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La Fondue
Categories: Restaurants French Restaurants Fondue French, Fondue [Edit]
14550 Big Basin WaySaratoga, CA 95070
(408) 867-3332
- Hours:
Mon-Thu 5 pm - 9:30 pm
Fri 5 pm - 10:30 pm
Sat 4 pm - 10:30 pm
Sun 4 pm - 9:30 pm
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street, Private Lot, Valet
- Attire:
- Dressy
- Price Range:
-
$$$$
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Romantic
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
1021 reviews for La Fondue
Review Highlights
"ALWAYS get extra bananas and cream cheese balls."
(in 33 reviews)
"Black angus filet mignon - YUM."
(in 21 reviews)
"Cheese: the stinking rose, cognac and pesto."
(in 60 reviews)
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1021 reviews in English
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Review from Michele M.
San Jose, CA
2/7/2012
Absolutely my favorite place to feed my face. I went here on a date years ago and have since taken almost everyone I love to this place- if I love you I feed you well!!
Parking can be a little tricky because there are so many places to love around this area, what I usually do is drive a block behind Big Basin, park on the residential street and take a short stroll to the restaurant.
I recommend the fondue feast. It offers a great selection of meats and cheeses with a wonderful starter (full size-not side) salad with a brilliant choice of chocolate fondues to top off the meal.
Chocolate Lover Alert!!! - You can also go just for dessert!!!
Cheers! -
Review from Michael J.
Los Gatos, CA
2/7/2012
My wife and I went to La Fondue when we were dating many years ago. We went back again for an anniversary and again with some friends from out of town who had heard about the fondue. The other night we we're doing the usual "what do you want to do tonight? I don't know, what do you want to do". We thought it would be fun to go to La Fondue, so we did.
I can't tell you how much fun we had and what a wonderful dinner we enjoyed together. Yea, it was super romantic too. After the chocolate fondue and champagne, it felt like we were dating again.
My advise to friends who want to spice things up, go to La Fondue for dinner or desert and experience what an evening like this can do for your relationship! -
Review from patti f.
2/6/2012
It's hard to write anything that hasn't already been said, so I'll keep my review short and sweet:
Fun and unique dining experience, a great date spot.
A little expensive but worthwhile if you've never done fondue before. The best fondue restaurant in the South Bay.
Be prepared to come out of the restaurant smelling like cheese+meats!
I highly recommend coming here for dessert only. It's a great deal, fun for a late night date, and you can ask for seconds which are complimentary. -
Review from Hari B.
San Carlos, CA
1/30/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal
We have been there before and liked it and went back to celebrate a birthday.
To start with, Saratoga is beautiful at night. We had made reservations and were immediately seated. The food, drinks and service were all great and we will go back and take friends.
We had their widest-selection feast, I think they call it Le Freak or something. It was tasty, came with a choice of salad, appetizer fondue, the main course had so much food that we couldn't finish more than half. The desert chocolate fondue was really good as well. Just be warned it is a lot of food.
Go try it! -
Review from Kimia M.
Saratoga, CA
2/1/2012 Seated via OpenTable
loved it right as I walked it! My bf was late so I had to wait in their lobby, and right when I walked in the person in front asked me if I wanted a water or any other drink. After that he kept checking up on me to make sure I was doing alright.
service was fabulous
loved the food
pricey, but worth it
only problem I had was that you smell like food when you walk out...I have a huge pet peeve about that
but loved it! -
Review from Revital K.
Sunnyvale, CA
2/2/2012
Loved Yelp offer!!! Thanks to Yelp we got a chance to eat at La Fondue. We were greeted by the amazing Katie Sue, which helped us to find our way in the rich menu. Special kudos goes to Eric, very professional, knowledgeable and helping. We enjoyed the Cheese fondue - especially the cajun. LOVED the meat/chicken/ sea food fondue, and the chocolate - although I prefer milk chocolate - the DARK one was much more successful.
Downsides; phone system not responsive. Can't leave a message... a bit of downer. -
Review from Margaret C.
San Jose, CA
Updated - 1/31/2012 7 photos
Chocolate fondue - sexy.
Smelling like BBQ/Cheese afterwards - not so sexy.
I still can't decide whether to give this place 3 or 4 stars. If the smell didn't linger, I'd probably give the chocolate fondue a solid 4.
