Popping the Cork on Champagnes New Dinner Menu

Champagnes Bistro and Deli

1260 Bison Ave.

Newport Beach, CA 92660

One of the best parts about writing this blog is getting invited to some great food events. We have been asked to come to some fantastic restaurant openings, great "taste of" nights, and some really awesome roll outs of new menu items. I am usually permitted to bring a guest, and it is usually Katie. She really enjoys these events, more for the social aspect, than the food. This was not the case with this event. In the three years we have been going to events, she has never been this excited, than the one we went to the other night at Champagnes Bistro and Deli.

Katie has a long relationship with Champagnes. She has worked in the area for about seven years, so she has had lunch here pretty frequently in that time. Also, when she lived down in Newport, she picked up some of their fresh packaged dinner selections as an alternative to fast food.

Champagnes has been around since 1989. In those twenty plus years they have always been in the same shopping center, right at the corner of MacArthur and Bison, but they have moved locations within the same center. Now they are in a more prominent, free standing building at the front of the center. When they opened, Champagnes was more of a market and deli than a restaurant. Since the move they are now refocusing on the dining aspect of the business. This past week they started serving dinner with waiter service beginning at 4:30 daily. This event was used to highlight their dinner offerings. I was getting pretty hungry, and lucky for me there was a lot of food on the way for us to try.

The new hot item in restaurants has got to be Brussels sprouts, and this is what they led off with at Champagnes. The Caramelized Brussels Sprouts ($8.50) are cooked with lemon, garlic, capers, and anchovies. My Mom never force fed us these miniature cabbages, so I have no ill will towards them like others might. I really enjoyed the version served here. Good caramelization and they really had a good char on them. This was a table favorite.

When we were coming to Champagnes, I would have never thought that they would have had Firecracker Shrimp ($10.95) on the menu. This Asian inspired dish came with a confetti cole slaw and a wasabi cream sauce. Although I did not observe the wasabi in this dish, the shrimp had more than enough flavor to help this along. The shrimp was moderately spicy on its own, and the cole slaw helped cool down this plate. The crispness of shrimp should be noted here. Very good appetizer.

I am really picky when it comes to crab cakes, and the Jumbo Lump Blue Crab Cake ($12.95) at Champagnes was pretty good. The crab is wild caught, and served over a bed of field greens, with mandarin oranges, basil aioli, and fizzled leeks. This crab cake was devoid of filler, like other restaurants crab cakes. You could actually taste the freshness of the crab here. I would have liked a creamy sauce, maybe a light tarter sauce to go along with this, but that would be my only complaint about this starter.

We were lucky enough to try Champagnes brick oven pizzas. The first one was the Classic Margherita ($10.95 / $14.95). This thin crust, handmade pizza came with tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, basil, tomatoes, and Parmesan cheese. What I noticed most here was the cheese, and the fresh taste of the ingredients used on this. The second pizza was more my style, and really hit the spot. The PSM - Pepperoni, Sausage, and Mushroom ($11.95/ $15.95) was a solid pie, and I would not hesitate to order this again. Both meats were good, the mushrooms plentiful, and the sauce really complimented the pizza. Good sized pizzas, and enough for leftovers the next day.

Anyone that reads this blog knows that I have a bias against salads with fruit in them. These are always the kind of salads I see little old ladies eat at Mimi's Cafe. I do not want to be grouped with these women, but I must admit that The "Farm-acy" Superfood Salad ($10.95) did come out pretty good. This salad was chalk full of items. Mixed greens, baby spinach, strawberries, blueberries, red grapes, apples, oranges, dried cranberries, celery, red onion, cucumber, spiced almonds, blue cheese, and an orange champagne vinaigrette. Basically this was the entire produce section in your local grocery store. The items were fresh and  the dressing allowed the  produce to be front and center.I am not going to switch to fruit salads anytime soon, but this is a good option for those of you that enjoy a little extra vitamin C with your greens.

Now on to the dinners from Champagnes. The first one we tried was the Chicken Breast "Paillard" ($13.95).  While I was writing this review I learned that paillard refers to a quick type of cooking. Three years into writing this blog and there is still so much for me to learn. Anyways, this chicken came with a lemon caper sauce, and was served with a salad of mixed greens, tender greens beans, mixed veggies, cherry tomatoes, and shaved Parmesan cheese. The salad portion of this was okay, but the chicken was very tender, and the lemon caper sauce was spot on.

