The Melting Pot

My husband and I visited The Melting Pot for our anniversary and we were satisfied with the food and service. The atmosphere is very romantic and I enjoyed the music selection. We got the four course meal: first, we chose the spinach artichoke cheese which was amazing! We ate it with bread and veggies. Secondly, we chose the house salad. Thirdly, my husband chose the steak lovers entrée and I got the surf and turf entrée with a coq au vin cooking style. I really enjoyed eating the mushrooms, squash, and potatoes with the ginger plum dipping sauce and teriyaki dipping sauce. Lastly, we chose the flaming turtle chocolate fondue including strawberries, banana, marshmallows, and other great foods. I enjoyed my time here very much and recommend this great experience with others.

This is as good as it gets to me in regards to fondue, granted I haven’t been to many other places that serve it up like this.
I’ve gone on an expensive date with my (then) fiancée and it was nice, relaxing, fun, and the desert was delicious.
Cooking the lobster and shrimp was fun, but the overall experience is something to do in scarcity since it is quite pricey and cooking your own food at such a high price isn’t exactly how I would like to spend money.
It’s great for a date night! We will be back eventually :)

My impression was an overpriced gimmicky type place. Upon entering they ask you what you are celebrating. I said I’m celebrating dinner.
The food is average nothing really great. They have a few sauces that are pretty good the plum chili was my favorite. We had the marinated beef and potstickers. Between the two the potstickers were our favorite.
You must agree on the cheese for the app and the cooking style for the main course.
Although the waitress was nice when she was at our table we rarely saw her. Getting refills and extra sauce was tricky.
Although they were very pushy with dessert we avoided it after not being impressed with the first two courses.

I know my fiancée might get a bit upset seeing the stars on this rating. She blindfolded me and took me here as a surprise for date night. Just as a quick message to her, I did thoroughly enjoy myself and the food. I wouldn’t at all mind going back.
Now with that little love note out of the way, the review proper.
For those unfamiliar with Melting Pot, it’s a fondue place. Go look up fondue yourself because I’m not going to bother explaining that to you.
We went with the Prix fixe menu option, because honestly that’s the only one that makes sense unless you came in JUST for cheese fondue. So we had three courses, which consisted of the cheese fondue, essentially a hot pot style meat entrée and finally dessert.
One thing that didn’t really cross my mind when thinking about Melting Pot but becomes sort of obvious when you think about it is you don’t really buy food here. Well you sort of do, but it’s more like buying the raw ingredients for a cooked meal and renting a fondue pot for the evening. Eh, again that’s only sort of the case since the waitress brings out the pot and basically makes the cheese fondue for you. I’m just rambling now, I’m trying to say that the experience of Melting Pot is more important than the food itself.
The food was good though. Cheese was a good flavor, all the dipping bits were good. I can see people not caring for the meat portion, since at the end of the day it’s sort of like boiled meat so the flavor is entirely dependent on the stock and the sauces they give you. Dessert was good, although we got the Yin Yang pot and the white chocolate didn’t stand out flavor wise at all.
So the mark down for stars isn’t the fault of Melting Pot or my time there. It was a good introduction to fondue, the food was good, and our waitress knew her stuff and checked in on us regularly. It’s more because Melting Pot isn’t a place I’d go back to, not because I didn’t enjoy myself but because it would make more sense to take that money and invest in a good fondue pot.
One final note, some people complain about small portion sizes. We were perfectly happy with the portion sizes, but then maybe if you have a larger group and one pot it becomes more problematic.

