JAKE DE PAUL: COUNTING DOWN TODAY >>>
I can recall a time when I felt that hosting a fondue party would be the ultimate statement in suave sophistication. Of course, this was back when I thought it would be keen to live in a Chicago high-rise just like Bob Newhart and his sexy wife, with an airline pilot for a neighbor. So recently I decided to don the old leisure suit and visit The Melting Pot on Pacific Avenue, a restaurant specializing in fondue, and its late night happy hour.
The Melting Pot is especially popular on weekends when it seems to attract an inordinate number of couples on dates with other couples â€" Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice wannabes, perhaps.
The Pot hosts two happy hours in its lounge, seven days a week â€" 4:30-6:30 p.m. and 9-11 p.m. â€" with the second being more subdued. I prefer to wind down the weekend with a Sunday night of Wisconsin cheese and milk chocolate fondue, both reduced to $8, and watch SportsCenter on the plasma. I skip the $3 microbrews, $2.50 domestics and $4.50 mid-level liquors and nestle with the $6 wine pours, a $4 discount.
Wine, football, cheese, and chocolate next to a fireplace. I need a couch session with Bob.
[The Melting Pot, 2121 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253.535.3939]