The Milwaukee area's first The Melting Pot opened in 2004 in Brookfield at 19850 N. Bluemound Rd., in the former Tony Roma's space.
Today we've learned that the upscale eatery offering a variety of cheese, chocolate and hot oil- / broth-based fondues is opening "soon" in the Third Ward neighborhood at 341 N. Milwaukee St., the former Milwaukee Antique Center.
The first The Melting Pot opened in Maitland, Fla., in 1975, but fondue -- derived from the French verb "to melt" -- originated in Switzerland where it was a practical way to make good use of hardened cheese.
As OnMilwaukee.com's Molly Snyder Edler reported in 2004, owners Ruby and Matthew Soik originally planned to open their franchise Downtown, but changed their minds due to the Marquette Interchange project.
Now that the project is completed and the Third Ward, especially, continues to grow the Melting Pot is poised to continue to expand the city's dining scene.
In recent years national restaurants like Capital Grille and Kincaid's have opened in the Downtown area. The Melting Pot follows their lead.
A life-long and passionate community leader and Milwaukeean, Jeff Sherman is a co-founder of OnMilwaukee.
He grew up in Wauwatosa and graduated from Marquette University, as a Warrior. He holds an MBA from Cardinal Stritch University, and is the founding president of Young Professionals of Milwaukee (YPM)/Fuel Milwaukee.
Early in his career, Sherman was one of youngest members of the Greater Milwaukee Committee, and currently is involved in numerous civic and community groups - including board positions at The Wisconsin Center District, Wisconsin Club and Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. He's honored to have been named to The Business Journal's "30 under 30" and Milwaukee Magazine's "35 under 35" lists.
He owns a condo in Downtown and lives in greater Milwaukee with his wife Stephanie, his son, Jake, and daughter Pierce. He's a political, music, sports and news junkie and thinks, for what it's worth, that all new movies should be released in theaters, on demand, online and on DVD simultaneously.
He also thinks you should read OnMilwaukee each and every day.
