FOODIE
Melt Into Bliss At The Melting Pot
By Tricia & Jen / foodie@longislandernews.com

Located just south of the Long Island Expressway, the Melting Pot in Farmingdale had us melting into bliss as soon as we walked in the door. Classy and sophisticated in appearance with shades of maroon, forest, navy and slate gray, the ambience of the fondue restaurant had us relaxed and comfortable before we had even ordered our drinks.

After walking past the extensive wine cellar, we were seated in a cozy booth with two heated surfaces for our fondues. The tops of our cushiony seats were high enough to block out the noise from other guests, leaving us feeling like we were dining in a private room of our own.

The Melting Pot experience is broken into four courses – a cheese fondue, a salad, an entrée and a chocolate fondue for dessert – which can be ordered individually or in a package known as the Big Night Out ($86-$96), which we opted for.

We chose to start with the Caribbean Cheese Fondue. Our waitress prepared the fondue tableside while we watched, mixing white wine, pineapple juice, garlic and spicy Peppadew peppers in with the melted gouda and gran queso cheeses. The fondue was then topped off with a generous helping of scallions and a zest of fresh lime. Served individually, the cheese fondue serves one to two for $16 and costs $8 for each additional person.

We feasted on the fondue by sticking fresh chunks of rye and pumpernickel, crisp, crunchy veggies and juicy apple slices onto our skewers and then dipping them into the cheese. Zesty and piquant with a bit of a kick, the fondue had us melting in our seats with its delectable taste. Dipped in cheese, the apples and veggies were warm and spicy on the outside and cool and refreshing on the inside.

For our next course we ordered the Spinach Mushroom Salad, made with large, fresh spinach leaves, Portobello mushrooms, Roma Tomatoes, red onion and chopped bacon. The dressing, a warm, tangy Burgundy Shallot Vinaigrette, complemented the greens in a heavenly way. Served individually, the salads cost $6 each.

For our entrée we choose the Lobster Indulgence, one of three featured selections available off of the Big Night Out menu. Our waitress brought out a platter loaded with twin lobster tails, jerk seasoned sirloin, vanilla rum chicken, marinated pork tenderloin, zesty peppered shrimp, butternut squash ravioli and fresh vegetables that we were to cook ourselves in one of the two pots we had ordered. The first cooking style we chose was the Mojo Style ($6), bouillon seasoned Carribean-style with hints of garlic, orange and lime; the other was the Coq au Vin ($6), burgundy wine flavored with fresh herbs, spices, garlic and mushrooms. Both cooking styles were prepared tableside by our waitress.

We loaded our skewers up with the raw meat, poultry and seafood and let each piece cook for approximately a minute and a half to two minutes each. While we waited, we tossed in pieces of squash, red potatoes, broccoli and mushroom caps –the fresh vegetables served with our entrée.

A vast selection of dips came with our entrée, including a bold teriyaki sauce, a curry dip, a light and sweet ginger plum sauce, a spicy cocktail sauce, a fruity, invigorating mango BBQ sauce, a gorgonzola port and Melting Pot’s famous green goddess sauce, a mix of sour cream, cream cheese, onion, chives and parsley that perfectly complements the vegetables.

After cooking our sirloin, we dipped it into the gorgonzola port and teriyaki sauces. The steak was spicy, well-seasoned, juicy and bursting with flavor. The pork was tender and succulent, and the chicken, which we ate with a dash of the mango BBQ sauce and the ginger plum, was savory. The butternut squash ravioli was creamy and rich on the inside with a soft and appetizing pasta shell, and the shrimp dipped into the spicy cocktail sauce had us drooling for more. But it was the lobster that put us over the edge. No words can do justice to the lobster chunks, which were served well with cocktail sauce or on its own. The lumps of lobster were luscious and oozing with flavor, with a kick in each bite that will definitely have us coming back to the Melting Pot for more.

We finished off our entrée with the cooked vegetables, which had really soaked up the flavors of the cooking styles in which they boiled. The curry sauce revved up the taste of the squash and the broccoli, while the mushrooms caps tasted divine stuffed with the green goddess dip.

Although we were satisfied after our entrée, we were still hungering for the dessert – a pot of the Yin & Yang chocolate fondue, one of Melting Pot’s most popular dessert fondues. Served half with dark chocolate and half with white chocolate, the fondue came out in the pattern of a yin and yang and was artfully swirled and balanced.

The fondue came with fresh strawberries and bananas, brownies, Oreo and graham cracker-covered marshmallows, rice krispees, pound cake and a large slice of cheesecake topped with a chocolate-dipped cherry. The dark chocolate was rich and bold and the white chocolate was sweet and creamy. The strawberries were our favorite to dip, but the other dippers were just as magical. Each piece melted in our mouths and had us ‘Mmm-ing’ with each bite. Served individually, the chocolate fondue costs $16 for a small and $32 for a regular.

The Melting Pot experience is unforgettable and unsurpassable. If you’re looking for a place that will have you melting into ecstasy, look no further.

The Melting Pot
2377 Broad Hollow Rd. (Route 110)
Farmingdale, NY 11735
(631) 752-4242
www.meltingpot.com

Cuisine: Fondue
Atmosphere: Classy, Sophisticated
Hours: Monday - Thursday
5 p.m. – 10 p.m.
Friday 5 p.m. - 11 p.m.
Saturday 4 p.m. - 11p.m.
Sunday 4 p.m. - 9 p.m.
Reservations recommended

Main Menu