Philadelphia, PA; – AKA University City is pleased to introduce Walnut Street Café’s award-winning restaurant experience to the comfort and safety of its sister hotel and residencies. This is not your typical in-room dining program, however. Unprecedented times call for unparalleled innovations, leading the hotel and restaurant partnership to convert hotel suites into full-service and contact-less private-dining experiences in compliance with the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines.
The new program, dubbed “Walnut Suite Cafe,” offers AKA University City residents and Philadelphia locals alike the opportunity to reserve a suite specifically for a Walnut Street Café dinner with their household. Soaring 730 feet from ground level inside FMC Tower at Cira Centre South—Philadelphia’s first vertical neighborhood— AKA features sophisticated design elements including sleek, minimalist fixtures, floor to ceiling windows, and contemporary furnishings. Designed for extended stays, AKA’s residences already boast dining areas complete with fully appointed kitchens, dining tables, flatware, glassware and everything you need to comfortably enjoy a high-quality, in-room meal. Every suite also features stunning views of Philadelphia from a sky-high vantage point, making in-suite dining feel more like a dinner party at an upscale apartment.
Now, the hotel has a culinary force behind it with custom menus from Walnut Street Café that were thoughtfully developed to bring a multi-course, elegant dining experience straight to guests’ tables. Customizable three-course seasonal tasting menus will be available for $65 per person with sample dishes that include Hamachi Crudo, Braised Short Ribs and Slow Cooked Pork Shoulder. Bottled craft cocktails, a curated list of beer and wine by the bottle and glass and non-alcoholic beverages are available to supplement the meal. Dishes and drinks will arrive via room service with serving instructions to keep the experience contact-less for guests. Suites are equipped with stoves, microwaves and fridges, making any reheating and leftover prep the next day seamless.
“In-room dining can sometimes miss the care and attention of truly ingratiating hospitality, and this is our response to that notion,” said Branden McRill, CEO and Founder of Fine-Drawn Hospitality, which owns and operates Walnut Street Café, The Post, and Sunset Social in Philadelphia. “This isn’t sitting on the edge of your bed with a lukewarm burger in a hotel room. Rather, you’re sitting down at a dining table with your family for a proper meal that is elevated and you can still stay safe and sound in your ‘COVID bubble’ while enjoying an evening out.”
Private rooms for three-hour dinner bookings come with a $50 fee and if guests decide to extend their stay to an overnight, that fee can be directly applied to the cost of a hotel room for the evening. Bookings are available through Walnut Street Café
“Our accommodations are designed as flexible self-sufficient sanctuaries, and now with the addition of world-class dining experiences available on-demand, there’s truly no need to leave your suite for a night out,” said Evan O’Donnell, Managing Director at AKA University City. “While the current restrictions have changed the way we dine together, we’re excited to merge AKA’s signature hospitality and design-forward accommodations with the forward-thinking culinary team at Walnut Street Café to create this one-of-a-kind dining model.”
Several safety precautions are being implemented by both teams to ensure the well-being of all team members and residents. AKA continues to maintain the highest standards of cleanliness and sanitation in all areas of its properties and have taken additional measures to ensure procedures are even more rigorous, including strict adherence to an extensive 100-point cleaning checklist, state of the art sanitation and disinfection procedures, contactless payment, and more. All restaurant employees wear PPE provided by Fine-Drawn Hospitality, submit to daily temperature checks, observe social distance and practice frequent handwashing in accordance with CDC direction.
To learn more about Walnut Suite Café and book a room, click here. Walnut Suite Café will be available Tuesdays through Saturdays from 12pm to 8pm.
