From Retro to Avant Garde: The Melting Pot

When I think about the 70s food beat, a Rorschach montage of faddish goodies comes to mind and somewhere flanked between the sticky sweet Sloe Gin Fizz cocktails and the tray of cliché Pigs in Blankets is the classic Fondue.

Picture, if you will, the quintessential dinner party of yore with four to six people sitting around a table, dipping cushions of bread into an encrusted burnt orange crock of gooey melted cheese, each diner assigned their own color coded shish kebob fork by which to spear tasty bites. Beyond the cheese type, you could also find the popular "meat and potatoes" variety complete with hearty chunks of beef for submerging, this time into a bubbling bath of golden oil.

 And for desert, more of the same but even better, morphed into a warm velvety chocolate liquid in which to roll your marshmallows and fresh fruit bites in.

And oh the conversations that were had, after all, this was a meal that didn't just suggest but actually insisted that you lollygag over dinner.

Imagine that!

Like most, I thought all this fondue stuff got cast away with the tired Farberware percolators and Mel Mac dishes.

It appears that I was wrong.

The Melting Pot restaurant in White Plains revives the fondue dining concept beautifully but this time around, sans the corny vibe. 

We disappeared out of the bustle of downtown White Plains and upon entering this restaurant, felt our stress melt away at the door (no pun intended) as we took in the dimly lit warm brown eating cubbies, smooth marble counters, contemporary abstract art pieces and modern suspended lanterns hanging from  minimalist black tile ceilings. Strains of light jazz music played in the background completing the relaxed vibe and while tempted via force of habit to barge right in and order fast food style, our gracious server Sonja made sure to coach our pulse rates down to a leisurely pace.

We started our inaugural visit with a comprehensive lesson on how to order, cook and imbibe there. A veritable walking encyclopedia of Melting Pot trivia, our server took the time to demystify the process, converting the menu from a book of daunting multiple choices to a relaxed and easy does it " how to" guide designed for a remarkable culinary, all-sensory, experience.  

We opted for the restaurant's "Big Night Out" choice; a four course fondue dinner for two, featuring a creamy cheese dish, a salad, a delicious entrée and of course the piece de resistance, a chocolate fondue desert. Our cheese course was a fusion of butterkase and fontina cheeses blended with three parts white wine, one part sherry and one spoonful of chopped shallots, seven turns (literally) of fresh black pepper and blue cheese crumble. Dipping choices included scrumptious rosemary French bread, a honey wheat bread and cauliflower, celery and carrots for the light and fit. Next a delicate salad was served, which cut the richness of our prior course nicely in readying us for the even more extravagant main course.

We chose the variety of meats comprised of twin lobster tails, ahi tuna, citrus pork, chili chicken and dumplings stuffed with tofu. A broth of burgundy wine, scallions and mushrooms filled our communal fondue pot. We were even given "search and rescue" spoons to ensure the capture of every last wayward morsel.

Our server offered cooking time suggestions for each type of meat and gave us a bounty of dipping sauces in which to baste our food including a green goddess sour cream based sort, a garlic butter Dijon, a teriyaki type, a yellow curry type  and a red cocktail sauce coined "angry" due to its spicy bite.

To allow patrons to enjoy the process of the meal, all the booths have some privacy and are spacious enough for all the items, like dipping sauces, that end up all over your table. There are even some booths with curtain closures coined Lovers Lane, complete with starlit ceilings for sincere ambiance. I suspect that a lot of marriage proposals had been offered at these digs. Our server assured us that in fact, this was quite true.

 I came away seeing The Melting Pot, as a memorable four-course dining experience where diners are offered all of the ingredients for a unique dining experience including a relaxed atmosphere, private tables, attentive service, fine wines and signature fondue meals.

The food and the concept get five stars and for all of you rat racers out there, you are encouraged to put down your iphones, grab a fork and by all means—lollygag away.