fredo (a demi-frozen custard--I've blanked on the exact name). The vegetables a la greque were quite tasty though nothing too out of the ordinary, especially for a chef's tasting menu costing around $24 for four items!!! All other food was simply not special and not in any sense notably well-prepared. We had the pork chop entree and the sea bass with parsnip puree. Our desserts included the pomegranite panna cotta and the chocolate sesame dessert as well as the "fredo." One inexcusable thing: the butter had that quintessential stale butter taste (like the inside of a pantry). This flaw is absolutely avoidable and simply should never happen with a restaurant famed for its bread items and perfectly capable at least of meeting standards of baseline decent quality. The wines we had by the glass (a Chardonnay and a red not recalled) were quite good and just okay, respectively. Last but not least: in the Open Table notes, we'd let the maitr'd know that it was our wedding anniversary and that we'd appreciate his or her idea of a good table. Instead, we were placed at a cramped table in the back by the kitchen, and beside a slit in the wall through which a silverware drawer was constantly opened. At the very least, the staff could have apologized for not being able to meet our request. A final note: for anyone save a small, fit person, the seats against the wall in the back south (i.e., toward South Street) corner of the restaurant, which share a long cushion with the seats extending east (i.e., toward the Delaware) from that point, have about 4 inches of usable seating area because of the plumpness of said cushion. It looked as if this seating arrangement was repeated on the western edge of the restaurant as well. We're small ourselves but don't like to think about the trouble that would be caused by that non-removable cushion for people of larger or taller build! This simply needs to be addressed. With all that said, our server was an elegant, poised person who was an absolute delight. Nearby tables clearly appreciated her quiet, lovely, mature manner as well. Lastly, don't forget that, despite all the above complaints, we will return! That tells you a lot. read more

I was really excited to take my family to Fork for my graduation dinner. They came into town and we were all looking forward to dinner. I had been to Fork before and had a great experience, so I was hopeful this would be similar.... we were seated immediately with my reservation for 6 however it took a few minutes for anyone to come over and A. Introduce themselves as the waiter/waitress and B. to take our drink orders. The drinks finally come and two of them were wrong and needed to be sent back to the bar. We ordered two orders of oysters at $18.00 a plate which were not fresh at all!!!! Coming from Massachusettes and living off of Welfleet oysters our whole lives, this was a BIG disappointment. The main entrees finally came and they were very good! I ordered the salmon which was great, and also tried the scallops which were perfectly seared! A random person comes over to the table and asks my Uncle if he would like another drink, and then proceeds to walk away from the table without asking anyone else with empty glasses if they would like anything!? The waitress (whoever the heck she was???? because she did NOT stand out what so ever and possibly did not even share her name) was non existant. Our empty plates were left in front of us for over 15 minutes until we finally flagged someone down to get the cake we had brought and to get the check. So needless to say, I will not be recommending this place ever again. read more

I'd been hearing so many great things about Fork for years, but never got around to eating there. I made a reservation for 9:30 and got there around 9 to have a drink or two at the bar before dinner. There were no seats at the bar when I first arrived, so I stood by for a while. When I did find a seat, it took a while more to get a drink. This was fine as I was entertained by the bickering host and hostess. I think one was new, and they were not getting along. It was Saturday night. I expected to wait a little. Ended up waiting quite a bit. We were seated 45 minutes after our reservation time with no apology. If I knew my 9:30 res was actually gonna be a 10:15, I would have had dinner elsewhere and returned another night! Anyway, our appetizers were pretty tasty. I had the duck breast for dinner, which was not bad, but not the correct value for price ($38, I think). My dinner guests and I shared a dessert, which we all actually hated. We told the server it wasn't what we expected (not sweet) and he apologized but didn't remove it from the bill. Instead he brought us out some unsolicited cookies... which also sucked. All in all, I don't recommend Fork. (For fairness, I wanted to point out Eli Culp was out.) read more

After years of reading amazing reviews, I finally got a chance to go to Fork with work colleagues on June 24. I was extremely disappointed due to the following issues: 1) Air conditioning was NOT working, it was extremely hot, 2) waiter staff was snobby and inattentive, 3) dinner for 6 from the $70 price fixe dinner menu took over 3.5 hours from the time it took to serve us water to the time we received the check, and 4) the food was a good quality but a lot of the food was salty, portions were very, very, very small, the free food fillers in between consisted mostly of bread products to ensure that you did not leave hungry. I have food sensitivity and experienced allergic reactions to my dinner last night which tells me that there were 1) too many sulfites in the wine which was probably domestic wine disguised as French on the menu and/or 2) preservatives used in the food. Please note that I only had 2 glasses of wine over a 3.5 hour period and all the rest of my dining party had only one glass of wine. The bill per person was $115. I don't mind spending $$$ for a great dinner but this restaurant did not live up to my expectations for one of the top rated restaurants in the Phila area. And I do consider myself a food snob! read more

Went to Fork for a business dinner with party of five. It seemed to be impressive going in. Waiter seemed very informed. Drinkers got their drinks just fine. They really push the house menu, which is a $78 tasting menu, and one person can't get it unless the entire table does, We weren't interested in eating that much food, so we ordered a la carte. The salad and burratta appetizers were okay, the trout roe was amazing, the bread was really amazing. However, dinner "mains" were another story. The deconstructed cheese-heavy lasagna was really great. the chicken was undercooked (yuck), the smoked cod was mushy, underdone and on the cool side, and the $26 cauliflower steak was tasty but not much to write home about (both diners who got this said so and I tasted it). With this price point ($425 for two rounds of drinks, 3 appetizers and one dessert), it should have been much better. I am sad we ate here. read more

Worst service ever!!!! A week ago five of us went to Fork for a celebratory meal. I waited a week to post this review hoping that some concern would be shown after speaking with Ellen the owner. We arrived on time at 8:30 and were told they were running behind. We got seated over 25 minutes later- no apology or anything. Our waiter dropped off menus and then for 40 minutes we waited- no explanation of the menu and no one to take our order. Finally, we called over another person who I thought was a server but was actually a floor manager- she took our order right away but should of alerted someone we were unhappy but this did not occur. Our waiter went awol- later Ellen said he had a table who was doing a tasting menu and had trouble coping with the other tables. We never had anyone come over and ask how we were doing. Our table was very cramped- not enough room for white and red wine glasses to be on the table at the same time, so we were constantly juggling plates and glasses. The food was very good. At 11:0O we are now the only patrons- employees are at the bar drinking- were was a waiter??? We finally ordered desert- all were pre made. Twenty minutes go by and no dessert- we are getting very pissed off. Ellen told me later she walked through the restaurant about this time, saw we looked unhappy and mentioned it to the manager (who had never came too ur table. He did nothing and Ellen should of been more pro active. At 11:20 we canceled dessert and expressed our outrage to the waiter. You may of thought we would get a check right away..no..we had to go over to the manager and demand we get our check. He said he would comp us our pre dinner drinks but he only comped 4 out of 5- leaving the most expensive one on the bill. We were so angry and our evening had been ruined we just left. I have never not left a tip- this is the first time. On Monday after 2 calls to have the drink charge credited Ellen called. She said she was sorry her staff did not take care of us but had some weird explanations. She said she should do better about training the staff to know when customers want a leisurely meal and when they do not. We did want a leisurely meal but a whole hour of out time was spent with no food at all! Ellen did invite us back- but after this awful experience and having to pay for dessert we didn't eat we will never set foot in the restaurant again. Out next night was at Farm and the Fishermen- totally wonderful, attentive service and very, very tasty food. read more