Location: 901 Fifth Avenue, San Diego, CA  Date Visited: Thursday, September 17, 2026  What We Ordered: 3-Course Fondue Experience  Old Fashioned Modern cocktails  Glass of Mionetto Prosecco  Fantastic evening out. Excellent drinks--the Old Fashioned Modern was stellar--and a fun, relaxing fondue dinner experience. twirling Yummies through the cheese and the chocolate was really the midway of the gas lamp like an amusement park for food. Awesome. Ask for Dakota B. He knows service and how customers like to be treated. read more

Melting Pot - The interior of the building is really decked out, cool to see the relief panels on the ceiling - Fondue Near Me - San Diego, California

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(As said on google) First time ever! Shaunna, the Hospitality Manager she served our party of 4 on 04/15/26. This was after our visit to Sea World. She answered all our questions and gave us recommendations. We did the four-course meal. (spanish artichoke as the cheese, caesar and strawberry almond salad, coco-vigne as our cooking style, did the steak lovers, and we did lastly the dark and dulce for chocolate.) Everything was delicious. Shaunna was amazing. She was helpful. She definitely served us and gave us an experience we will never forget. For sure out of 10, it is a 10. We would love to come back. We were full but we are happy to leave happy and full thanks to the Melting Pot Staff and especially Shaunna. Thank you! And definitely look out for Shaunna, she is AMAZING!!!! Ambiance is amazing. Pretty chill! Mood lighting. And also this skyscraper use to be a bank (fun fact). read more

Melting Pot - Dark & Dulce - Fondue Near Me - San Diego, California

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My friend and I tried this restaurant last night in San Diego It was such a pleasant experience The restaurant is off of fifth ave in downtown San Diego It has a beautiful atmosphere The building is an old structure with amazing looking ceilings We were placed at a cute and cozy corner boot The lighting was very relaxing Our server senior Silvio from Spain was so kind and attentive The restaurant manger was very welcoming and friendly Our other server was also very polite and helpful The three course meal Was delicious and tasty We don't even know how the time passed as we were so busy enjoying our food and our conversation I definitely will recommend this beautiful restaurant for any occasion To read more

Alright so this is probably one of the fanciest restaurants I've been to, as I myself am not what you would call a "fine diner" but I gotta say this place was amazing, and very unique, you basically choose a type of cheese, and they melt it in a pot in the middle of the table (hence the name, melting pot) and then you can order all sorts of vegetables, meat and bread to dip in it, sounds simple but everything tastes amazing, the ingredients are high quality, and the ambience there at night is perfect, with dim fancy lighting, the workers there gave off a "professional" vibe and let's not forget that there's also a dessert option you can have too, where you can melt chocolate and dip all sorts of fancy sweets in it, which was incredible too. Awesome spot, perfect for if you are looking for a fantastic new experience. read more

Such a great restaurant from the food to the service! Especially the waiter named Devin, he really made my first time fondue experience very memorable. Will be back! ...and we will be recommending this experience to all our friends and family. read more

Oh my goodness! This restaurant is absolutely stunning, having taken over a bank building that was erected in the 1930s. The ambience, the decor, and especially the food and service were impeccable! Our server, Vanessa, has mastered the fine art of being present when we needed her to be, and not when we didn't. I would suggest getting the all-you-can-eat meal, though, as our regular entrée didn't quite fill me up (500 calories for $50!), yet I would come back again just for the experience. read more

Melting Pot - Upper bar area - Fondue Near Me - San Diego, California

On our last night's visit to San Diego we had the good fortune to dine at The Melting Pot. The food and service were outstanding. The restaurant in an old bank building is lovely. Great for a romantic dinner. We ordered the four-course dinner for two. Our favorite parts of the meal were the cheese and chocolate fondues. Both were so yummy! The salads and meat courses were also great - but frankly, we would have been just as satisfied with just the cheese and chocolate fondue courses. This is a wonderful restaurant that is both fun and delicious. We will be returning the next time we visit San Diego. read more