The melting pot has always been one of my favorite places to go and is now a place me and my girlfriend frequent once a month. The waiters and waitress have always been super helpful and take their time to explain how everything works as well as suggest different things to try or cooking styles that work with everyone food at the table. I was really bumbed when they took off their spicey Mexican cheese option and wish they would bring that back. Never the less, always a great experience in which you will be there for hours. So far the longest time we have been there was out first time which topped three hours. You would think that they would try to rush you out, but not at all. The service stayed consistent and would always come by and check up on you to see if you needed anything.
Now for the best part! The food! It was great! You can’t go wrong with any of the cheese fondues to start you off and for the main course meat lovers will always be my choice, the sauces they give you for the meats are fantastic. But the best part is definitely the dessert. The chocolate and peanut butter with all the different dippers is amazing! Always the best part of the night!
If you are considering giving this place a shot you should definitely do it! It’s a grea place for a date or to sit down and catch up with old friends.

I love this place more than my life. Seriously though. I can eat cheese all day everyday… Best ceasar salad everrrrr. And chocolate!!! Mmmmmmmm…
And kris is the most amazing server ever :)

Wonderful salad spinach and mushroom! Great wait staff and wonderful manager :-). The location is perfect with an ambiance made for two, just me though. :-/.
Out of all the little places within a short walk, this one is my favorite.
Hope to be back soon to visit.

I would just go for desserts.
The food is not that great, and overly priced.
The dessert menu is delicious though.

This is a beautiful and fun location. Inside is a more romantic setting perfect for a fancy relaxing evening or a special date!
They have excellent service!
The food experience is great too! It can be fun to go just for dessert, yet the meals are such a delight to behold and behad. Their appetizers, the main course, and the desserts are phenomenally delectable! It is fondue style, so there is an electric stove built into the table you dip your food into cheeses, cook your meats and veggies in a special sauce, and dip fruits and baked yummies into different melted chocolate options. By time you’re done you’ll feel like royalty!

PERFECT for date night. Make reservations just in case. Definitely worth the extra $$$ for the full 4 courses (appetizer pot, salad, main course pot, dessert pot)
My Favorite Fondues:
Spinach Artichoke Cheese fondue & you get bread, apples, & assorted vegetables to dip in. LOVE.
Coq Au Vin style main course (for winos) with filet mignon, chicken, & lobster for dipping. JUICY.
Chocolate & peanut butter fondue dessert with strawberries, bananas, marshmallows, & brownies for dipping. SEX.
At this time you will need a wheelchair to roll you out of the restaurant.
Show up hungry! The portions are perfect for 2. The most people I’ve been with was 4 & we started to have rationing issues. I wouldn’t recommend this place for groups. I could imagine it would be tough dealing with multiple pots & so on.
Service: Keep in mind even though there always seems to be tables open this is a very hands on restaurant & each waiter spends a great deal of time at each table explaining the menu & meal prep. Patience is a virtue at this joint. Don’t judge if they say they’re busy even though it doesn’t look like it, THEY ARE.
Relax & enjoy the romantic atmosphere & quality time with your special some one!

Went there for our first date night sans baby. We had made reservations for 830 and got there a little early they said it would just be a few minutes. We were seated at 9, not a big deal unless your paying a sitter by the hour. Initially I wanted a glass of wine but they were out so I ordered a love martini which was super fruity but delicious. Our first course came fast and we had the spinach and artichoke it was AMAZING! We got our main course but it took 45 min to get to the main meal which was the vegetarian option. The restaurant was empty so it was a little frustrating. After we had our main meal we had run out of time and had to go relieve the baby sitter so we missed out on dessert but they gave us a complimentary card for next time.
If you do go I would definitely recommend jenelle she is a wonderful server who explained everything to us and understood when we had to leave so quickly. She is amazing!

