Didn't care for the small table they sat us at, but we made the best of it. Server was not the best, he was nice but not attentive as I watched other servers attend their tables. Food was slow to come out. Overall good experience for us.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 3
Sarah Monsalve
We had a lovely experience celebrating my daughter’s 12th birthday. Alex, the manager, had everything perfectly organized just as we had discussed beforehand, which made the evening stress-free and special. Mike, our waiter, was attentive, friendly, and made sure we had everything we needed throughout the night. We were placed in the private room which was much better because the girls could laugh out loud and speak without making anyone else uncomfortable. Per my request, Alex even placed a basket in the middle of the table for the phones, which was a lovely touch. The girls were engaged in the conversations without looking at the screen. We enjoyed the cheese fondue, grilled our entrées at the table, and finished with the chocolate Jing Jang and s’mores with a variety of delicious dippers. My daughter and her friends had an amazing time, and we felt the service was excellent and the food options absolutely outstanding. Thank you, Alex and Mike, for helping make this a day my daughter will always remember.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ree Vicious
I have celebrated my birthday many of times since I was a teenager at The Melting Pot and usually it’s a special experience tonight was anything but. We had a party of 4 and were placed at a booth where no one had a stitch of arm space and no gifts could be brought in because we barely had space to eat. We asked to move to another spot where we could not being on top of each other but we were told not allowed bc anything bigger was reserved for bigger parties, fine nothing we can do but not pleased since we never had an issue prior well then the manager Alex came by and it would of probably been better had she not! She was snide and offered to buy us a round to which I replied we don’t drink ( 3 out of the party do not) and that seemed to irk her bc she shot back with “ well neither do I so I’ll just grab your regular drinks” and darted off never to be seen again and guess what she didn’t take a single thing off! So why say it? This is all before we even placed our order and that should have been the sign to get up and leave but we didn’t. The table had old dried food on it and they have only been open barely an hour so it was from the night before. The cauliflower that was served was just the stem part you read that right just the stem with no crown! The steak and chicken were not cut into pieces and all we had was a butter knife to work with. Who servers a margarita in a daiquiri glass? No seriously because that is ridiculous! We had dishes piled up and we were short on space already so you could imagine how lousy it was to try and enjoy your food. The restroom was as bad as a 7 11 bathroom and that is unacceptable for a place with a price point like this one. It’s out dated and desperately in need of new management! This will be the last birthday I ever spend there not that it matters to them. I’d rather go to an authentic upscale restaurant and not one who now feeds into the gimmick over quality. I mean would you drop $400+ at Chucky Cheese? I think not!
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 2
Service: 2
Meaghan
Our server was absolutely terrific, and I had upgraded to the romance package and they did a beautiful job with rose petals and candles
Emma Roth
Definitely disappointed in this place ☹️ Went for a friends birthday dinner and it was all of our first times there. Asked the server to explain the process/menu but he was not helpful. Waited for at least 10 minutes for our drinks to come and had to go to host stand to remind them we were ready to order. When they came with the cheese fondue some of the pots weren’t full enough with water and started smoking like crazy it had all of us coughing. We skipped over the entrée and went straight to dessert because of how long it was taking. I do appreciate them having gluten free dipping options but unfortunately they were out of gluten free bread 😔 I would just expect a better experience especially given how expensive it is.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 4
Service: 1
Jacklyn Araque
I took my fiancée there for his birthday (it was his first experience) We had a wonderful time. The food was amazing and our server was great. We are definitely planning to go back again.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Blake Sutton
We’ve been going since the 80’s and it is exactly the same.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Bob
The food was mediocre, but there a lot of the entrees. The service was good. The price was $89 per person plus drinks, tax and tip.
STEEL - 1948 Main St
Juice, Juice Bar & Smoothies, Nutritionists, Vitamins & Supplements, Vegan
Becky
Usually we have a great experience here, but this visit wasn't great. We went on NYE so we expected it to be busy. We had reservations and didn't had to wait to talk to the front staff, but the had to wait 10-15 mins for a table as servers kept walking into us. Then we sat at a table where a discard tray was in arms length away. We could add our used dishes ourselves if we wanted along side everyone else's. The cheese course was fine. We had a special NYE one. The salads came out and the lettuce wasn't even chopped enough to eat. We had to cut up the lettuce as to not have 8inch pieces on our plate. The main course took a long time to come out. The shrimp and lobster were not deveined which was unappealing. The chicken was frozen in the middle. Usually we have a great experience but between all the little issues and sitting next to dirty dishes all night, the experience wasn't how we wanted to spend our money or NYE. My advice is to go on a random day instead.