It's summertime now, but eating the Braised Short Rib Beef Bourguignon ($18.95) advanced me six months into the future, when it is colder weather, and I could imagine eating this comfort food classic to heat me up. The short rib is cooked in a red wine with bacon, mushrooms, carrots, peas, and one of my favorites, pearl onions, alongside a flat noodle pasta. The meat was very tender and  the veggies were cooked just like you would like them. This is the kind of food that hugs you from the inside.

By this time I was getting pretty full, but they might have saved the best item for last. The Signature Champagnes Burger ($11.75) was well worth the wait. This Angus patty was topped with Tillamook cheddar cheese, caramelized onion relish, lettuce, tomato, and roasted garlic aioli. When eating burgers I am usually more about the toppings, but at Champagnes, the meat was cooked well and it was pretty juicy. The Tillamook cheese is always a winner in my book too. Great burger!

Dessert is not to be missed at Champagnes. We started off with the Sweetheart Coconut Cake ($5.95). This cake was moist, with a subtle cream icing and shredded coconut. I really enjoyed this cake. It is called the sweetheart cake because they place hearts of raspberry sauce and creme anglaise on the plate. I would call this cake the heartbreaker, because it could cause a fight between a couple sharing this, when deciding on who gets the last bite.

For all you chocolate lovers out there, this one is for you. The Callebaut Belgian Chocolate Mousse ($5.95) was served with whipped cream, strawberries, and shaved chocolate over it. The mousse was very light and the serving size was very generous. This was a rich dessert, without being overly heavy.

Before we left I wanted to snap a few pictures of the Market Center at Champagnes. This is the place to come if you want to take some fresh pre-packaged dinners to go. They also offer salads, freshly made deli sandwiches, and baked cookies and cakes. There is also a very large assortment of beers and wine that can be purchased here as well.

Our night at Champagnes could not have been better. The food was great, our fellow blogger's and media peers are always great dining companions, and of course the staff, from the owner on down to our servers were excellent.  Champagnes is a great dinner option that will not empty out your wallet. Nothing on their dinner menu is over $20, and the quality of the food is what will bring you back. This is a true family business. Owners Rand, Terry, and Tina are very involved in every aspect of this restaurant, and ensure that every guest leaves happy.

Thanks very much to everyone at Champagnes for a wonderful evening. Rand, Terry and Tina were very gracious hosts and you could tell that they are very proud of the food they serve, and it shows. Also thanks to our servers on this evening, Aman and Kelly. They worked very hard to keep all glasses full, and kept things moving at a very efficient pace. Thanks also goes out to one of the hardest working PR woman in OC, the great Jane Gillespie. She had to endure sitting next to me all night, so she definitely did her duty on this night. One last thanks goes to Phyllis Ann Marshall. She was so wonderful, and was eager to showcase this great family run restaurant. We look forward to coming back soon.

For more information on Champagnes Bistro and Deli, check out their web site here: http://www.champagnesdeli.com/index.php

Welcome to the Neighborhood Bruxie! CLOSED

Bruxie

22205 El Passeo, Suite A

Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688

When we heard Bruxie was coming to town we could hardly believe it. Both Katie and I felt that we had hit the food lottery. She moved to this inland city early this year, and to say that the dining scene was a little thin would be an understatement. Of course it is not all dour in RSM when it is time to eat. Pizza E Vino, Tutto Fresco, and Cinnamon Productions lead the way when it comes to some above average eats in  this master planned city. Now you can add Bruxie to that list.

We have made two trips to this third location of Bruxie. Both times there have been lines, but the lines do move pretty fast. It is a good sign that people in South OC have found out about this restaurant, and have kept supporting it. For those of you that do not know what all the buzz is about Bruxie, they basically offer hand held waffle sandwiches, that are either sweet or savory. Just like their web site says, imagine a  panini, but instead of bread you have a light, crisp waffle.

This idea started way back in 1999, when owner Dean was in Belgium, and noticed all the street vendors selling made to order waffles. He came back to the US, and started working on his own waffle recipe. By 2006 he had mastered his waffle recipe and was selling them to hotels and cruise lines. In 2009, Executive Chef Kelly Mullarney came on board to help broaden the waffle into something that was not just for breakfast, but for other meals as well. The hopes were that these lunch and dinner items would help launch a multi-unit full service restaurant. I am sure it is no surprise to you, since they now have three locations, that yes, they were successful in opening a multi-unit restaurant. Let's check out the food at this newest RSM location to see if it is on par with the other Bruxie locations.

