This week, the Philadelphia Museum of Art welcomed guests into the back of its ground floor—but not to see the art. A restaurant and café, designed by Pritzker Prize–winning architect Frank Gehry , opened its doors to a slew of hungry guests. The opening marks the first major milestone in the museum's Gehry-led Core Project scheduled to wrap up in 2020, which comprises a number of major upgrades to the stately Greek Revival and will expand the museum's public spaces by over 90,000 square feet.
Guests can see into the kitchen as they dine.
As part of his ongoing renovation of the museum, Gehry devised a fine-dining restaurant and revamped the existing café into locales that are sure to entice museum guests and foodies alike. Stir, helmed by chef Mark Tropea, is the first Gehry-designed restaurant on the East Coast. Menu offerings, based on locally sourced ingredients, will change seasonally. A few days before the opening, guests noshed on seared scallops with crispy potatoes, a salad of grilled Jersey peaches and stracciatella cheese, and roasted Griggstown chicken.
"The dining experience at Stir and Stir café are really part and parcel of what we offer our visitors, engaging all the senses," says Gail Harrity, President and COO of the museum.
Though the master plan isn't slated to alter the museum's existing architectural style, Stir is the first public-facing part of the renovation that is distinctly "Gehry" in look and feel. Guests will immediately be taken with Stir's aerial centerpiece. King of the undulating architectural form—and unafraid to make a statement—Gehry affixed a striking web of Douglas fir to the restaurant's ceiling, which overlooks the 76-seat dining room. The sculptural wood piece hangs above quartzite tables and sleek leather chairs in a rich maroon.
Fine art, it seems, is just as important as fine food.
