Fondue

For New Year's Eve I was able to enjoy a night out with a bunch of friends: Russ, Pat, Bob, Ginger, Jonathan, Angela, and of course, Kevin and Nicole. We enjoyed a three hour long, five course dinner at The Melting Pot. The Melting Pot is a fondue place that takes its name from America's old nickname. See, it's a play on words.

Anyway, this was my first experience with fondue. All in all, it was a pretty good experience. I mean, sure we paid to cook our own food, but it was all kinds of delicious. I happen to be a pretty good cook.

We started off the evening with a glass of champagne and a shrimp cocktail appetizer. The cocktail sauce was some kind of spicy 'cause it sure did open up sinuses I didn't even realize I had. Next came the cheese course. I don't think that's what it was actually called, but that's what it was. We watched as the server put the various cheesy ingredients into the pots and watched them melt and mix. For dipping, we were given an assortment of veggies, apples, and breads. Oh, so good.

Third we had the salads. But I'm really not that into salads, so let's skip to the main course. This is the part where we cooked our own food. We skewered the raw meats (including sirloin, lobster tail, ahi tuna, and chicken) and let them sit in the boiling mixtures for various amounts of time (depending on the type of meat). I'm fairly certain the lobster was my favorite. Just thinking about it now makes me hungry again.

Finally came the dessert portion of the evening. Now, when you think fondue and dessert, you probably think chocolate. And you'd be right. And I don't like chocolate. But the stuff that everyone else was dipping was pretty good. Pound cake, cheese cake, Rice Krispies treats. I haven't had Rice Krispies treats in years.

Midnight came at the time that it usually does. 2008 passed by the way years usually do. Suddenly it was 2009. And just like that, the evening was over. Before I knew it I was back at home, ready to spend the first few hours of the new year unconscious.