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We decided to come here for a "fine dining experience" and unfortunately received the opposite. Our reservation was for 6:15 p.m. We were seated immediately, and the hostess was very kind. Since we had never been to The Melting Pot before, she explained that our server would walk us through everything, including how to cook our food. We waited a while for our drinks (a sangria and a beer), but that wasn't a big deal since we were still looking over the menu. After ordering, our first course was great. Our server brought out the Fiesta cheese fondue, which we enjoyed with the chips, pretzel bites, vegetables, etc. Unfortunately, that's where the experience went downhill. After a busser cleared our empty dishes, we sat with absolutely nothing in front of us for over an hour waiting for our next course. Our drinks were empty, and it genuinely felt like we had been forgotten in the corner. After we finally said something about the wait, another server brought out our oil. We then waited approximately another 15 minutes before our meats arrived. Despite this being our first time at The Melting Pot, nobody ever showed us how to cook anything, even though we were specifically told upon arrival that our server would explain the process. We ended up guessing what we were supposed to do. Throughout the entrée, multiple different employees came over and adjusted the temperature of our oil. At one point it was so hot it was bubbling onto the table; at another, it wasn't hot enough to cook our meats in a reasonable amount of time. By this point, we had been at the table for more than two hours and were still waiting for dessert. When our server finally returned, we were ready to leave and asked to have our dessert packaged to go. Then, when we received our bill, I noticed an additional 5% "supplemental fee" added to the check to help offset rising costs. We were never told about this fee during our visit; I only discovered it because I looked over the bill. We asked for it to be removed, and it was, but I still found the practice frustrating. Food and operating costs have risen everywhere, and adding a separate 5% surcharge rather than incorporating those costs into the advertised menu prices just left a bad taste after an already disappointing experience. Our server was extremely kind, and I don't want to take that away from her. However, the table attendance, communication, pacing, and guidance throughout our meal could have been drastically improved. For a restaurant marketed as an experience, spending more than two hours there, including sitting for over an hour between courses with empty drinks and no communication; was incredibly disappointing. We came here specifically wanting a special fine-dining experience while visiting San Diego, and I genuinely wish we had chosen somewhere else. Unfortunately, this was our first and last Melting Pot experience. read more

If you get anything, get the Flaming Turtle fondue for dessert! Special thanks to Vanessa, our waitress, for making my birthday that much more special read more

Melting Pot - Fondue Near Me - San Diego, California

I use any special occasion as an excuse to come here. It's such a unique dining experience and so tasty. I usually just get cheese and chocolate fondue but if you're really hungry or it's your first time, the 4-course option is the way to go. You'll get cheese fondue, salad, a selection of meat/fish/veggies with your cooking broth and your choice of chocolate to finish it off. You really can't go wrong with the flavors you choose for any of the courses. The chocolate is always my favorite though and the dessert dippers are insanely delicious. As for the vibes, it's in an old historical building so it has a subtle touch of antiquity to it. Service is very friendly and the waiters are thorough with explaining the menu if it's your first time. For parking, our server Dakota told us that the hotel next door does a deal with them for $15 valet parking as long as you're eating at the restaurant, so definitely do that instead of parking in the connecting Ace lot and you'll save yourself $23. This is a great spot for a fancy date, a celebration, or if you're just in the mood for something different! read more

Melting Pot - Cookie Butter Crunch fondue with the included dippers! - Fondue Near Me - San Diego, California

Fondue spots are rare these days, but I'm so glad that Melting Pot is there for me when the craving strikes. The restaurant space itself is beautiful--historic building with high, carved ceilings, lots of dark wood intimate lighting, and comfortable booths. Service was very good. I appreciate the versatility of the menu, which has a multi-course, pre fixe option as well as many a la carte possibilities. We chose the cheese and chocolate courses only, one order of which serves 2. The classic, boozy emmantel is a winner, and extra dippers are brought out automatically if the server notices that you have leftover cheese. The most pleasant surprise of the night was the cookie butter crunch chocolate course - I'd never selected this white chocolate, biscoff and candied almond option before, and my was it yummy. It paired particularly well with the rice krispie treat and waffle dippers. read more