Who doesn’t love a big pot of chocolate fondue? The Melting Pot is the only place I know locally where I can get fondue. They often have deals and offers on their website, so if you’re looking for a good deal, check that before heading over.
I’ve only come here for dessert. I’ve had the yin yang and the classic milk chocolate fondue. Both were delicious and plentiful. Dessert costs about $ 8.50/person, which isn’t bad in my opinion. Each person gets their own plate of various items, such as: strawberries, marshmallows, rice krispy treats, bananas, pound cake and brownies.
Both of the times I’ve been here I came close to closing time and they still took us in. The servers were really nice and offered to box up our leftovers. If you’re wondering, NO you can’t take home your pot of remaining chocolate but you CAN drizzle it over your leftovers to enjoy later! :)

Sharon’s Unilocal Review
Location: Brea near the movie theaters
First Impressions/​Décor: clean, modern and romantic
Food quality: 4 Stars
Awesome one food but the portions were small. We ordered the spinach and cheese fondu that was prepared in front of us. That was great. Also has Mojo broth ahi tuna and shrimp. We love the taste and many dips that came with dinner.
Service: 5 Stars
Our server was Katherine and she was just awesome. She was friendly and anticipated our needs. We were in a hurry and she just was so efficient she made it all happen. Good explanation of what was being served!
Cost of meal: 4 Stars
For the cost there should be more food served
Cleanliness: 5 Stars
Overall experience: 4.5 Stars
We went before going to the movies and next time we will plan to go when we have more time. Overall it was a great experience, just needed more time to enjoy the setting and the food. Make reservations this would minimize any wait! Sharing is ideal but order different items so you have more of a variety!

3.5
First time visit of this location but I’ve been to other Melting pots about 4 times.
Came with a semi wacked date (found that our afterwards LOL) The dinner itself was good the company could have been replaced: D ;) At least he liked splurging on this meal HA. Anywho, we didn’t have RSVPs but only waited 5 minutes or so for a booth seat. This place was hoping on a Saturday night. The server was AWESOME. 4.5 stars for her! She knew the menu and made such great convo. Started with some cocktails. I don’t remember which one I had but it was good and the house red wine was good as well. But im more of an hard fruity cocktail kinda gal. So the menu for 2 is kinda confusing now. I remember it used to be called The big night on the town or something like that but they changed it up where you can order the same type of thing and pick 2 different main fondues to share. So I’m not sure if that costs more or not LOL. So my usual breakdown…
Fiesta cheese fondue: This was damn good! It was a seasonal item so I don’t see it on their website menu anymore so I’m not sure if it will be on the menu once there. It was a better nacho cheese with lots of jalapeño flavor and salsa. Came with the the usual veggies, cubed breads and tortilla chips. I could eat this one without sharing!!!
Spinach salad: This salad was gooooood. Spinach, bacon, mushrooms, red onion and bacon creamy dressing. I could eat a HUGE bowl of this and I wish I got the bottle of dressing. I may have to stop by one day and pick one up.
Fondue delight: This came with lobster tail, filet mignon, chicken breast, shrimp and mushroom ravoli. I mean its hard to judge since you’re basically cooking your own meat LOL. I didn’t care for the mojo base my date choose because it didn’t go with the next meat fondue tray we had. All meats were fresh.
French quarter: I’d get this most definitely this came with filet mignon, chicken, shrimp and Andouille sausage. The meat was seasoned in Cajun spices. Very flavorful BUT my date killed that taste with the mojo base o_​O I could eat a whole plate of filet mignon and Andouille without a doubt!
Flaming turtle: Of course a mix of chocolate and caramel. This is my favorite dessert fondue. Best of both worlds and this has a lil drank in it LOL. I love the tray of treats to dip. My favorite is fresh bananas and the white cake cubes.
I only gave them a 3 because its a very long evening and at times I get bored and I love how fresh the meats are for your main fondue course but the broth really doesn’t season the meat the way it should. I’d come back for drinks, cheese and dessert easily :)

Daniel!!! you were fantastic! we LOVED u!
we came here for one of my gfs birthday! Party of 6!
We were seated in a huge round booth. Dual burners, what what!
Our server was fantastic! He was charismatic, friendly and funny! He also was super accommodating.
The food was great! Who doesn’t like fondue?!
we ordered the 4 course meal.. . house salad dressing is amazing!
Cheeses: cheddar and swiss
Main: Mojo and Coq du vin broths, land and sea dish
Chocolate: flaming turtle and another one that wasn’t on the list had caramelized bananas
We left totally stuffed that we couldn’t move!
The four stars is for our waiter and food.
But I wish this didn’t take 4 hours long!
The parking situation for this place sucks also, since it’s located in the popular downtown brea.

