The Melting Pot - a Fondue Restaurant
Location: The Galleria
2 Bridge Avenue, Red Bank, NJ 07701
Phone: (732) 219-0090
Fax: (732) 219-5880
Site: http://www.meltingpot.com/
e-mail: kkruse@redbankmeltingpot.com
Business Hours:
Monday - Thursday: 5 pm - 10 pm
Friday : 5 pm - 11pm
Saturday: 12pm - 11 pm
Sunday: 12pm - 10 pm
Open for lunch by special arrangement.
Menu: You can make your selection on what is called a Big Night Out, where you choose a cheese fondue, then a salad, then an entrée fondue and finally a chocolate fondue as desert. You can also go only with one of the options, like going to the restaurant just for the cheese fondue or just for the chocolate fondue.
Service: service was provided mainly by a young men, with great knowledge on what was on the menu.
Review: We went to this restaurant on a Thursday night, November 4th, 2010, around 7:30P.M, to celebrate my wife's birthday (on the 6th). We needed to make reservations one week in advance, as the place is always completely packed. But after arriving, we were seated in less then five minutes. We were in a party of seven and after being directed to a comfortable table, we start studying the selections available in the menu. Our party chose to order three servers of the Big Night Out and variable soft drinks and water for everybody.
As we had only two burners in our table, we were limited to chose two options of each course of the meal. For the cheese fondue we selected two parts of the "Spinach Artichoke Cheese Fondue" (Fontina and Butterkäse cheeses, spinach, artichoke hearts and garlic) and one part of the "Traditional Swiss Cheese Fondue" (Gruyère and Emmenthaler Swiss cheeses, white wine, garlic, nutmeg, lemon and Kirschwasser). The melting process for the cheese fondue was done directly at our table. Small bowls of bread, vegetables, and fresh green apple were brought to be used as the dipper. After feasting ourselves with this delicious "appetizers", we all selected "Caesar Salad" (Crisp romaine lettuce, Caesar dressing, shredded Parmesan cheese, crispy croutons and an added touch of Parmesan-encrusted pine nuts) for the second course.
For the third course we selected three servers of the Signature Selection (Filet mignon, white shrimp, teriyaki-marinated sirloin, breast of chicken and cedar-plank salmon) with a lobster tail and some duck. For cooking style we selected two parts on Coq au Vin (Flavors of fresh herbs, mushrooms, garlic, spices and burgundy wine) and one part on Mojo (Caribbean-seasoned bouillon with a distinctive fresh-garlic flavor and a citrus flair). Four souces were provided for dipping, the "Curry" (A mild, yogurt-based curry that complements fresh vegetables and salmon), the Gorgonzola Port (A rich and robust cheese sauce that pairs well with filet mignon and fresh vegetables), the Green Goddess (A blend of cream cheese, sour cream, onions, chives and parsley that is great on vegetables and makes an excellent stuffed mushroom) and the Ginger Plum (a unique recipe with red and green bell peppers, ginger and just a hint of plum that is delicious on chicken and shrimp). A bowl with mushrooms and potatoes was also available with our selection.
The common sense would be stop eating at this stage, as everybody was already full, but we had another challenge in front of us, the desert.
We were able to selected for the fourth course three different bowls, as they are smaller and would fit into the burner two at a time. So we selected one "The Original" (Features a signature milk chocolate with a swirl of crunchy peanut butter), one "Pure Chocolate" with milk chocolate (melted for the most pure of all chocolate fondues) and one "Pure Chocolate" with dark chocolate. As for dippers, we had fresh strawberries, bananas, cheesecake, Rice Krispies Treats®, marshmallows, pound cake and brownies.
We did not order coffee (no more space...).
Overall, this was a very pleasant dinner, very enjoyable environment, great service and simply delicious fondue.
The cost for this meal, including tax and tip (they add 20% tip for parties of five or more people) was US$ 57.50 per person. Although it is in the expensive side, I highly recommend this restaurant!
If you read this review, feel free to leave a comment!
As we had only two burners in our table, we were limited to chose two options of each course of the meal. For the cheese fondue we selected two parts of the "Spinach Artichoke Cheese Fondue" (Fontina and Butterkäse cheeses, spinach, artichoke hearts and garlic) and one part of the "Traditional Swiss Cheese Fondue" (Gruyère and Emmenthaler Swiss cheeses, white wine, garlic, nutmeg, lemon and Kirschwasser). The melting process for the cheese fondue was done directly at our table. Small bowls of bread, vegetables, and fresh green apple were brought to be used as the dipper. After feasting ourselves with this delicious "appetizers", we all selected "Caesar Salad" (Crisp romaine lettuce, Caesar dressing, shredded Parmesan cheese, crispy croutons and an added touch of Parmesan-encrusted pine nuts) for the second course.
For the third course we selected three servers of the Signature Selection (Filet mignon, white shrimp, teriyaki-marinated sirloin, breast of chicken and cedar-plank salmon) with a lobster tail and some duck. For cooking style we selected two parts on Coq au Vin (Flavors of fresh herbs, mushrooms, garlic, spices and burgundy wine) and one part on Mojo (Caribbean-seasoned bouillon with a distinctive fresh-garlic flavor and a citrus flair). Four souces were provided for dipping, the "Curry" (A mild, yogurt-based curry that complements fresh vegetables and salmon), the Gorgonzola Port (A rich and robust cheese sauce that pairs well with filet mignon and fresh vegetables), the Green Goddess (A blend of cream cheese, sour cream, onions, chives and parsley that is great on vegetables and makes an excellent stuffed mushroom) and the Ginger Plum (a unique recipe with red and green bell peppers, ginger and just a hint of plum that is delicious on chicken and shrimp). A bowl with mushrooms and potatoes was also available with our selection.
The common sense would be stop eating at this stage, as everybody was already full, but we had another challenge in front of us, the desert.
We were able to selected for the fourth course three different bowls, as they are smaller and would fit into the burner two at a time. So we selected one "The Original" (Features a signature milk chocolate with a swirl of crunchy peanut butter), one "Pure Chocolate" with milk chocolate (melted for the most pure of all chocolate fondues) and one "Pure Chocolate" with dark chocolate. As for dippers, we had fresh strawberries, bananas, cheesecake, Rice Krispies Treats®, marshmallows, pound cake and brownies.
We did not order coffee (no more space...).
Overall, this was a very pleasant dinner, very enjoyable environment, great service and simply delicious fondue.
The cost for this meal, including tax and tip (they add 20% tip for parties of five or more people) was US$ 57.50 per person. Although it is in the expensive side, I highly recommend this restaurant!
If you read this review, feel free to leave a comment!
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