I went for my first time with my fiancé and my son while we were visiting in San Diego. Everything about the process of the meal to the service was amazing. I highly recommend trying this at least once. I will definitely be back. The ambiance was perfect. read more

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Really good cheese fondue (we had Spinach artichoke) and chocolate fondue (we just asked for straight dark chocolate). We got the "girl dinner" deal and it was a great price for a lot of food. We each got a salad, a charcuterie board to share, and the cheese and chocolate fondue pots with lots of items to dip to share. Our waiter was nice and checked in just the right amount. We were celebrating a birthday and they brought us over a cake with a candle and cute writing on it. The restaurant was pretty empty on a weekday evening. It's very elegant in there. It would be a great date or special occasion spot. read more

Melting Pot - Girl dinner partially pictured (spinach artichoke cheese fondue and charcuterie board) - Fondue Near Me - San Diego, California

We had such a good time. Place looks really nice dark interior in a building constructed in 1913 in great shape. We started with the Alpine cheese, fondue, followed by salad, and then the dark chocolate. Amazing taste, loved the cheese. Charles was our waiter and you did an amazing job. We're gonna go there every other month for our date night! read more

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A check in from one year since my last review. It is still really good. I have to say that the staff is excellent here. This is now my daughter's go-to birthday meal and they handle the occasion perfectly. I tend to be somewhat averse to similar dining experiences like KBBQ. But Melting Pot (especially this one) makes it feel like a perfect family meal. Food is delicious, everything is paced perfectly and the service is attentive and also not intrusive. The seating is also comfortable and the venue noise level is perfectly conducive to conversation. Big shoutout for another special meal. read more

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Everything went well! We had not had the opportunity to visit a Melting Pot in about 18 years. I was so happy to see there was one here, close to where we were staying. The food was outstanding. I love the Alpine Cheese, my Ceasar Salad was absolutely the best. My husband begrudgingly ordered the strawberry salad because it was part of dinner for two special. He ate every leaf. He said, it's the best salad ever. The main course options were good and the dessert.. OMG you must get! Service was outstanding and the restaurant itself looked like the Melting Pot I remembered. The only real negative was the 7% experience fee. A note to self next time I visit order just - cheese, salad and dessert. read more

Ehat a wonderful experience! We had a feisty gathering of 7 celebrating. Train ran late and they accommodated graciously Vanessa was an amazing server and will request her in the future. We were a handful and the smile never left her face. Great food, amazing service. Definitely recommend!!! read more

Shawna was absolutely amazing! She is normally a hostess but got thrown into serving today, and you honestly would have never known because she did such a great job. She went above and beyond for us the entire night and was so sweet, attentive, and charismatic. She even took the time to tell us about the history of The Melting Pot and the building, which made the experience feel even more special. She was genuinely so nice to be around and made us feel very welcomed and taken care of. Overall, she was an amazing server and a huge part of why we had such a great time. We would definitely love to have her again! read more

Just incredible service at a lovely, historic building in the gaslamp. It was very quiet and intimate, like we were tucked away from the world, not an easy feat in the heart of the gaslamp. The food was excellent, was the verdict from my little food critic. I think the most impressive part was that everything is still a fairly good value for what you get, although some portions are still small. read more

Excellent service by our waiter Rigo. The whole staff was wonderful. The meal was delicious. Highly recommended.