I love the Melting Pot! Me and the wife have been to this location on 4 separate occasions and the food has always been tremendous and the service is professional and always willing to offer their honest thoughts on the dishes and make recommendations for those new to the restaurant.
Due to the price of the 4 course dinner we rarely eat here and it is really a once or twice a year option for us but we never leave disappointed. You start you evening with a selection of cheese fondue from their menu (around 6 choice) and they will walk you through the process of ingredients as the server prepares this for you table side. The cheese fondue comes with a bowl of small artisan type breads, veggies (broccoli, carrots and cauliflower) as well as granny smith apple pieces. We typically get the original 4 cheese blend which is mixed with beer, garlic and herbs and it is quite delicious. More bread can also be had at no charge to finish up the cheese if you run out at no charge.
After the cheese fondue has been completed you will move onto the salad portion. They have several to choose from here as well but I love the regular garden house salad with the peppercorn ranch dressing (so good). They also will bring a shaker of garlic and wine seasoning (their homemade blend) to sprinkle on top if you wish and I highly recommend trying this stuff out as it is truly amazing and adds a great deal of more flavor to anything its sprinkled on.
Next up comes the meat course. Choose from one of several cooking styles (we like the Mojo) and select your meats from a pre-​selected menu. You can substitute out certain items for others but don’t expect to get more of the higher end pieces such as filet and lobster. The herb chicken, teriyaki steak and filet mignon are my personal favorites and the fact that you cook these yourself insures you always get a great product in the end. The meat will come with an accompaniment of potatoes, broccoli and mushrooms as well that can be dropped into the pot as the meat is cooking.
Lastly comes the dessert course or the coup de gras to the already great meal. You get a choice of several decadent chocolate choices and all of them we have tried have been great. The S’mores is probably our favorite but the dark chocolate and bananas foster is also great. The chocolate comes served with a plate of dippers such as bananas, strawberries, oreo marshmallows, graham cracker marshmallows, pound cake, rice krispie treats, brownie bites, blondie bites and more. The chocolate like the cheese and cooking style before it will be prepared table side and is well worth the wait (although it is hard to wait). You can ask for more berries or small bites to finish if you run out.
Overall, despite the high price per person I feel this place does give you your money’s worth in most cases and it’s not just the food but also an experience. We will definitely come back again.
Be sure to sign up for their club to get special deals such as free chocolate and cheese courses and be on the lookout for specials such as National Cheese Fondue Week where you can get free cheese fondue for up to 4 people. A great deal and I look forward to returning again soon.

Came for dinner on Wednesday during the OC Restaurant and they totally cheated us. It was suppose to be a Cheese Fondue, Salad, Entrée, and Chocolate Fondue for $ 30, but our waitress said the Chocolate Fondue only comes with the $ 40 option. I was pretty sure that the Chocolate Fondue came with the $ 30 option, but she quickly walked away and I was too mad to even mention it again. Totally not worth $ 30/​person in my option. It seemed like everything we got was just portioned out to be for 1 person except for the entrée.
What we got:
Fiesta Cheese Fondue: to be honest this was pretty disgusting… you couldn’t taste the cheese at all. All you could taste is the lager beer. Comes with a side of broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, bread, and chips. Broccoli and cauliflower looked like it was browning… carrots wouldn’t even stick onto the skewers. Bread was hard. The cheese wouldn’t stick onto any of the items either!
Spinach Mushroom Salad: I’d admit the salad was pretty good. It had spinach, sliced portobello mushrooms, bacon, and tomatoes. Came with this red warm vinaigrette with I thought was pretty good, it tasted tangy, yet sweet.
Coq Au Vin Cooking Style: extra $ 5 charge for this. Menu didn’t say so I couldn’t really complain on this… came with 6 pieces of pork, chicken, beef, shrimp, and 4 pieces of dumplings. My favorite was the beef, but everything else was just okay.
Dipping Sauces: it came with 6 different sauces. A greek goddess (greek yogurt based), cocktail sauce, gorgonzola cheese sauce, teriyaki sauce, curry sauce, and a plum sauce. Favorite was the curry sauce, but other than that… eh…
Cookies and Cream Chocolate Fondue: paid extra $ 9 for one person when it should came just came with the whole $ 30 option. Came with strawberries, rice krispies, marshmallows, brownie bite, red velvet bite, a slice of cheesecake, and slices of banana. I could make this better at home.
Service:
In the beginning she was pretty nice, but she seemed really annoyed of us. She was nice to the people around us, but really gave us an attitude after the cheese fondue was served. She was quick to serve other guests, but took awhile to tend to us. Too bad I didn’t catch her name… but I will definitely not be coming back to this location.