On our first trip to Bruxie, Katie ordered the Albacore Tuna Melt ($7.95). This tuna melt came with cheddar cheese, lettuce and tomato. I am not much of a tuna fan, but Katie thought this tuna melt was great. She really has a hard time getting anything else here. She really enjoys the fresh tuna, and also appreciates the produce being fresh.

So when I have come to Bruxie, it is hard for me to pass up on their daily specials. They rotate them pretty frequently, so if one is not available on the day you are here, it will most likely come around again soon enough. I could not resist their Patty Melt ($7.95). This one-third Angus patty was served with Gruyere cheese, caramelized onions, toasted caraway seeds, and a secret sauce. Delicious was one way to describe this burger. As good as it looks in these pictures, it tasted even better in person. The meat was cooked to a perfect medium, the caramelized onions and secret sauce added some sweetness, and the Gruyere was a very nice subtle choice here. The waffle really held together well, and had a nice crunch to it. I did not detect the caraway seeds, but it did not matter. This burger was finished too quick. I even contemplated getting another one, but dessert was next on trip number one to Bruxie.

Desserts are not to be missed at Bruxie. This visit we had one of my favorite sweet items on the menu, the Nutella and Bananas ($5.95). This not only had bananas and Nutella, but it also had a sweet cream that kind of held it all together. Very solid dessert, and this, like my patty melt, disappeared quickly. I really enjoyed the simplicity of this dessert.

Trip number two to the RSM Bruxie location was with my friend, and food nemesis, Richard, and his much better half, Lindsay. We started this time with Bruxie's version of Irish Nachos ($6.95). Fittingly, they serve waffle fries at Bruxie, and this nacho version comes with a homemade cheese sauce, crumbled bacon, sour cream and chives. I am not usually a big fan of cheese sauces, but this one is nice and mellow. The fries were crisp, and the bacon added some nice saltiness. More than enough for two people to share.

Okay, this could be the worst picture of a pretty good sandwich. Richard selected the Buttermilk Fried Chicken and Waffle ($6.95). Bruxie's version of the chicken and waffle comes with a chili honey and cole slaw. Richard had no complaints about this sandwich, and ate in record time. This is the kind of sandwich that proves that some items that do not seem like they belong together, actually can work out quite nicely. Kind of like jerk face Richard and the lovely Lindsay.

The Turkey Club ($8.95) was Lindsay's choice for dinner. At Bruxie they use Boar's Head turkey, along with bacon, Gruyere cheese, tomato, lettuce, avocado, and pesto aioli to make up their version of a club sandwich. Lindsay liked the fresh produce used here, and was happy that the pesto aioli was light, and did not detract from the other elements of the sandwich.

Again I was too distracted by Bruxie's daily specials to order anything off of their regular menu. This visits culprit was the Carolina Pulled Pork Bruxie ($8.95). This was made up of shredded pork, cider slaw, cheddar cheese, and their own BBQ sauce. This was another winner. The pork was pretty tender, and really had a nice meaty flavor. The cider slaw worked well to balance out the sweetness of the BBQ sauce, while adding a little texture to the sandwich. The only drawback I see with this sandwich was that there could have been more meat, but other than that I really enjoyed it.

Since we were two couples, that meant that we could get two desserts. The first was ours, the S'Mores ($5.95). They use Belgian chocolate, graham cracker and toasted marshmallow to create their version of the campfire treat. I have had this dessert numerous times and have never been able to detect the graham cracker in this. Regardless though, it is still a very tasty treat. The marshmallow is house made here, and the chocolate is very rich. I also enjoy the crispness of the waffle.

Richard and Lindsay opted to go for the Lemon Cream and Berries ($6.50) for dessert. This straightforward sounding Bruxie had a very tart lemon cream to go along with the strawberries and boysenberries. I am not too big a fan of fresh fruit, nor lemon, so this one was not for me. Everyone else seemed to like this one though.

