The Melting Pot

The wine list here is built for the occasion, not the enthusiast. You're here to dip things in cheese and chocolate, and the list knows it — 250 bottles sounds impressive until you realize it's mostly the usual suspects from California, France, Italy, and Washington State. Nothing wrong with that, but don't come expecting to discover anything.

The 250-bottle count is doing a lot of heavy lifting on paper. Regional focus lands squarely on accessible California Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, Italian standards, and some French crowd-pleasers — the kind of list that makes everyone at the table nod and no one get excited. Washington State makes an appearance, which is a small nod toward something beyond the obvious. There are no small producers, no natural wines, no deep-cellar surprises — this is a list curated for a birthday dinner, not a wine geek.

Twenty by-the-glass options is a respectable number for a fondue chain, and it gives you enough to match different courses of a fondue meal without committing to a full bottle. That said, don't expect frequent rotation or anything adventurous — this reads as a set-it-and-forget-it program that changes when corporate says so.