Happy hour is really reasonable with great choices (fondues, alcoholic drinks, salads, and shrimp cocktail). Plenty seatings as it seems that most patrons are regulars versus new customers. Happy hour is in the patio which is great for kids because you can actually make reservations and they have booth not just high chairs and counters. Yippee. You get individualized service because they actually have to make your fondue for you.
We got the spinach artichoke and added a lot more Tabasco and jalapeño for the zest as well as the banana flame dessert fondue.
The Spinach artichoke cheese was really good with the amount of bread vegetables and apples that they gave, however the banana flame fondue was too little for the dessert that was given. The dessert given and was strawberries, little cheesecake, marshmallow filled with chocolate breadcrumbs, Rice crispies, and a larger cheesecake. I really wish the banana flame fondue was a lot more in the pot. Next time I probably would order chocolate versus the caramel banana. With the type of dessert given I really think it tastes better with chocolate versus Caramel flavor.
Two alcoholic drinks two types of fondue turned out about 47 bucks. Really not sure if that is a bargain but given the atmosphere and specialty food you decide. The food given really does not cost that much nor is a fondue hard to make. I really think you’re paying for the ambience.
Definitely a great place if you have kids who behave well and don’t poke each other’s eye out with the fondue stick and also a great venue for daters and groups of friends.

The best cheese fondue in the whole wide world! Yummy and well worth the wait and the money! Valentines day dinner was the best!
The host were polite, courteous and so smart to know exactly where to seat us since it was a romantic occasion!
The whole staff was running around like chickens with their heads cut off! Lol!
But at least they stuck it out! Our server, named Tanya was so awesome and very attentive towards us! She is the best Ive ever had as a server. Me and my husband were so pleased with her we decided to tip her $ 100 and she was well worth it!
We enjoyed the food and drinks so much we lost track of time that we had been there for two hours! We can’t wait to come back for their weekly happy hour! Thanks for an awesome Valentines!

My husband and I went to Melting Pot last night for our anniversary dinner. We had bought a Living Social deal so we had a preset menu that included a starting beverage, including champagne, the cheese fondue, salad, and main entrée for two. When I called to make the reservation they asked if I wanted to have the table decorated with rose petals and candles for a small fee. I agreed.
We walked in and the greeter was very friendly. We walked to our table and it was all decorated and looked great. They also had a special anniversary flyer for us as well.
We started with the fiesta cheese and upgraded to the premium dippers, which were salami and other sliced meats. They were good, but I could skip next time. We both had the house salad. I love their house dressing and the special seasoning that they give you to use.
We chose the basic broth for our main course. The meat was good. The potatoes they had included some purple potatoes, which took forever to cook. We finally ended up eating them a little bit on the hard side because we couldn’t wait any longer.
We opted to upgrade our meal to include dessert. I love their dessert with all the different options. We chose peanut butter and chocolate. It was delicious.
Overall it was a good experience. The servers were prompt and friendly. They even asked about our anniversary and how we met. The food was good and the atmosphere was great. We will definitely be back!