I am happy to report that the new Bruxie is just the same as the other two locations. I have really enjoyed everything that I have ordered here. The ingredients are fresh, and the waffles are an interesting vessel to carry them. The waffles are good, but still allow the contents of the sandwich to be the star of the show. My one minor complaint would be that the sandwiches could be stuffed more. Not that you are going to get cheated or anything, but I am a big eater, so I could easily eat more than one of these sandwiches. Ordering is done at a counter, and brought to your table. The operation runs very smoothly, and the employees here are all very nice. After leaving here we are still very happy that Bruxie moved into the neighborhood.

Out of five paintbrushes, (because the country of Belgium has produced a great many painters, and Bruxie was inspired by this Low Country), five being best to zero being worst, Bruxie gets 3.5 paintbrushes.

For more information about Bruxie, click here: http://bruxie.com/

Bacon Coma at Slater's 50/50 - CLOSED

Slater's 50/50

17071 Beach Blvd. 

Huntington Beach, CA 92647

My love for Slater's 50/50 is probably well-known to almost anyone who reads this blog, checks out our Facebook page, or reads our Twitter posts. I always inform people about the latest happenings from the home of the 50 percent ground beef and 50 percent ground bacon restaurant. Writing this blog, we only sometimes try too many restaurants twice, or even more than that, but Slater's is in a relatively consistent rotation of places we frequent.

Why do we go to Slater's so often? I will not tell you that Slater's is the best burger I have ever had. I will not tell you that Slater's is the best burger we have in OC today. We keep coming here because they constantly add new things to their menu. They almost always hook me with their burger of the month. This was the case for our July visit. Also, we had yet to review their Huntington Beach location, so that was enough reason to head over to HB.

Here is a brief history for the three of you who need to learn about Slater's 50/50. This restaurant is the concept of owner Scott Slater. An avid San Diego Chargers fan, he was tailgating with his buddies when the idea of bacon and ground beef patty came into the conversation. He toyed with the idea for a while, and then in 2009, he teamed up with Executive Chef Brad Lyons to open up their first location in Anaheim Hills. This restaurant rocked the OC food scene and brought many people to this out-of-the-way shopping center. Two years later, they opened another location in HB, with a San Diego spot quickly following. Today, they are expanding yet again, with the announcement of a new location in Pasadena.

Slater's offers customers the choice of creating their own burger off of a checklist of almost anything they could imagine on a burger. They offer 5 kinds of breads, 20  sauces, 30 toppings, and 12 types of cheese. The combinations are nearly endless. Not in the mood for their signature 50/50 patty? They also offer six other kinds of meat to stuff between the buns. For those who have difficulty making decisions, Slater's already has 10 designed burgers and other sandwiches and salads. I had no indecision on this visit. I knew what I was coming here for. So, let's get to the food.

I am always a fan of dips, and the Slater's Vampire Dip ($8.95) never disappoints. This garlic, cheese, and artichoke dip is served in a sourdough bread bowl and fried pita chips. You will want to share this very rich appetizer with friends. The dip is best with the bread bowl I think. Always a great choice to start with.

As much as I like the Vampire Dip and the burgers at Slater's, I have never been too excited by the appetizers. One good thing about them is that Slater's offers you a sampling of any number you want. We went with the Pick Three ($6.95), which gave us our choice of three. We selected the Panko Fried Mac N' Cheese, Sweet Potato Fries, and Beer Battered Onion Straws. The fried mac n' cheese served with a Tapatio ranch was the best. How could fried macaroni and cheese ever be a bad idea? Sweet potato fries are not really my thing, but the pumpkin sauce served with them made them bearable. The onion strings were very light, but I could not taste the onion here. The breading also broke away from the onion too easily. With the appetizers done, it was time for the burgers.

Okay, not a burger, but Katie proves that you do not have to eat 4000-calorie burgers when you come to Slater's. She went with a Chicken Sandwich ($8.95). She added avocado, garlic aioli, onion, spring lettuce, tomato, and asparagus to this sandwich. As for the bread option, Katie had them put it on a ciabatta roll. This sandwich's highlight was the chicken, which she called well-cooked, and the asparagus, which she claimed was very fresh and added an excellent flavor to this sandwich. Katie was not too excited by her choice of the ciabatta roll here because it was too much with all these toppings. She will also forgo the garlic aioli in favor of the pesto aioli next time because the garlic aioli overpowered the sandwich.

