The Melting Pot - Portland

User Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

I learned how to make fondue from the best in Switzerland and my freinds love it when I host a fondue dinner. I took my wife and kids, 12 and 10, there for my wife's birthday. I wanted to see how they stacked up and to get some ideas for future fondue nights at home. I was not disapointed.

The variaty of cheese fondues was interesting, although beer and cheddar have no place in the fondue pot (just my opinion ;)). We selected the Wisconsin Trio Cheese Fondue with Fontina, Butterkase and Blue cheese and found it to be excellent. The bread cubes were just the right staleness and the other dippers were also good.

The salads were OK, but not outstanding. I had the Ceasar and felt the dressing was just poured on rather than the properly made salad I would expect from a high end restaurant.

We had the Fondue Fusion as the main course. The meats were excellent and I really enjoyed the lobster tail. I think this is my new favorite way to eat lobster. We really liked the variety of vegetables that came with the meal. The metal slotted spoon they give you to scoop out the vegies and other stranded bits is very useful. I reccomend the court boullion since it went well with all the meats and is much lighter than the traditional oil fondue.

The wine list was good with a great selection of wines by the glass.

The chocolate fondue was excellent and the kids really loved it. We had the yin and yan but subbed milk chocolate for dark chocolate.

The table service was very freindly. My only complaint about the table service was that it took a while to get drinks. My other service complaint is that they will not seat you until the whole party is there. I dropped my wife and kids to go park the car. They were left stranded at the front reception area for 15 minutes which made for a cranky start to the meal.

The birthday balloons and picture could be seen as a bit cheesy, but for us they added to the occasion. We appreciated that they did not sing for us.

At $175 before tip for the 4 of us (2 of them kids)the price is in line with a high end restaraunt. I knew the place is expensive before hand, so I was not shocked, but I do think it a touch over priced, especially considering the average caliber of the salads.

All in all, I was impressed with the fondue, pleased with the freindliness of the service and enjoyed the wine list. I got some great ideas for my at home fondues. It is certainly worth visiting and nice for a special occasion. Unfortunately, it is not a place I can afford to go to often. I rank it 4 out of five.

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User Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

A great place to go with a big group. They also have a pretty good happy hour, this is the best time to go for couples. The food is cheap but the drinks are still a little steep.

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User Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

We took our two teens out for a fun dinner experience and everyone was absolutely thrilled. The person serving us was cheerful and informative. (this was our first time) She helped us select from the menu and made our dinner and dessert experience a memorable one. A+ The Caribbean cheese fondue was creamy and quite tasty, served with breads, veggie bites and even some apple. A+ Sitting around a hot pot of broth and cooking your own bite sized pieces of meats, fish and even ravioli made the whole thing more intimate and we all chatted happily as our food cooked. A+ Wine list was very nice and again our server was quite informative and helpful. Dessert was dreamy and we all left quite happy and stuffed. A+ Everything came in a very reasonable amount of time and we will definitely go back for another visit. A++

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