Automotive | Clothing & Jewelry | Community Organizations | Education | Entertainment | Financial Services | Home & Garden | Legal Services | Medical Services | Merchant Services | Municipal Services | Pets | Real Estate | Recreation | Restaurants | Services | Shopping | Travel & Transportation | Wellness & Beauty | Coupons & Promotions | Featured Webcards | Recent Enhanced Listings | Recent Listings | Town Links | San Mateo Daily Digest
Compared to the Melting Pot in SJ and of course La Fondue in Saratoga, this place is OK. Menu is not as extensive as SJ and they don't have my favorite cooking method- tempura. But otherwise the atmosphere and service is pretty good and your best bet is to go on Wednesday or Monday night (Ladies night is a great deal 1st Wednesday of the month, and Monday they do free wine). It's nice to be so close to the train station. So close.
Having been looking for a place that doesn't hurry you out the door, I've found it! We don't get out that often and when we do with friends, it's an event. Our server, Vince, was entertaining and courteous yet not too in your face! The food was fresh, delicious and there was plenty of it. Well worth the time and money.
Hey this place is really great and the owner really cares about you!
Go in and say hi...located right there....at San Mateo Cal Train...Super Yummy!
Full Bar Cheese Delight!
-Redneck Yogi
This is my 5th visit to the Melting Pot chain..and my first to San Mateo. The ambiance of the train station was beautiful and the service impeccable. I love that they are so close by rather than having to drive to the South Bay, and that they allow you to just come in for dessert fondue! I know my pocketbook will only allow a 4 course dinner twice a year..but dessert may make it more often for sure!
To the other reviewers..the pot in the table..the explanation and chattiness from the servers is common in most fondue restaurants..and is part of the ambiance! The price structure as well is common of most fondue restaurants. Honestly..if youfind a place that is a lot less expensive..i'd question the food quality!
My only disappointment in the Melting Pot is that they only offer the pot option for your meat course, rather than a more grilling/sauteeing approach. It was still very yummy experience..and the sauces were the right touch!
I would concur with Phoebe. We too found the ordering very confusing and quite expensive. In addition, while the meal is being prepared at your table you are subjected to the personality and conversation of the server. In our case, we found it to be very obnoxious. Confusion + Experience + Chatter = a Bad Experience!
They are new and I am sure want to survive. I am confident changes will happen so we will try again... maybe for lunch.
I don't like to write negative reviews. But tonight I had dinner at The Melting Pot, and I hope the ownership will view this criticism constructively.
First, the menu is incomprehensible. It's just very confusing. It took us about 10 minutes of instruction with the waiter to understand how to order. Later in the evening, we heard the table behind us going through the exact same tedious process of deciphering the menu well enough to place an order. How can it be so difficult to order dinner? It has to do with math: The suggested dinners are for two to share, there is one burner per table. So unless your party consists of an even number of people who all want the same food, good luck figuring out how to make it work out for everyone.
Our party consisted of three adults and one 3-year-old. So the only way for us to order was for two of us to share one menu item prepared for two to share, and for one of us to order a single entrée that included some things the 3 year old would eat, all cooked in the same pot. For some reason, the entrée ordered for one did not include dessert, so the final course was too small. To make matters even more complex, I don’t eat red meat. But I had to share the pot with the two people who chose to share a meal that included pork and beef. What a puzzle.
Second, I would not want to be The Melting Pot’s insurance agent. Why? Well, for one thing, THERE IS A SCALDING HOT BURNER IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TABLE! One sloppy move and you’re cooking yourself instead of your dinner. For another thing, the meat, fish and poultry are served raw on a plate in their own juices. It’s very easy to for the raw meat and juice to come into contact with the cooked meat you are about to eat. Finally, the skewers are very sharp. Not a big deal for adults, but for a 3-year-old they are a significant bloody boo-boo just waiting to happen.
Here’s how our dinner went.
- After a long discussion about how to order, we got help from our waiter and together we figured out a way for all of us to eat something, as long as we were willing to compromise.
- The cheese fondue is prepared by the waiter at our table. It’s okay. But I have to eat with my left hand while holding my child tightly on my lap so she doesn’t burn or stab herself.
- Our salads arrive. They taste like they are pre-prepared and stored in the refrigerator. None of us eat our salads because they are swimming in dressing.
- The entrees arrive. I tediously cook individual bites of chicken for 2 minutes each, and about halfway into our meal we all concur that this is just more trouble than it’s worth.
- It takes three waiters to clear our table because there are dozens of plates, skewers, knives, folks and glasses. Remember, you have to cook your own dinner and eat it being careful not to combine the tools that touch raw meat and the tools that cook the food and the tools for serving the food.
- The chocolate fondue arrives. Ah, IMHO this is what fondue is for: dipping tasty things into chocolate and putting them directly into your mouth.
- But here’s the kicker: Dinner for three adults, plus one glass of wine, one ice tea and one martini for the table, cost about $50 per person. Remember, one of the entrees consisted of one raw chicken breast cut up into pieces. $50 per person... and you have to cook it yourself!
I’m happy there is something new to try in San Mateo, so I hope The Melting Pot figures it all out soon. Good luck; my advice is to listen carefully to your customers and respond to their criticisms.
