The Rabbitt Report: The Fountain on Locust

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The Fountain on Locust
3037 Locust St. - 314 535-7800
www.fountainonlocust.com

Your tour to the past is available Tue-Wed 11-5:30,
Fri & Sat 11 - Midnight

Just when you think you've seen it all, an unusual place like The Fountain pops up. Well it didn't really pop-up; it was a work in progress for over two years as it was being lovingly created from scratch by owner Joy Grdnic Christensen.

The Fountain on Locust, tucked away at 3037 Locust St., is far more than just a soda fountain...though the recreation of a true operating soda fountain is the star attraction, after Joy, of "The Fountain." The interior is in pure Art Deco style with hand painted walls and ceilings in vivid colors and geometric designs (all painted by Joy) that offer the illusion that The Fountain must have been there since the Roaring Twenties. It has not. But, the building has been there since 1916 and the days when this section of Locust from 18th St. to Theresa Ave. was St. Louis' renowned "Automobile Row."

This resurrected architectural gem was designed by noted early 20th century St. Louis architect Preston J. Bradshaw, who gave us, among other lasting locations, the Chase Hotel, the Forest Park Hotel (now apartments) and The Coronado Hotel (now apartments) as well as several other Automobile Row structures. The Fountain was first home of the Supreme Motor Car Co., an agency of the Stutz Automobile Company. Stutz is best recalled today as the maker of Stutz Bearcat and Stutz Blackhawk cars. The autos are gone, except when car collectors such as the Horseless Carriage Club of Missouri, hold antique car shows on Locust, and then a Stutz will be parked in front of its old home.

The Fountain's kitchen and carefully hand-crafted food is under the direction of Chef Natalia Penchaszadeh and offers a good variety of unusual recipes that are good and good for you. At lunch, my opinion is to opt for the Pick Two. That's a half salad or soup with a half sandwich and matchstick potato chips for $6.99. You have a choice of a half dozen salads, one of which is the Famous Birdseed Salad that consists of Romaine lettuce, sunflower, sesame and millet seeds, mixed nuts, pepitas, Fuji apples and creamy citrus vinaigrette. There'll be a soup of the day, such as red onion or lentil. But I'd suggest you try either the regular (which are far from regular) Peanut Soup or Polish Dill Pickle Soup. The creamy peanut is from a Williamsburg recipe and the pickle, is potato based. I know they sound eccentric...but they're both quite tasty. As a hot sandwich you might consider the Prosperity Pannini with hummus, ripe tomato, red onion confit with grilled eggplant and zucchini. If you select a cold sandwich I'd suggest the Blackhawk. This is roast beef on Cuban bread, served with roasted red pepper and a
blend of goat cheese, olive oil, garlic and fresh basil. We'll delve into the dinner menu on a
future date.

Visiting The Fountain is like taking a trip to the Roaring Twenties when America was on a roll and we were reaching to the sky with buildings like the Continental Life Insurance Company just a short drive west of The Fountain at 3615 Olive St.. You can marvel at the Continental from The Fountain's front door. Had The Fountain been around in the dry days of the ‘20s the hooch might have supplied by bootleggers, but today The Fountain offers a good selection of legit drinks such as O'Fallon India Pale Ale along with Retro Cocktails like the noted: Gin Ricky, Sloe Gin Fizz and Side Car. Plus they proffer ice-cream drinks including: Brandy Alexander, Grasshopper and Dreamsicle Martini. Oh, while you're there, even if you don't have to go, make a point to examine The Fountain's restrooms. They're as snazzy as those in the heyday of The Admiral when that vessel cruised the Mighty Mississippi or of the Fabulous Fox theatre. And be sure to bring change for the parking meters that were recently (and unfortunately) installed all along Locust.

There is free street parking on Cardinal Ave. which is the cross street just west of the Fountain. In case you don't have a GPS, The Fountain is 3 blocks east of Grand Boulevard, and Locust is a block north of Olive St.. Access to The Fountain is easy for all. And save room for dessert, especially an ice-cream concoction. You'll find egg cream, phosphate, banana split, Coconut Almond Joy or the World's Smallest Hot Fudge sundae, and a bunch more on the menu. Hand-packed ice cream is sold by the pint or quart and they even make their own chocolate candy. Listen to the past when you're there as the background music is primarily from the ‘20s, ‘30s, ‘40s and ‘50s. And if you get a booth on the west side of the dining room you can listen to original old-time radio style soap-opera comedy serials titled "Soap Hospital" Everything old is new again at the Fountain.

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