Ryan and I went out on a fondue date last night!
Our first date night of 2013 took us to The Melting Pot in downtown Ocala.
Downtown Ocala is still decorated for the holidays, so we had fun walking around the square before dinner and taking in the holiday sights before they’re put away until next year.
Once we meandered over to the restaurant, we were immediately greeted by the hostess and escorted to a cozy booth.
Drinks!
Tipsy Turtle + Blackberry Bourbon Bramble
Ryan and I planned our date night after I received a press release from The Melting Pot inviting me to try some of the dishes on the restaurant’s new Skinny Dipping menu. The Skinny Dipping menu features three courses – a salad, fondue entrée and dark chocolate fondue dessert – for less than 700 calories. I selected a salad and entrée off the Skinny Dipping menu last night and loved both of my choices! (I veered off the Skinny Dipping menu for the cheese and chocolate fondue courses.)
Our meal began with the cheese fondue!
Ryan and I selected the special of the day which included a big pot of brie and bacon cheese fondue, served with bread, tart apple slices and fresh vegetables for dipping.
Oh cheese fondue, you are so fabulous!
Our waitress suggested placing a piece of bread and an apple slice on our fondue forks at the same time before dipping it into the cheese and the flavor combination was fantastic!
Salads were delivered to our table shortly after we finished the cheese course.
I ordered the spinach salad topped with baby Portobello mushrooms, red onion, chopped bacon, Roma tomatoes and a warm burgundy shallot vinaigrette. Though this salad came off the Skinny Dipping menu, it didn’t taste lightened up at all! The toppings were quite generous and the dressing was delicious.
When it came time to order our entrees, I decided to go for a combination of shrimp and teriyaki-marinated sirloin.
At first I thought the portion looked rather small, but as I started eating, I filled up fast. (I think I had a head start on filling my belly with the cheese course!)
Every entrée comes with fresh vegetables to cook in your fondue pot and I couldn’t get enough of the mushrooms! They were the best, especially when dipped in the various sauces.
Ryan and I both agreed that the five dipping sauces that came with our entrees added so much to our meal. My favorite two sauces were the teriyaki and the mild, yogurt-based curry sauce.
And then it was time for dessert! The shining star of any fondue experience!
It didn’t take much convincing from our waitress for us to order the crème brûlée white chocolate fondue for dessert.
Caramel shavings were sprinkled atop creamy white chocolate and set afire before we cracked the caramel coating with our fondue forks and dipping items.
I am normally not a huge white chocolate fan, but the caramel component of this fondue took it to another level. Ryan and I used our spoons to get every last bit of chocolate out of our fondue pot. Incredible!
And now here’s the really fun part!
One of YOU will win a $100 gift card to The Melting Pot to enjoy your own fantastic fondue experience! (To find a location near you, you can visit The Melting Pot’s Locations page.)
To enter this giveaway, please tell me what course you would look forward to enjoying the most if you won the gift card. Cheese? Chocolate? Entrée?
I will randomly select a winner on Tuesday.
Good luck!!!
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CHOCOLATE FOR SURE!
ooh chocolate for sure~!!! but i’ve never had cheese fondue but your entry definitely convinced me for sure~! 🙂
Cheese fondue has a special place in heart (…stomach). So delicious!
For sure the chocolate!!
DEFINITELY chocolate. I’ve never tried the Melting Pot but would love to do fondue sometime. It’s exciting that they are featuring a new skinny menu!
My first time at the Melting pot I just had chocolate fondue and chocolate liquor, so I’d like to try the cheese!!!!!
I’m so glad you posted this!!! I have been trying to find a fondue place for the past year. I live in Iowa and there isn’t much around. We live about 2 hours from the Chicago suburbs so I’m totally excited to see they have locations there! I would love to try both cheese and chocolate! But if I had to do one it would be… CHEESE! 🙂
Oooh, such a tough call! But I think the chocolate would definitely come out on top for me! I’d love to try both though, just to be sure!
The cheese is the best!
Chocolate all the way!!!!!!
I would love the cheese course!!
Cheese- DEFINITELY the cheese!!!! Yum!!!!!
I am definitely a chocolate addict, so the dessert is what I would look forward to. I have never ate at The Melting Pot and would love to try it. A lot of people have said good things about it, especially the cheese and chocolate portions of the meal.