We came to Melting Pot to celebrate our birthdays on a Saturday night. It was not that busy, ambiance was fine, service was relatively fast. Our main gripe was that the 4 course meal was extremely expensive (came out to $90/person including tip, no extras) and the meat quality in the Steak Lover's entree was very subpar. Some of the meat cuts were very sinewy and the petit filet was basically stew meat. For $90/person the quality of the meat was ridiculous. Even just paying the $45/person for the meat entree alone would be ridiculous. If you think about it, you're essentially boiling meats that should be cooked on a grill. Our server didn't say anything about this or even make any kind of recommendation for the meat entrees, we would have appreciated a heads up. I will give him points though because he did bring us extra vegetables and sauce when we requested it. The vegetables obviously were fine cooked in the broth but I would absolutely avoid the meat cooked in the broth. Aside from that, the spinach artichoke fondue and the flaming turtle fondue were excellent. If we come again, we will just get those two and avoid the meat entree. read more

We loved Jay, our server! He added to the whole wonderful experience! The occasion was the shared birthday of our granddaughter (13th) AND her mom! The food was delicious and the service top notch! We were in a separate room and the setting was perfect for conversation and sharing! read more

This place was alright! I had higher expectations. Pros: they do validate parking at a garage nearby but it is not free. Was quickly greeted and sat. I liked the taste of the flaming turtle fondue. I liked the Cesar salad. I thought the service was okay. Some rooms for improvement as overall I felt it went slowly and was in the restaurant for over 2 hours. Had to remind the server three times for my drink. She apologized, She seemed knowledgeable about the menu. I did not like the alpine fondue. It had a bitter taste and was strong on the wine. Would have added some salt. I would not eat this again. I wish the bread was toasted but it was fine. Ordered the citrus broth which was flavorful. I did not like the raw veggies with the entree and they took a while to get soft. I was personally bothered by the raw meats touching eachother on the dish eg the raw chicken on top of the ravioli and the raw shrimp. The cooking times are different and did not think this was a good plating method. The vibe was nice and a good spot for date night. Overall would not come again but I just wanted to try it one time. read more

Melting Pot - Fondue Near Me - San Diego, California

Brought my team of 9 here for dinner one night. I pre-ordered one of their 4 course meals, think it was called the Napa or Sonoma. I got to choose 2 different cheese sauces, 2 different cooking broths and two different chocolate pots. Then they start bringing all you can eat for each course and a salad in the middle. Takes an along time to eat but so worth it! We had a nice back room to ourselves and our server Devin was amazing, friendly and attentive. read more

Food was delicious, we got the 4 course meal for 2 people and it was more than enough to eat and if anything a bit more so I had to take some of the seafood home. I'm a small person so I lean more on smaller portions. Service was amazing! Our waitress was very attentive, nice, and sweet. We went here to celebrate my husband's birthday so they also gave him a free chocolate covered strawberry. Ambiance was nice, we took Uber there because we didn't want to deal with parking as it's downtown Gaslamp and it's located right outside the section of the street where they close off. They sat us in the booth area and it was perfectly nice and cozy. read more

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It was ugh. Sadly we had a hostess that seats you as a waitress. So, that's not her fault but, management. She would forget parts of your meal. Forget every add on. So, you would sit and wait forever at each part of the meal at every point. So upsetting to sit and wait with meat in front of you but, everything you ordered on top of that not there. This went for everything even down to the desserts. And who was the tall guy that clears tables? He drove us nuts. We would be mid but and he'd attempt to grab plates with food on it or ask us mid bite if we were done with something but clearly still eating still cooking. We felt we had to woof down our food. I think the mgr should have taken over as a server to fix the issue of the missing staff. Not a hostess. read more

We celebrated my grandson's 10th birthday at The Melting Pot, and it was spectacular. Our server, Shaunna, provided a truly memorable evening. She walked us through the menu and recommended the Big Night Out Experience. It was the perfect choice! All four courses--the rich cheese fondue, fresh salads, delicious entrées, and decadent chocolate fondue--were absolutely incredible. Shaunna went out of her way to make my grandson feel special, patiently answering all of his questions. She completely embraced all three children with us. Outstanding service, relaxing ambiance, and a fantastic meal. My grandson already wants to return next year for his birthday --we have officially started a new family tradition! read more

My boyfriend and I decided to come here to celebrate our 2 year anniversary and left happy and full! We ordered the 4 course meal which includes the cheese fondue, salads for each of us, oil, and the chocolate fondue! They set up our table really cute with rose petals and a cute anniversary sign and later brought out the plate with the chocolate covered strawberry. The service was also amazing! Overall a great experience and will definitely come back! read more

