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So this friday night the hubs and I have our first date night alone in almost a year! No toddler, and no pregnancy talk are our rules. yay! (our last date night ended with me passed out at 6pm due to having a cold and headach and mixing wayyy to much of the wrong medicines. Its time for a re-do!)
So of course if I want this night to go perfect then I need to plan. We are from the Grand Rapids area in Michigan (so if anyone else is familar with this area and has an idea let me know!). I want a cool, unique and fun restaraunt to go to. So I came acrossed 'The Melting Pot'. It looks super cool but from the sounds of it SUPER expensive! I don't mind spending alot but not a whole heck of alot. ($60ish dollar range?) Anyone else experienced this place? How much did it cost?
Also, does anyone know of any cool/unique chain restaruants? Something that we might have here in Michigan?
I've been to the one in Cleveland 3 times. I absolutely love the food and atmosphere.....FI is silly and always complains that he does't like to wait while the food cooks in the fondu pots. I really enjoy it and you HAVE to try the dessert platter :) It's the best part!
I've been to three different locations and always thought it was "okay". The apps and desserts are great, but I didn't enjoy having to cook my own entree. If I'm paying that much money I want the steak or chicken cooked for me! It has a cool atmosphere and the drinks are good though :)
The Melting Pot is sooo yummy but it will definitely cost you more than $60 for two people. I think last time we went there we ordered wine and it came to like $120 or so.
Melting Pot is delicious!! DH and I went there on Sunday night. You'd be able to eat there in your price range if you just do a single fondue course (like only cheese, only meat, or only chocolate) but I don't think I'd ever go to a fondue restaurant and not do all three!
For a couple to eat cheese, meat, and chocolate fondue plus non-alcoholic drinks will run you about $100 total at Melting Pot (they have a special that includes all three types plus salad that starts at like $40 a person plus drinks and tip). But it's sooo delicious and sooo worth it if you can swing a bit more into the date night budget.
I've never been but I know people who have gone and love it (because it is unique) or hate it (because of the food). My husband is European and a bit of a cheese snob, I mean not really but he was appalled at the price you pay for the quality of cheese, but he went years and years ago so the quality might have gotten better since then.
It's okay...it's very expensive. It's a LOT of food, but I'd rather just have a big delicious, well seasoned steak from a steakhouse for $60 a pop. The food is a little bland (you're cooking in flavored broth, it can only get so exciting, you know?) and it takes hours to eat, i swear. It's an interesting experience, but I've enjoyed FAR better meals elsewhere. I also hate being that uncomfortably full..it is a ridiculous amount of food.
Try Urbanspoon for restaurant ideas.
Yum - I love their "Big Night Out" but yeah, it's not cheap. But you also won't leave hungry. So, it's a trade off. If you go, ask for one of their private booths - totally romantic because there's a curtain shielding you from the rest of the world.
I've been to the Melting Pot. The cheese fondue is the best. Some of the people I went with thought it was overpriced for basically having to cook your own food. haha. And it is really hard to get a piece of meat cooked right, because you just have to keep guessing on the cooking times. So most of our stuff came out overdone. The dessert is obviously good (who doesn't love chocolate), but it isn't that hard to make your own chocolate fondue and stick marshmallows and cakes in it, so I think that part is overpriced.
I'd say just go to Melting Pot for drinks and cheese fondue, but not a full dinner.
LOVE IT!! We go every year with DH's family on Xmas eve.
If you sign up for club fondue you get a free chocolate fondue I think. It is expensive but SO worth it. I recommend getting the three course. You get a salad and then pick your cheese fondue, then they bring out dinner, and then you pick your chocolate fondue. It is a pretty lengthy dinner though. I think for our first dinner it was about $150 for just the two of us. But DH had also done a special package. Honestly, I have never looked at the rest of the menu because we all agree to go all out there. I am pretty sure we do the "Big Night out." Melting Pot = food coma for me haha.
The one I've been to around LA is about $120 (if I remember correctly) for two people without drinks, after tax and tip, if you get the full four-course meal.
The food isn't as great as you could hope for the price, but it's a fun night out if you have money to blow. I used to like going to their happy hour for half-off cheese/chocolate fondue. ;)
Obviously I get really excited about Melting Pot cause all my sentences are messed up in my previous post and almost don't make much sense lol
I love the cheese and the chocolate but can do without the meat course. Personally, if I'm going to be spending that much money on a good piece of steak and/or lobster, the last thing I want to do is boil it in broth or fry it in oil. But that's just me. When I go, I usually go with my girlfriends. The one by us has a special for the cheese, salad and dessert. It's perfect!
I love melting pot!! My FH takes me every year for my birthday. It is on the expensive side, though. And you do have to cook your own food. But my experiences have always been really yummy, and you'll definitely be full. Plus it's fun! I love the atmosphere..it's really cozy!
I like the Melting Pot, it's definitely something fun and unique to do for the experience. You can often get a deal or a special, so I'd go online and do a search for that. We have done the Big Night Out which includes cheese fondue, salad, the entree, and dessert. It is SO much food though. I think the cheese is super yummy and the dessert is so fun too (I love the bananas in chocolate) so depending on what you guys liked, you could do only two courses and still have plenty of food.
Date night sounds fun though! Have a good time!
I love the Melting Pot, but my suggestion would be to do Cheese and Chocolate courses only! Those are the BEST parts. The regular food is only okay and you have to cook it yourself. I like doing that kind of fondue at home, but while out I'd like someone to cook for me!
http://www.themeltingpotclubfondue.com/signup.cgi?n=420801
I love it! foods great, fun atmosphere, pricey but well worth it.
We went last year for my mom's birthday and it was TERRIBLE - she loves it and she even said it was bad. I'd been before then, but I've always gotten the feeling it's overpriced for what it is.
