Melting Pot — Restaurant in Louisville

I want this to be 3.5 stars and having been to this location a half dozen times over the last decade or so I can say with confidence that the food and service for me at least has been consistent. There hasn't really been any decline nor any noticeable improvement in either. As most can attest the prices are pretty high for what you get and the claim of its mostly for the "experience" is kind of flawed as its not that great of a thing to put your food in boiling liquid to cook it.

I will start with the best part about The Melting Pot which is the atmosphere. The place is set up for a large variety of occasions and can usually accommodate accordingly. I have mostly only been here for date night and the request for romantic seating is pretty well achieved. The upstairs area is very quiet and personal and the booths you can be seating in have ceiling to floor curtains that can be closed for an even more intimate experience. With that however comes the downside of the actual fondue pots that spew a large vent of steam taking up half of your table making you not want to close the curtains until that portion of your meal is gone. It is very romantic and the additional steps of being able to add in roses or drinks to your table before your seated (at a price) is a great feature. Downstairs has various spots for large groups, business events, and casual dining if you want a larger less intimate experience.

The food to me is mostly on the mediocre side with the portions being as small as you don't want to expect. The starting cheese course is by far my favorite as the selection of cheeses and their preparedness is great. The portions for that are actually perfect as you really run out of cheese fondue bout the same time you run out of the food it is accompanied with. The flavors are great with it. Ordering a surf and turf entree for a couple does yield 2 portions for each person but the total of that single portion for each maybe adds up to 8 oz worth of food. which when it carries a $60/person price tag would expect a bit more. The quality of the food is very good however and I have never experienced expired or near expired seafood or meats. It is all very fresh. The "broth" or liquid that you get to cook your food in might as well just be water as it has never had flavor nor have I ever had it add flavor to anything. Luckily they have the dipping sauces and seasoning at the table so for that it's never mattered what I got. The dessert course to end it to me is larger than the entree course with a big plate of different desserts that are just fantastic and go great with the fondue you chose. I have always gone back to the marshmallow smores for dessert and its just fantastic.

Now to the worst part which is the price. Would I say it is worth it to come here for an event or date night? Maybe once. Just for that one time to say you have been here and done it, otherwise it really just is not worth it for the price. We got the 4 course fondue without any alcohol or drinks and it was a $180 bill at the end. Couple hours later we went to McDonald's to get more food from hunger since it really wasn't all that filling. Almost need to eat a large lunch then come here for dinner. If the prices on everything dropped about 30% I would say this is one of the ultimate places for a date night or fondue but right now its just not. $20 worth of food for $105 menu price is a little over the top for me even with the atmosphere and given I have to do all the cooking I just can't rationally justify it in my mind.

For a one time experience It's worth it. As a repeat location to go, it would only be worth it if you get something not fondue or maybe just from the ala cart menu and even then prepare for a small meal, and honestly I would stick to a cheese and dessert only kind of meal, which can be good for a conversation setting first date where you don't want a full stomach or have plans later for another meal, but I would stay clear of the entree as its very...

This is a new more recent review from a Mother's Day visit. This time I had a party of 4. It was my sister's birthday, 2 of us were mothers and the other was a boyfriend of my daughter. To say I am disheartened with this Melting Pot is truly an understatement. I mentioned this was for Mother's Day and a Birthday celebration at booking, when we checked in and when we were being seated. Not once were we wished a Happy Mother's Day or Happy Birthday. I always get lobster and so we upgraded to the $72/person with lobster meal that also had shrimp. We started with the Gruyere Cheese Fondue. In the past when I mention the adverse affects of alcohol, an alternative such as broth rather than wine or far less wine is suggested. This time I was told, this is given to children and the alcohol is cooked out. I did feel the affects after consuming the cheese fondue, so apparently not all of the alcohol was cooked out. We use the green goddess sauce for just about everything and asked for an additional bowl because we are very familiar with how much use it. After asking multiple times, running completely out, and then having to ask another waitress (who wasn't our waiter) who brought it immediately, did we finally get our extra sauce. Then came the melted butter with cilantro in it. Approximately 25% of the world's population hate cilantro. Those cilantro-haters have a genetic issue. These people have a variation in a group of olfactory-receptor genes that allows them to strongly perceive the soapy-flavored aldehydes in cilantro making it non edible. After asking for plain melted butter, I was told there is no melted butter except with cilantro. So basically if you love lobster with melted butter, 1 out of 4 customers are just told too bad. After asking to speak with the manager, who suggested I use lemon, I asked what he would do for me since I wasn't going to be able to eat my lobster or shrimp, he asked me what he should do. Get an Uber eats driver to bring butter and I was told they were too busy. So I asked to have it removed from my bill. I was given $25 off. Also, when I did get the bill, there was a mysterious surcharge. When asked what the surcharge was for, I was told it was for the kitchen employees. Sorry, after a not happy Mother's Day or Birthday for my sister, the last thing I should be responsible for is paying for kitchen help that cannot even provide regular butter. This has to be the worst experience ever. I don't know if ownership has changed or what, but I am so sad about having to change my review so drastically from my last one.

I have gone to Melting Pots all over the US for years! We had a party of 7 for an early birthday celebration due to it being a special restaurant week participant. I ordered the 3 course meal, added lobster, and the chocolate fondue dessert. The food quality was perfect and consistent as always. The service was just ok here, maybe due to our larger party. But what was amazing about the management was they comped my meal. In all my times of dining at a Melting Pot, I have never been splattered or burned by the oil. This time the oil landed on my bare shoulder and then again later on 3 different spots on my arms. This was obviously not their fault in any way. It was so gracious of them to do this! We...

The experience was supposed to be a romantic date, and the Lovers Lane package was meant to be a special and memorable experience. However, instead of being able to relax and enjoy the evening and my date, I felt like I had to stay on my toes to ensure that everything was being done correctly. As the person paying, I shouldn't have to worry about what's included in the package and what's not. It's not about being nitpicky, but about trusting that the restaurant will deliver on their promises. I was only expecting that.

I’m just going to get straight to the point about my experience instead of writing a whole story.

Parking: Arrive early, as weekend parking can be challenging. I wasn’t aware they didn’t have their own parking. Reservation Discretion: Staff could be more discreet when acknowledging special packages in front of guests. Food and Setup: The Lovers Lane package's food was good, and the table setup was lovely. Staff Familiarity: Our waitress seemed unfamiliar with the package, leading to mistakes like incorrect meats (including pork, which wasn't on the menu) and missing lobster (which at that point I didn’t even say anything about because it was too much and ruining the date.). The waitress also didn’t know the package included a whole bottle of wine. Substitution Issues: While some substitutions were accommodated, the pork was substituted for steak/chicken. The pork was only scraped off the dish and had already touched the meats that were on the dish. That is definitely not standard practice in the food industry when you tell them you absolutely do not eat pork. I emphasized on that, all while being very friendly too.

• Biggest disappointment: The manager failed to honor the promised wine comp ($53) when the bill arrived, instead offering a $13 cocktail. (This was promised to us because of the pork situation, which wasn’t dealt with professionally either.)

Overall: I do want to acknowledge all of the servers were extremely friendly. I liked our server, but she lacked knowledge of the package details, leading to confusion. It's clear that a breakdown in communication between the staff contributed to the issue when the check came, and we were disappointed by the lack of resolution. If everything was done correctly, I would recommend the lovers lane package. But not sure I will risk doing that again. I’d probably just go for an appetizer or dessert if...