Madison
We chose The Melting Pot for New Year's Eve expecting an upscale experience that justified the price. Unfortunately, it did not. The location itself is inside a parking garage, which already made the arrival feel off for what is marketed as a special-occasion restaurant. Upon entering, we were immediately placed into a cramped, hallway-like waiting area with the reception desk, which was uncomfortable and unwelcoming. The staff wore all black, but there was no clear uniform or polished presentation. Overall, it looked sloppy and did not match a fine-dining price point. Cleanliness was a major issue. The restaurant was filthy. The bathrooms were especially bad—mirrors were so dusty that people had written messages in the dust. The dining area smelled heavily of grease, and the walls and booths were visibly dirty. Service was just okay—nothing memorable or attentive enough to elevate the experience. We were also told that leftovers cannot be taken home, which felt frustrating given the cost. The New Year's Eve menu was extremely limited, and the food quality was disappointing. The vegetables tasted chemically treated, the filet was very chewy, and the chicken lacked flavor. The only item we genuinely enjoyed was the teriyaki steak. A serious concern occurred during dessert. I specifically requested strawberries be served separately due to a severe allergy, yet they were placed together with the other fruit. This is a significant food safety issue. In the end, what we were actually able to eat amounted to bread with cheese, steak, and two very small pieces of cake with a few pieces of fruit—for approximately $240 Overall, the experience did not match the price at all. Between the cleanliness issues, food quality, allergy oversight, and lack of refinement, we will not be returning.
Darra
We needed a handicapped parking spot for my friend and there was none on the second floor. Driving around we xxEnded up being a few minutes late. Ended up on the fourth floor and could not find the right elevator to the restaurant. Called and talked to one of the assistant managers who got us a handicapped spot and helped us in. My friend does not eat cheese and we skipped the cheese fondue appetizer but the manager who helped us before comped us on our drinks instead. The steak and chicken fondue was excellent. Dark chocolate fondue for C dessert was superb. Poor waitress was nonstop running the whole time we were there and did a decent job considering the restaurant was full most of the time we were there. Have loved the Sarasota Melting Pot since it was on Bahia Vista and this location on Ringling for over 28 years even though I've moved from the local area, I love coming back like I did for New Year's Eve.
Stephen
We love this restaurant, food is always good and the price is fair. The only issue is time. Since you do the actual cooking, a 3 course meal cannot that 2 and half hours. We had 2 young kids who got restless after 2 hours. We will go back but will hope for a shorter experience.
carla
Our server, Stephanie, was great! She was also the bartender but managed to take great care of us. We all hadn't been to this restaurant in 20+ years and it was a fun evening. The drinks, salads, coq au vin sauce, and chocolate sauce were yummy! Oddly, felt the spinach/artichoke and Wisconsin cheese dips were rather bland. Everyone had a great time and we enjoyed our evening.
Kelsey made the experience so much fun
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
such a fun experience ! stephanie was awesome :p
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Didn't care for the small table they sat us at, but we made the best of it. Server was not the best, he was nice but not attentive as I watched other servers attend their tables. Food was slow to come out. Overall good experience for us.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 3
We had a lovely experience celebrating my daughter’s 12th birthday. Alex, the manager, had everything perfectly organized just as we had discussed beforehand, which made the evening stress-free and special. Mike, our waiter, was attentive, friendly, and made sure we had everything we needed throughout the night.
We were placed in the private room which was much better because the girls could laugh out loud and speak without making anyone else uncomfortable. Per my request, Alex even placed a basket in the middle of the table for the phones, which was a lovely touch. The girls were engaged in the conversations without looking at the screen.
We enjoyed the cheese fondue, grilled our entrées at the table, and finished with the chocolate Jing Jang and s’mores with a variety of delicious dippers. My daughter and her friends had an amazing time, and we felt the service was excellent and the food options absolutely outstanding.
Thank you, Alex and Mike, for helping make this a day my daughter will always remember.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I have celebrated my birthday many of times since I was a teenager at The Melting Pot and usually it’s a special experience tonight was anything but. We had a party of 4 and were placed at a booth where no one had a stitch of arm space and no gifts could be brought in because we barely had space to eat. We asked to move to another spot where we could not being on top of each other but we were told not allowed bc anything bigger was reserved for bigger parties, fine nothing we can do but not pleased since we never had an issue prior well then the manager Alex came by and it would of probably been better had she not! She was snide and offered to buy us a round to which I replied we don’t drink ( 3 out of the party do not) and that seemed to irk her bc she shot back with “ well neither do I so I’ll just grab your regular drinks” and darted off never to be seen again and guess what she didn’t take a single thing off! So why say it? This is all before we even placed our order and that should have been the sign to get up and leave but we didn’t. The table had old dried food on it and they have only been open barely an hour so it was from the night before. The cauliflower that was served was just the stem part you read that right just the stem with no crown! The steak and chicken were not cut into pieces and all we had was a butter knife to work with. Who servers a margarita in a daiquiri glass? No seriously because that is ridiculous! We had dishes piled up and we were short on space already so you could imagine how lousy it was to try and enjoy your food. The restroom was as bad as a 7 11 bathroom and that is unacceptable for a place with a price point like this one. It’s out dated and desperately in need of new management! This will be the last birthday I ever spend there not that it matters to them. I’d rather go to an authentic upscale restaurant and not one who now feeds into the gimmick over quality. I mean would you drop $400+ at Chucky Cheese? I think not!