It doesn't matter if you are or aren't grilling/cooking any meats - you're going to come out smelling like BBQ either way. We came here again the other night with 3 other friends just for the chocolate fondue. My clothes and purse smelled like La Fondue afterwards. A few days later my purse still reeks of La Fondue :(
Despite smelling like La Fondue, we did enjoy dipping the goodies into the chocolate. Goodies consist of Apples, Grapes, Oranges, Strawberries, Bananas, Pound Cake, Pirouettes, Cookie Dough, and Snickers. The weirdest dipper were the balls of Cream Cheese rolled in Cinnamon.
We ordered 2 small pots of chocolate.
One pot of The Decadent (Milk & Dark Chocolate with Espresso, Kahlua, and Cream) and the other pot with White Chocolate and Amaretto.
White Chocolate was a bit too sweet, and the Decadent tasted like Dark Chocolate to me. A little too... dark chocolatey for me. Was expecting to taste the espresso, but didn't. They were good, but still love Milk Chocolate the most :) I enjoy dipping the fruits into the chocolate the most. Orange is still the yummiest. I think the Cookie Dough, Snickers, and Marshmallow are too sweet. Ate those on their own.
A small pot is supposed to good for 1-2 people, but I think one pot would have been good for the 5 of us. We still had quite a bit of chocolate leftover from both pots. But I guess that really depends on how much chocolate you can eat!
Great place to indulge in some chocolatey goodness. Just make sure you wear something where you don't mind getting too smelly in!!1 Previous Review: Show all »
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11/27/2011
3 or 4 stars... I can't decide.
I celebrated my birthday at La Fondue the other night with zee… Read more »
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Review from Matt V.
Sunnyvale, CA
1/28/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal
This is the Mac Daddy of fondue places, and everything on the menu is just spectacular.
You start with your choice of salad; my personal favorite is their spinach salad with the lemon tarragon dressing. You won't know how amazing it is until you order it.
Following that, you get a fondue. My favorite here is the stinking rose. It's not exactly a traditional fondue, but as someone who's never had an aversion to garlic, this is something that's just wonderful.
I've done their "Le Freak, C'est Chic" a couple of times now, which comes with every meat they have in the house. I mention this just to say that I've tried all of their meats, and there is not one that isn't done exceptionally well. They're all flavorful and wonderful; I recommend ordering them with the punsch, which really complements the flavors of the meats very well.
Finally, for dessert, it's hard to go wrong with much of anything. They're all very tasty.
La Fondue is definitely where you should head to if you want some fondue. Simply beyond wonderful. -
Review from Chi N.
1/24/2012 1 Check-in Here
I took my bf here recently to celebrate his latest big achievement. We've had Melting Pot before and liked the fondue experience. La Fondue did not disappoint.
My friends and fellow Yelpers rave about this place and I can see why. The decor is cute, romantic, and intimate. Be sure to get a table inside, although the outside tables have their own charm, what with the wall of 3D birds.
We ordered the Fondue Combination, Fondue Feast. It included a salad for each of us, a cheese fondue, a sampler of meats and a chocolate fondue. My bf got the Chef Salad, while I got the Spinach Salad. I like the Chef Salad better. The Chef Rolls, which are really pinwheels (prosciutto rolled with mozzarella cheese), in the salad really made the dish.
We then moved to our cheese course. We picked the Stinking Rose combination, which included wine and garlic in the cheese. It was interesting to see how our server prepared our cheese fondue. First she poured the wine into the pot, letting it heat up for a bit. Then she added minced roasted garlic and shredded Swiss cheese and whipped everything together with a fork until it had a smooth creamy texture. We dipped apples, bread, cocktail onions, cocktail pickles, roasted garlic, broccoli, carrots, grape, and potato in the cheese. Our favorites were the bread, apple and garlic and we ordered extra of those items to dip all the cheese.
For the meat, we chose Chicken Japonaise, Spiced Fish, Tiger Blue Shrimp, Sea Scallops, Dungeness Crab, and Black Angus Filet Mignon. We opted for the Grill cooking procedure. Our server brought us 8 different types of sauces to dip our meats in. It was a little confusing having so many different options that it was hard to remember which was which. I could have done without the meat portion of our meal. I liked it better at Melting Pot as the cooking method was tastier there.
We got so full at this point that my bf asked if we could skip the chocolate fondue. Our server suggested we bring it home and told us that it would reheat well at home. We got the Danger Mix, which was Milk Chocolate mixed with English Toffee bits. We heated it up and ate it the next day and it was very good. I loved dipping the strawberry, banana, Snickers bar, pound cake, and cream puff in the chocolate.
Next time, we'll probably stick with the cheese and chocolate and skip the meats.Listed in: Date Night, You Fancy Huh?, Let Them Eat Cake
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Review from Amy B.