The food has never been terribly impressive and I feel it's selling point is more that it's a novelty rather than that it's truely good food - part of the problem is cooking it yourself and never knowing when things are done, so some things can be undercooked and it gets irritating if you're trying to enjoy good food AND have a conversation.
Also being pregnant, I'd be a little bit wary of it since undercooked food could cause some issues.
It's more of an experience than anything and at $120-$150 per couple, it's and experience I'd rather pass on and find a spectacular meal elsewhere. OR if you have your heart set on it do dinner elsewhere and then head there for dessert.
It starts at about 40 something per person. But I totally recommend going there just for dessert. The s'more fondue is a pot of chocolate, then they light a marshmallow on top and stir it in and there is a lovely plate of sugary goodness to stir in. Have fun on your date.
The Melting Pot was our go-to restaurant for a fancy dinner before the homecoming dance or prom way back in high school, and I did one of my birthday dinners there a few years ago. It's incredibly delicious and fun to do with a group, but there's no way around how overpriced it is. I stopped going because I couldn't stomach the absurd prices anymore, especially in comparison to all the lovely non-chain restaurants around that serve top-notch food for much less money. Plus it's easy to make fondue at home. But I'd definitely recommend trying The Melting Pot if you've never been before.
Eh. Melting Pot is overrated and expensive in my opinion.
The best time I had there was once when we just got cheese fondue, dessert fondue and drinks. Cooking the entrees is messy and boring, so skipping them was the best idea ever.
@missfireslayer: Thank you! I just signed up!!!
@camrie: Thats very true about the under cooked meat thing. =/ I am worried that its priced more for the experience then the food. The last thing I need right now is food poisoning!
It's fun and different, but expensive for a chain. But it's very romantic compared to other restaurants, because it's not really a family spot. I can't think of any other chains, maybe macaroni grill?
@MissFlipFlops: You should look into doing dessert there then. It's a neat atmosphere but for dinner is over-priced. The dessert is pretty delicious though (and you wouldn't have to worry about food-poisioning).
If you go, just go for cheese and chocolate (and maybe a salad). The main course is a total waste of money and stomach space.
We went once and I was pretty disappointed. I thought it was overpriced and the food was bland. I know a big part of it is having the fun experience, but I got pretty bored.
We have one here and I LOVE IT! I can get a bit pricey if you aren't careful but it is definately fun and very yummy... I want to go now!
I haven't been, mostly because I keep hearing that it's verrry tasty and fun, but also very expensive and not *quite* worth the price. If you do go, please let us know what you think!! :)
They are REALLY good!! You pay for the EXPERIENCE of the restraunt! I love that place. The price will definitly run you $100 easily for a whole meal for two.
@ MelBel11 my mand is the SAME!! My man doesn't like the place that much b/c he doesn't like to wait forever for his food, but I love them! It doesn't bother me any!
The best dessert mix is get a snickers; dark chocolate with nuts and caramel! SOOO good!! :) Man now I have to see if I can convince my man to take me there just for the dessert!!
I like it, especially the chocolate or dessert stuff. It is expensive though. Sometimes there are specials here in the DC area we have an ad magazine tha comes in the mail called the "clipper" that sometimes has Melting POt coupons.
Meh. I've been twice. I love the cheese and chocolate fondues but the meat stuff is way overpriced. I went for a bachlorette party and with two glasses of wine, I ended up paying $100. Just for me. It's fun...but it's not amazing and delicious. I would opt for a cool local place with good reviews over the melting pot. It's a chain and like most chains, it's pretty blah.
Are there not any great non-chain restaurants where you live? Those tend to be so much more interesting. I'm a big anti-chain person (but then, I live in a big city where they don't really exist because there's so many great local restaurants to choose from).
@crayfish: Well I'm not the biggest fan of chain restuarants either but I figured if someone on here knew of a good one then we would probably have it around us. Grand Rapids is the second largest city in Michigan (next to Detroit) and its an artsy city so theres tons of restaurants. I was really just hoping for a really unique experience. It sounded like The Melting pot would be one of them. From everyones posts it does sound like something thats neat to at least try once. So we might still give it a try or I might do a little more digging to find something else that sounds neat.
We did The Melting Pot yesterday for lunch. The place had maybe 4 other tables filled.
We each had a glass of wine, we split a California salad, had the traditional Cheese Fondue, and a classic milk chocolate fondue and our bill was $56. 53 (or maybe $53.56) USF. We celebrated DH's bday and they gave us complimentary glasses of champagne, too! We went in the afternoon, and with it being a weekday, the place was practically empty! Our waitress was very attentive and brought us extra vegetables for our cheese fondue, which has never happened in the past!
We were both stuffed by the time we left!
@BanditGirl: Really? I always ask the waiter/waitress if I want extra veggies and they just keep bringing them for me :D The only thing they never bring more of is the cheesecake :/ Rats!
@MissFlipFlops: you are welcome, hopefully that saves ya some money!
I've been a few times. It would be a fun experience for your date. It is not steak and potatoes but romantic and unique. I suggest it
I've never been to Grand Rapids, or to a Melting Pot so forgive me if I'm talking out of my you-know-what, but I felt for your first date night in eons it should be somewhere romantic. And The Melting Pot doesn't scream romance to me. I think you guys should go somewhere dark, sexy, and tres romantique. So I looked up some websites that might give you good recomendations:
http://www.urbanspoon.com/event/154/Valentines-Day-restaurants.html
http://www.opentable.com/best-michigan-restaurants?li=2176&topic=Romantic
Hope you have a great time!
@sloth: Cheese fondue + dessert fondue + drinks = the best advice ever. And that way you're not so full you want to puke.
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