Most of the time, people tell me I overdo it and shrug them off. On this trip, even I knew I should not have done this! What you see here is the burger of the month for July, The 'Merica Burger ($14.95). This burger was a 100% bacon patty with a sunny-side-up egg, two strips of bacon, bacon island dressing, and bacon cheddar cheese. Talk about bacon overload! To make matters even worse, I let the waiter talk me into getting the pound size of this burger because he had not seen anyone order it and finish it. Man, I am a sucker! After the first bite, I was in bacon heaven. Bacon flooded all of my taste buds. As I ate this burger, though, the bacon really became too much. There was nothing to cut the bacon taste other than the egg, and that was too tough of a job for this poor egg. After eating this, I could feel the bacon course through my veins for the next few days. Yes, I finished this burger, to the great amazement of my table mates, the waiter, and curious onlookers, but I will never do it again.

After a bit of snafu with her burger, Kat got her Build Your Own Burger ($11.95) almost when I finished mine. She got the two-thirds-pound all-bacon patty but managed to only eat less than half of it. Kat filled out the next item I will show you. She got this burger with Swiss cheese, baconnaise, pastrami, more bacon, tomato, onion, and vampire dip. I have never seen Kat finish anything, so Slater's conquered her.

Kat ordered the Maple Bacon Shake ($5.45) if we did not have enough bacon. This shake really tasted more like a vanilla shake with bacon bits added. We only got the bacon flavor when we sucked up a piece of bacon, which by the end of our bacon odyssey, was a nice change of pace.

This trip to Slater's was not the best I have had. You can say that I overindulged to the highest degree. I will not make that mistake again. The HB location is larger than the Anaheim Hills location. We still had about a fifteen-minute wait at 4 o'clock on a Sunday afternoon. The service was as good as we have always gotten at Slater's. All the workers seem to be having a good time here. I understand that Slater's is not for everyone, but I like it. It could be classified as the ultimate in "guys' food." It is not something I would eat every day, but even after my experience here, they already got my attention with their next burger of the month. I am not going for the whole pound, though.

Out of five Porky Pigs (because I felt like I ate five pigs on this trip to Slater's), five being best to zero being worst, Slater's 50/50 gets 3 Porky Pigs.

For all things, Slater's 50/50, check out their web site here: http://www.slaters5050.com/

Special Event at the Melting Pot - CLOSED

The Melting Pot

375 W. Birch

Brea, CA 92821

I might owe the Melting Pot an apology. Whenever someone mentions the Melting Pot, or other fondue restaurants, I kind of bristle. It is not because the food is awful, or I have had bad experiences, but if you know me or read this blog, you know that I love big quantities of food. If I do not feel full after a meal, I consider it a lost night. So when I hear anyone talk about a fondue restaurant, I automatically think of a plate with ten tiny morsels of food on it. After being invited to the Melting Pot to try their new Skinny Sipping Cocktails and other items off of their menu, my mind has changed about the Melting Pot.

Melting Pot restaurants have been around for a long time. They opened their doors in 1975, during the heyday of fondue cooking in the US. The Maitland, Florida location was a very popular restaurant, and by 1981, there were already three locations up and running, all in Florida. By 1985 the Melting Pot began franchising, and then they spread far and wide. Melting Pot restaurants can now be found in 36 different states, Western Canada, and even two locations in Mexico City. So with 144 locations across the continent, chances are there is one relatively close to you. We have two in OC, so we trekked up to the Downtown Brea location, to see what they had to offer.

For those of you not familiar with fondue cooking, there are communal hot pots on the tables, and depending on the course, these pots are filled with cheese, oil, or chocolate. Patrons use long-stemmed forks to stab food and dip them in the pots to coat or cook various items. At the Melting Pot, they have three different kinds of fondue; cheese, entrees, and desserts. By this time we were getting hungry, and lucky for us the cheese fondues were being prepared tableside.

We were presented with two cheese fondues to try. The first was the Spinach and Artichoke Cheese Fondue. This was made up of fontina and butterkase cheese, with spinach, artichoke hearts, and garlic. The second is off of their limited-time menu, the Boston Lager Cheese Fondue. Here they use Samuel Adams Boston Lager, cheddar, and Emmenthaler cheeses, and then it is accented with bacon, onion, Dijon mustard, Tabasco, and scallions. As much as I thought I would like this cheese fondue the best, the spinach and artichoke version was the big hit at the table, and with me. It was very subtle but still had enough flavor to keep us interested. It went really good with the tortilla chips and cubed pieces of bread. The Boston lager cheese was good, but more of a nacho cheese vibe. The flavor was definitely more pronounced, and it went better with the fresh veggies. We were also presented with apples for dipping, which I thought was a little odd, but these two items really paired up nicely.

