Philip Chow Coming to Downtown Boca.

Philippe Chow, one of the nation’s hottest restaurants, is coming to downtown Boca Raton, further proof that high-end retailers are having no trouble navigating this prolonged economic slowdown.

Philippe Chow will take over the east Palmetto Park Road space formerly occupied by III Forks, a steakhouse that served its last meal this month.

Philippe Chow, serving gourmet Chinese cuisine, is one of those restaurants that attracts The Beautiful People. Such celebrities as Rihanna, Oprah Winfrey and Paris Hilton have been spotted, and photographed, emerging from Philippe Chow’s handful of restaurants across the country, including one in Miami Beach

Now The sizzle is coming to Palm Beach County by mid-August.

Philippe Chow owner Stratis Morogen said last week he wasn’t necessarily looking to come to Boca, but the III Forks deal was to good to turn down, especially since the Boca crowd knows and likes his food. The deal was brokered by Tom Prakas of the Prakas Group in Boca Raon. “The Boca Raton Demographic is really in tune with what we do. It’s an educated, affluent neighborhood,” said Morfogen, who said his Miami Beach eatery has a “huge” following from Boca.

Miami Beach has South Florida investors such as basketball star Alonzo Mourning, who also will invest in Boca Raton, Morfogen said.

In addition to a favorable lease, the buildings owner will help with a build-out. The restaurant is on the ground floor of the luxury 200 East condominimum.

Lest unfamiliar diners think all Chinese food is the same, Morfogen said the ingredients at Philippe Chow are top-quality and healthy, such as steamed whole fish and lean meats. And no MSG.

Even the Peking duck is special: roasted, not fried.

Look for the 9,000 square-foot space to be transformed into a signature white-and-red Philippe Chow design. An outdoor bar is in the works too. When open, the restaurant will employ up to 80 pope.

Morfogen said the favorable rent will allow him to offer happy hour specials and other dining deasl to customers at the Boca Raton location. The low overhead will “trickle down to my customers,” Morfogen said.

Incidentally, Morfogen’s brother is Nick Morfogen of 32 East, the downtown Delray Beach restaurant that helped turn the sleepy seaside town into a dining and entertainment destination.

Might Strat do the same thing for the ghost town that is now downtown Boca? Morfogen laughed, thought about it and the said “Hopefully.”