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Excellent service! Menu was difficult at first to decipher but the server gave us an amazing overview of the best experience possible. Ambiance was calming with no outside noise it was surprisingly peaceful considering gaslamp in general. Would definitely go back again. read more

Man, this place... I'm so sad that they closed down the Irvine location. But, no matter, I travel to SD a few times a year to hit this place up! I love it here so much. Their spinach and artichoke dip is fantastic!! I think this is the best fondue spot I've been to. Yeah, it's a little pricey but it's so worth it. I love the ambience l, it's so moody and romantic. My husband and I have come here for date nights and anniversaries for years. They have a nice little date night bundle where they serve you wine and have an arrangement of roses at your table. It's very cute. They also have a birthday one where they have balloons. It's so neat! The service has always been very good too, I've ever had any complaints. read more

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Joey was our server and he was amazing! Very helpful and friendly. We always enjoy our time at The Melting Pot! read more

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Shaunna was great she gave me the history of the building and was attentive. Food was great as always.

WARNING - this restaurant adds a mandatory 8% supplemental fee on top of their menu prices and tax and tip. Will NOT be coming back.

This place is great! The food choices were so good, veggies, cheese and the dessert chocolate. Our server "SHAY" she was amazing, asked all the right questions, showed interest & was there when we needed her. She was funny, professional, and made our night out so nice. Go there for an amazing night of food & fun. We will return with our whole family... all 12 of us. Marie King read more

This is one of the worst restaurants to go for a romantic dinner. We asked for a private romantic table, and they said it was right in front of the bar upstairs where everybody can go up the stairs and see us Also, the management is so rude and not there to make your dinner pleasant whatsoever if you're looking for a romantic nice dinner to impress somebody or or just to go because you like fondue I'm telling you just do it yourself. This is so overpriced is so bad. I will never tell anybody to go there so disappointing. It is so expensive also read more

We came for our anniversary and Shawna made it extra special with special touches which we really appreciated. Food was delicious and they were very attentive to my gluten allergy. we'll be back! read more

Wonderful food I couldn't believe the choices of oils for the meat and fish and veggies I loved the salmon There are many choices of cheese I've had the cheddar this time so good. I like the chocolate peanut butter for desert It is cozy atmosphere ! The server was so helpful and fun ! Great place to enjoy for a cool experience . read more

Melting Pot - House salad - Fondue Near Me - San Diego, California

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Came here for a private wine and cheese tasting event with some friends. The fondue was fantastic! We were shown a wide variety of wines that paired with different cheeses and charcuterie, and had a fantastic afternoon. I ended up buying a bottle of wine- I cannot wait to come back for dinner soon! read more

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Our server, Devon, was amazing. He was super professional and sweet, caring, charismatic, professional. And showed emotional intelligence in the workplace. Love devon. Also the hostess was very sweet and kind. Great lady. read more

Melting Pot - Good vibes. Good food. - Fondue Near Me - San Diego, California

I went to the UTC location for years but avoided the downtown location because of the parking situation. When the UTC Melting Pot closed during Covid, I had no choice but start venturing downtown. I don't go as often now because it's not as convenient but the food is still tasty and it's become our go-to spot for a girls night out for Galentine's. I'm a really big fan of the basic cheddar cheese fondue but the fiesta is a good alternative and I do like the addition of the tortilla chips with that dip. I always get the house salad with ranch and topping it with the salad seasoning is a must. It's so good that I always buy a seasoning to take home and use it on all my salads. For chocolate, I go for a dark chocolate and I was super thrilled to see the addition of the dark chocolate raspberry option in the last few years. I've tried the entree a few times and while it's good, the rest of the meal is showstopper for me. I'm always worried I'm not cooking the meat long enough. As for getting downtown, I tend to park at the Old Town station and take the blue line trolley to 5th Avenue station, which is only two blocks away from the restaurant. read more