At the Melting Pot they not only have fondue items, but they also feature some pretty good salads. We got to sample all five on their menu. The Wisconsin Wedge Salad was one of my favorites. This salad is on their limited-time menu and is a wedge of iceberg lettuce, topped with Roma tomatoes, bacon, Gorgonzola cheese, and a very tasty peppercorn ranch dressing. Big-time flavor with this one! Other salads included a Melting Pot House Salad, California Salad, a Mushroom, Spinach Salad, and a classic Caesar Salad. All of these were very fresh, and all of the dressings are made in-house. These two things make for great salads.

Right after the salads, we were given this Shrimp Cocktail. To call these huge crustaceans shrimp is really a contradiction. They were huge. The cocktail sauce these were served with also packed a punch. Really spicy, and if you were not ready for the horseradish, it really could catch a person by surprise.

Our invitation did not say anything about getting any of the Melting Pot's entrees, so it was a nice surprise when these pre-cooked meats came out of the kitchen. Selections included filet mignon, white shrimp seasoned with Cajun spices, wild mushroom Sacchetti, and broccoli with a green goddess sauce. These selections were not the only thing special here, the sauces are pretty impressive as well. The best is the Green Goddess sauce, which is a cream cheese/green onion dip, which goes good with everything. Other sauces included the same spicy cocktail sauce used for the shrimp cocktail, a very thick Gorgonzola dressing, a yellow curry yogurt sauce, and a teriyaki sauce. All of these were great options to dip items into.

Before we get to the grand finale, one of the main reasons we were here was so the Melting Pot could showcase their cocktails. Some of these new cocktails are made with Skinnygirl Wine and Vodka or Voli Light Vodkas, which is a vodka company owned by Fergie from the Black Eye Peas and rapper, Pitbull. The cocktails that stood out for me were the Apple Martini, with the caramel around the glass. Great drink and the caramel was a nice touch. The Yin and Yang could have gotten me into lots of trouble as well. It was made of Godiva White Chocolate Liqueur, Stoli Vanilla Vodka, and ice cream, then topped with chocolate shavings. An adult milkshake, that packs a punch. All of the other drinks were very refreshing, and it should be considered a bonus that they are made with fewer calories than traditional cocktails. Of course, that just means that I will drink more!

Everything had been great up until this point, but the chocolate fondues are very hard to top. They had two for us to try. The first was the Cookies and Cream Marshmallow Dream. This one would have made Willie Wonka envious. Dark chocolate is topped with marshmallow cream, then flambeed and topped with Oreo cookie crumbs. Very decadent. The second pot contained the Flaming Turtle. A wonderful combination of milk chocolate, caramel, and candied pecans combined to make one of my favorite items of the night. We were given bananas, strawberries, cheesecake, Rice Krispy Treats, pound cake, and brownies to dip into the chocolate. How could this be a bad dessert? The short answer is it can not. A great way to end our fantastic evening at the Melting Pot.

So after all of this food, I have to admit that I was quite full. So it is possible to get to this point at a fondue restaurant. The Melting Pot is definitely a special occasion restaurant. The atmosphere here just exuded romance. This is the kind of place you want to take a date, a significant other, or maybe someone that you just want to get to know better. Meals are not rushed, so you will have plenty of time to converse. They offer four-course meals, which will definitely leave you completely satisfied and full.

We would like to thank The Melting Pot for their generosity on this night. We would also like to thank everyone at The Melting Pot in Brea, including Owner, Rodney Selbo, who was an excellent bus boy for us and answered all of our questions. Our hostess, Assistant Manager, Amber Freely was very cheerful and really made us feel comfortable. Also worth a shout-out, was our waitress on this night, Shannon, who was wonderful and kept things moving along for us. Thanks for everything Shannon. Lastly, we would like to thank our fellow bloggers that shared this meal with us. Daniele, from Dani's Decadent Deals, Tom, from Tom's Foodie Blog, and Suki from  Eat Suki Eat. We really had a great night with all of you, and look forward to seeing you all again soon.

For any information about The Melting Pot, click here for their website: http://www.meltingpot.com/