Cheese! But no meal can be complete without chocolate!
Cheese! Definitely my favorite part.
My boyfriend and I are going there for my birthday at the end of the month (neither of us have been) so this gift card would be amazing! I have a major sweet tooth so of course I’d be looking forward to this dessert portion!
The dessert fondue fo sho. Dipping marshmallows pound cake brownies strawberries and bananas into a gooey delicious concoction would be well worth the next days workout. Yum!
well hot dang! I came here to read about the Fondue-due, but it’s a giveaway post, too! I love me the cheese course best. I’m all about the Fiesta cheese combo thingy dippin’ those bread wedges into the melted cheesiness. ((burp))
Dessert for sure! I love chocolate and can’t resist and so does the hubby!
Definitely the cheese fondue, cheese makes everything better.
Would love to take my husband here for a date night 🙂
Most Definitely the Chocolate!! 😛
I have actually never had fondue before! Though the melted cheese sounds delicious on just about anything!
Cheese…definitely. I could give up sweets to eat cheese and bread forever! I’ve never been to The Melting Pot but have heard great things and would love to go!
I would love the chocolate. I have never had fondue before. I absolutely LOVE chocolate but don’t let myself indulge much. This would be the perfect treat!! A perfect date night treat!
Definitely the chocolate!!
The cheese course is my favorite!
I love The Melting Pot. We’ve gone a few times in Jacksonville. I love cheese so I’m biased towards the first course!
Did you guys order off their new skinny menu or the regular one?
Definately the chocolate. That Creme Brulee looks amazing.. but the Bananas Foster is the BEST!
I would love to try their new Skinny Dipping menu, my favorite course is dessert, anything chocolate!
OMG, you literally have me wiping drool off my computer screen!! (sorry, gross!!) The Melting Pot is one of my fav restaurants to go to with my fiancé, but it’s a little pricey, so we don’t go very often. The cheese and dessert courses are my favorite – I think the 2 choices you and Ryan made would be what I’d order too!! What a great giveaway!
definitely the chocolate course! that white choc creme brulee sounds amazing!
Oh my goodness! Hands down the entree. It is always my favorite. You are so right about the sauces! They make the meal! 🙂
I’d look forward to the entree! YUMMY! Your dinner looks fabulous.
fondue!
Chocolate! I love the White Chocolate Creme Brulee, It’s my favorite!
Definitely the chocolate! I heard from a girlfriend of mine that they have a peanut butter chocolate which is the best combonation ever!
I want to try the cheese and chocolate! Yummy!
I love cheese anything, and I have never been to the Melting Pot – Ive heard wonderful things though 🙂
How am I supposed to choose between cheese and chocolate?! I guess I’ll go with cheese!
Inspired by your blog, I told my husband last night that we should institute monthly date nights! I said that I would plan our first one and while reading through this post, I thought – fondue would be so FUN! I would love to win this gift cert and the dessert, I would imagine, would be the best part!
I would love the cheese and the chocolate courses! I would go with the cheese if I could only pick one!
The dessert course! The last time my husband and I were there, we had s’mores fondue at the suggestion of our server, and it was AMAZING.
I would have to say chocolate bc I looooveee chocolate but the cheese sounds great too. Have never been – sounds like a wonderful place for a date night.
I’m a cheesy girl for sure ! 😉
That dessert looks amazing! I love any and every variation of chocolate and look at all those fun things to dip! I would take forever between each bit trying to make the perfect combination. Question: Are you allowed to lick the bowl at the end? :p
I love the Melting Pot! My favorite course is always the chocolate course. But the cheese course is a close 2nd.
I think I would be most excited to try the cheese! I love cheese. One of my favorite guilty pleasures is the white queso at Mexican restaurants but am not usually a big fan of melty cheese dips at other places so I’d be curious to give the cheesy fondue a try and see if it wins over my taste buds. Having veggies in addition to bread for dipping makes it even more enticing. Healthy and delicious!
I would look forward to the dessert course most, of course! Dip anything in chocolate and I’m game 🙂
The cheese! I’m always a sucker for cheese! 😀
As much as I love chocolate, my favorite part would be dipping the bread into the cheese!