Melt — Restaurant in Upper Saucon

As of recently, my wife and I dined at Melt in the Promenade Shops at Saucon Valley. With a reservation for 7:15 p.m., we bypassed the busy lobby and were seated promptly. The atmosphere was lively, with staff constantly on the move, and the energy suggested we were in for something special. Melt came highly recommended by friends and had strong reviews, so expectations were high.

The menu, however, caught me off guard. Its design—a throwback to 90s diner placemats—felt out of sync with the restaurant’s polished aesthetic. It set a mismatched tone, but I pressed on.

Our first drinks, the "Uva Bianca" and "Cala Luna," were visually appealing and enjoyable. Both were balanced and well-executed, a promising start. For appetizers, we chose the "Calamari Fritti," served with lemon aioli, fried basil, and fresh lemon. It was crisp, flavorful, and paired well with the aioli, though it quickly lost its texture as it sat. The portion was also smaller than expected, which tempered my enthusiasm.

For mains, my wife opted for the gluten-free "Bucatini Carbonara," and I chose a smaller portion of the same, along with the "Fettuccine Bolognese." While my wife enjoyed her dish, I found the carbonara oily and lacking depth. The bolognese was better—rich, creamy, and flavorful without being overwhelming. However, both dishes were lukewarm, served on plates inexplicably hotter than the food itself. At this level, consistent temperature isn’t negotiable.

Dessert followed a similar pattern. My wife had vanilla gelato, and I tried the "Pasticcino di Cioccolato," a dark chocolate torta with crème anglaise and chocolate sauce. The flavors were decent, but the temperature issue persisted—cold edges with a warm center. Even the coffee, served black, felt underwhelming and watered down.

While the waitstaff was attentive and the ambiance inviting, the meal didn’t live up to the 4.5-star Google reviews or the hefty $200 tab. Food quality suffered from poor temperature control, which suggests a problem in timing or kitchen-to-table coordination. For the price, I would gladly wait longer to ensure proper execution.

Melt has potential, but potential alone isn’t enough. High-priced dining demands consistency, and this visit didn’t deliver. Fine dining requires more than a good vibe and attractive plating—it needs...

I hope anyone who reads this can appreciate why I felt the need to share my wife’s and mine experience. To celebrate our anniversary we made reservations at Blue Grillhouse in Bethlehem, which is a place we always enjoy and visit regularly. Unfortunately without realizing, we made an error with the reservations and was not able to be seated that evening understandably. We were caught off guard in the moment and took a seat to try and figure out what we were gonna do for our evening dinner plans. While sitting down, Tim (I apologize in advanced if I’m incorrect but I think he is the General Manager at Blue Grillhouse) approached us and expressed his apologies for the situation and suggested for us to consider one of their other restaurants, Melt.

He quickly gave us a brief description of Melt and if we were interested, he even offered to make sure we would get a table. My wife and I were really appreciative of this all and gladly accepted. It was about a 20 minute drive to Melt and being it was our first experience there, we were both very impressed from the moment we arrived.

The atmosphere itself was very classy, yet relaxing. Service was top notch, everyone we encountered was so polite and courteous. The food and drinks were unbelievable from start to finish, I couldn’t come up with a complaint even if I wanted to. And to top it off, Tim from Blue Grillhouse mentioned something to the staff at Melt before we arrived and when we ordered dessert after our meal, they really treated us generously and made personal touches for our anniversary. My wife and I were so taken back by all this and Chris (General Manager at Melt) personally came to our table to make sure everything was great tonight, and to express his apologies for our reservation mishaps. Again, we cannot thank Tim , Chris, and all the staff at Melt (especially you Stephanie!) enough. You guys made what would’ve been a sour evening into one of our most memorable and we look forward to...

I had an extremely disappointing experience with this restaurant and feel compelled to warn others—especially anyone considering booking an event here. I booked a private dinner party for 13 guests that had been confirmed for weeks, with a signed agreement. I had some questions regarding the outrageous food & beverage minimum (by the way, you need to add 6% tax and 20% service charge on top of that) which the Director of Events (Juliana) was not able to clearly explain. Additionally, she sent me the incorrect menu. Shockingly, the restaurant canceled the entire event just one week before the scheduled date with no legitimate explanation and no effort to offer a reasonable solution. What made this situation even worse was the rude and unprofessional behavior of the Director of Events and no real solution or apology from the restaurant manager (Chris). When I asked for clarification and tried to discuss alternatives, I was met with dismissive responses and an uncooperative attitude. Rather than offering any customer service or accountability, both the director of events and the manager were argumentative and condescending, making an already stressful situation even more frustrating. This was not just a simple reservation—it was a planned event, and their lack of professionalism caused significant inconvenience for my guests and me. A business that cancels confirmed events last minute and treats customers disrespectfully is completely unreliable. I am proud to say that the company I work for believes the customer is always right or we are willing to find a resolution. I strongly advise against trusting this restaurant with any important plans or special occasions. That being said, Morgan (the other restaurant manager) was a pleasure to work with. She should be the one working...