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"The Franklin Fountain aims to serve an experience infused with ideals, drizzled with drollery and sprinkled with the forgotten flavors of the American past." Thus reads an elegantly framed script under a picture of a brooding Ben Franklin.
Founded in 2004 by Eric and Ryan Berley, the Franklin Fountain is a sparkling repro gem of an ice cream parlor in the heart of Philly's Old City. From the antique tasting spoons to the filament light bulbs, Franklin Fountain is all about the details. You are instantly transported back to the turn of the century (not the one where we all thought the world's computer system was going to crash!). We're talking about the time when Howard Taft was the President of the United States and an ice cream "parlour" was a fun and fashionable place to recreate and sit a spell.
The brothers Berley kick up the show by even dressing the part. Both are donned in all white with black bow ties. Eric's got a bit of a handlebar moustache; Ryan has slicked back hair parted in the middle. They are very knowledgeable about the antique ice cream scene and are happy to share interesting historic tidbits with you.
You'll want to put Alexander's Ragtime Band on the Victrola while you wait for your sundae to arrive at your table. Franklin Fountain offers many soda fountain classics, including the banana split, which was invented in Philadelphia in 1904 by a pharmacist's assistant. Many food items are specific to Pennsylvania, such as White Birch ice cream, but they also carry an array of Choward's and Adams' gums and even make a Teaberry ice cream, which to tell you the truth isn't too bad! The Cocoa Cola, imported from Mexico, is made with cane sugar. Other sodas include A-Treat Sasparilla and Bleinheim's Hot Ginger Ale that will "knock your socks off." Moxie Nerve Tonic is also available for the adventuresome and/or anxious.
Sundaes and banana splits run from $5.00 to $10.00 but easily feed two to four people. I've been to the parlour several times, but this time I had a Parisian Flip, an original "electric phosphate" recipe from 1910 that is made with orange and pineapple juices, angostura bitters, an egg, and phosphate. It was a perfect refresher for a muggy summer Philly day. Eric explained that back in the day only the men drank phosphates. It was considered the fast food of its time because of the protein provided by the egg.
A pitcher of ice water and glasses sit conveniently nearby and are the perfect accompaniment to your ice cream treat. They also offer hot waffle ice cream sandwiches, and 20 flavors of ice creams and sodas. Originally, ice cream parlours carried only vanilla, strawberry and lemon ice cream and 20-plus flavors of soda for floats. Chocolate ice cream just wasn’t done. Imagine that! But Beware: You may walk out of the Fountain needing an oversized chair a la "Big Bill."
The brothers are currently in the process of rehabbing an old peanut roaster they found and hope to lure the curious tourists in with the delicious smell of fresh roasted nuts. Even the phone is one of those old wooden wall phones you speak directly into. Operator, get me PE-nnsylvania 5-6000!
Did you know that William Dreyer and Joseph Edy created Rocky Road ice cream in 1929 to boost peoples' spirits following the Stock Market Crash? The Franklin Fountain website (www.franklinfountain.com) is a veritable font of all sorts of historical information on ice cream, soda fountains, and the sweet history of Philadelphia. This is definitely a cool place to check out, online as well as on foot.
The Franklin Fountain is such a well-executed time machine that I can't do justice to the eccentric details that make it the special place that it is. Now go turn up Irving Berlin's Greatest Hits on your cd player and get yourself a scoop of Rocky Road.
Oh, and by the way, Wilson wins in '12.
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Trust Me, Gut Busting is a Must
"The Franklin Fountain aims to serve an experience infused with ideals, drizzled with drollery and sprinkled with the forgotten flavors of the American past." Thus reads an elegantly framed script under a picture of a brooding Ben Franklin.
Founded in 2004 by Eric and Ryan Berley, the Franklin Fountain is a sparkling repro gem of an ice cream parlor in the heart of Philly's Old City. From the antique tasting spoons to the filament light bulbs, Franklin Fountain is all about the details. You are instantly transported back to the turn of the century (not the one where we all thought the world's computer system was going to crash!). We're talking about the time when Howard Taft was the President of the United States and an ice cream "parlour" was a fun and fashionable place to recreate and sit a spell.
The brothers Berley kick up the show by even dressing the part. Both are donned in all white with black bow ties. Eric's got a bit of a handlebar moustache; Ryan has slicked back hair parted in the middle. They are very knowledgeable about the antique ice cream scene and are happy to share interesting historic tidbits with you.
You'll want to put Alexander's Ragtime Band on the Victrola while you wait for your sundae to arrive at your table. Franklin Fountain offers many soda fountain classics, including the banana split, which was invented in Philadelphia in 1904 by a pharmacist's assistant. Many food items are specific to Pennsylvania, such as White Birch ice cream, but they also carry an array of Choward's and Adams' gums and even make a Teaberry ice cream, which to tell you the truth isn't too bad! The Cocoa Cola, imported from Mexico, is made with cane sugar. Other sodas include A-Treat Sasparilla and Bleinheim's Hot Ginger Ale that will "knock your socks off." Moxie Nerve Tonic is also available for the adventuresome and/or anxious.
Sundaes and banana splits run from $5.00 to $10.00 but easily feed two to four people. I've been to the parlour several times, but this time I had a Parisian Flip, an original "electric phosphate" recipe from 1910 that is made with orange and pineapple juices, angostura bitters, an egg, and phosphate. It was a perfect refresher for a muggy summer Philly day. Eric explained that back in the day only the men drank phosphates. It was considered the fast food of its time because of the protein provided by the egg.
A pitcher of ice water and glasses sit conveniently nearby and are the perfect accompaniment to your ice cream treat. They also offer hot waffle ice cream sandwiches, and 20 flavors of ice creams and sodas. Originally, ice cream parlours carried only vanilla, strawberry and lemon ice cream and 20-plus flavors of soda for floats. Chocolate ice cream just wasn’t done. Imagine that! But Beware: You may walk out of the Fountain needing an oversized chair a la "Big Bill."
The brothers are currently in the process of rehabbing an old peanut roaster they found and hope to lure the curious tourists in with the delicious smell of fresh roasted nuts. Even the phone is one of those old wooden wall phones you speak directly into. Operator, get me PE-nnsylvania 5-6000!
Did you know that William Dreyer and Joseph Edy created Rocky Road ice cream in 1929 to boost peoples' spirits following the Stock Market Crash? The Franklin Fountain website (www.franklinfountain.com) is a veritable font of all sorts of historical information on ice cream, soda fountains, and the sweet history of Philadelphia. This is definitely a cool place to check out, online as well as on foot.
The Franklin Fountain is such a well-executed time machine that I can't do justice to the eccentric details that make it the special place that it is. Now go turn up Irving Berlin's Greatest Hits on your cd player and get yourself a scoop of Rocky Road.
Oh, and by the way, Wilson wins in '12.
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©2026 CDKitchen, Inc. No reproduction or distribution of any portion of this article is allowed without express permission from CDKitchen, Inc.
To share this article with others, you may link to this page:
https://www.cdkitchen.com/cooking-experts/rebecca-michaels/119-gut-busting/