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 2
Service: 2
Our server was absolutely terrific, and I had upgraded to the romance package and they did a beautiful job with rose petals and candles
Definitely disappointed in this place ☹️ Went for a friends birthday dinner and it was all of our first times there. Asked the server to explain the process/menu but he was not helpful. Waited for at least 10 minutes for our drinks to come and had to go to host stand to remind them we were ready to order. When they came with the cheese fondue some of the pots weren’t full enough with water and started smoking like crazy it had all of us coughing. We skipped over the entrée and went straight to dessert because of how long it was taking. I do appreciate them having gluten free dipping options but unfortunately they were out of gluten free bread 😔 I would just expect a better experience especially given how expensive it is.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 4
Service: 1
I took my fiancée there for his birthday (it was his first experience) We had a wonderful time. The food was amazing and our server was great. We are definitely planning to go back again.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We’ve been going since the 80’s and it is exactly the same.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
The food was mediocre, but there a lot of the entrees. The service was good. The price was $89 per person plus drinks, tax and tip.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 4
Restaurantji Recommends
Usually we have a great experience here, but this visit wasn't great. We went on NYE so we expected it to be busy. We had reservations and didn't had to wait to talk to the front staff, but the had to wait 10-15 mins for a table as servers kept walking into us. Then we sat at a table where a discard tray was in arms length away. We could add our used dishes ourselves if we wanted along side everyone else's. The cheese course was fine. We had a special NYE one. The salads came out and the lettuce wasn't even chopped enough to eat. We had to cut up the lettuce as to not have 8inch pieces on our plate. The main course took a long time to come out. The shrimp and lobster were not deveined which was unappealing. The chicken was frozen in the middle. Usually we have a great experience but between all the little issues and sitting next to dirty dishes all night, the experience wasn't how we wanted to spend our money or NYE. My advice is to go on a random day instead.
We chose The Melting Pot for New Year's Eve expecting an upscale experience that justified the price. Unfortunately, it did not. The location itself is inside a parking garage, which already made the arrival feel off for what is marketed as a special-occasion restaurant. Upon entering, we were immediately placed into a cramped, hallway-like waiting area with the reception desk, which was uncomfortable and unwelcoming. The staff wore all black, but there was no clear uniform or polished presentation. Overall, it looked sloppy and did not match a fine-dining price point. Cleanliness was a major issue. The restaurant was filthy. The bathrooms were especially bad—mirrors were so dusty that people had written messages in the dust. The dining area smelled heavily of grease, and the walls and booths were visibly dirty. Service was just okay—nothing memorable or attentive enough to elevate the experience. We were also told that leftovers cannot be taken home, which felt frustrating given the cost. The New Year's Eve menu was extremely limited, and the food quality was disappointing. The vegetables tasted chemically treated, the filet was very chewy, and the chicken lacked flavor. The only item we genuinely enjoyed was the teriyaki steak. A serious concern occurred during dessert. I specifically requested strawberries be served separately due to a severe allergy, yet they were placed together with the other fruit. This is a significant food safety issue. In the end, what we were actually able to eat amounted to bread with cheese, steak, and two very small pieces of cake with a few pieces of fruit—for approximately $240 Overall, the experience did not match the price at all. Between the cleanliness issues, food quality, allergy oversight, and lack of refinement, we will not be returning.
We needed a handicapped parking spot for my friend and there was none on the second floor. Driving around we xxEnded up being a few minutes late. Ended up on the fourth floor and could not find the right elevator to the restaurant. Called and talked to one of the assistant managers who got us a handicapped spot and helped us in. My friend does not eat cheese and we skipped the cheese fondue appetizer but the manager who helped us before comped us on our drinks instead. The steak and chicken fondue was excellent. Dark chocolate fondue for C dessert was superb. Poor waitress was nonstop running the whole time we were there and did a decent job considering the restaurant was full most of the time we were there. Have loved the Sarasota Melting Pot since it was on Bahia Vista and this location on Ringling for over 28 years even though I've moved from the local area, I love coming back like I did for New Year's Eve.
We love this restaurant, food is always good and the price is fair. The only issue is time. Since you do the actual cooking, a 3 course meal cannot that 2 and half hours. We had 2 young kids who got restless after 2 hours. We will go back but will hope for a shorter experience.
Our server, Stephanie, was great! She was also the bartender but managed to take great care of us. We all hadn't been to this restaurant in 20+ years and it was a fun evening. The drinks, salads, coq au vin sauce, and chocolate sauce were yummy! Oddly, felt the spinach/artichoke and Wisconsin cheese dips were rather bland. Everyone had a great time and we enjoyed our evening.
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