San Jose, CA
1/30/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal
Been trying for AGES to get my better half to take me here for a date night. Thank you Yelp Deal for providing an offer that was too good to refuse.
And what a great deal it was - TONS of food on the Le Freak C'est Chic deal and while the kangaroo, antelope and bison were delightful, I must say the mushroom cheese fondue and the salad were not freaky but tres chic-ey. Is it wrong to love the salad there so much? It is ridiculously good.
This is just a great date night place - service and ambiance support that. The family who brought there 3 kids under 10 does not. Who does that? Buzz kill.
In summary - date night! -
Review from Cathy C.
1/27/2012
Disclaimer: super LONG review!
My boyfriend got us the Yelp anniversary deal & I was SUPER excited because I've never actually been to a fondue restaurant before this!! I was even more pleased to see great Yelp reviews for this place, but I was still doubtful when people said that there's more than plenty of food since it falls under the "French" category.
We didn't really dress up (it was super cold that day) but everyone still gave us the royal treatment. I loved the random decor in the restaurant - it had a contemporary taste but at the same time "unique". It was very dark, though, and that could always mean good or bad depending on where you're eating - in La Fondue's case, I think it worked out great because you have a sense of intimacy even though you're sitting right next to another table.
The deal was for 2 & you get the Le Freak C'est Chic menu (a taste of everything) & a bottle of chilled Kenwood Cuvee...of course, the meal includes appetizer, salad, entree, & dessert! Here's what we ended up getting:
[ drink ]
The Kenwood Curvee came chilled and it was sweet enough for my taste! We actually ended up drinking almost half of the bottle (which is super rare for us since we usually don't drink for driving purposes)...we felt bad for leaving the other half and tried to give it away but the server said we can't. *sad*
[ appetizer ]
We had the 4 Cheese (Ementhaler, Gruyere, Fontina Surchoix, Champagne) & it was SUPERB! It was our very first time eating cheese fondue & at first I thought the bread, fruits, & vegetables that came with the cheese would taste funny but they actually taste SO delicious! (then again, what doesn't go well with cheese?!) It did get a little bit too cheesy near the middle/end of our plate, though, so perhaps we might try another cheese that's lighter next time.
[ salad ]
I got the Chef Salad with Sweet & Sour with Blue Cheese Crumbles, which is rare for me because I'm not a big fan of blue cheese...but I wanted to try something new & different rather than my usual Ranch. I am SO glad I picked this one - it was super delicious & I couldn't wait until I got to the bottom of my salad!
My boyfriend got the Spinach Salad with Lemon Tarragon...I think the salad itself was great but the dressing was too lemony (even he agrees & he loves everything on that plate). He ended up munching off my salad plate for once!
Caution: it's funny that we had a table of 3 girls next to us & one was an expert at La Fondue dining, so she warned the other 2 girls to NOT finish the salad and get it to go so they can enjoy everything else...she's totally right! There is SOOOOO much food that you just have to sacrifice something to fit everything into your stomach!
[ main entree = Le Freak C'est Chic ]
OMG I'm so speechless about this dinner! You get 2 pieces of EVERY kind of meat they have to offer on their menu & the thing that BLOWS my mind is when the server put down the plate, he actually named every single one of them...TWICE! (in the correct order too!) That was pretty amazing, LOL!
We went for the regular Grill option of cooking - I think this was the most fun part of the dining experience because you get to be involved in cooking your own food. At first I thought we would finish the plate right away, but, boy, was I wrong! We did damage on only half of the plate - we basically split a piece of each kind of meat so we get a taste of everything (literally!), and we had to box up the other half to-go because we were SO full! (and to think there was still dessert!)
[ dessert = dark chocolate + frangelico (hazelnut liqueur) ]
This was, by far, the BEST part of the meal for a chocolate-fanatic like me! =)
Words can't even begin to describe how good their chocolate fondue was...all I know is I probably died and went to heaven whenever I took a bite out of that fondue bowl, lol! I wanted to lick the bowl until every single drop of chocolate was gone, but it ended up being my boyfriend who had to lick clean his plate clean, which is super rare because he doesn't love chocolate as much as I do - that is how good La Fondue's chocolate fondue is!!
I hope whoever is reading this review to this point can clearly tell that we had a great experience at La Fondue. I do have to say that for the price that they charge (and the amount of food that they serve, which can easily make anyone's stomach explode), it might almost be a "once in a lifetime" experience...and I'm SO glad Yelp gave us an opportunity to try this place! -
Review from Shelby M.
Mountain View, CA
2/6/2012
My husband and I had dinner here on Saturday night. It was super yummy! We had an 8:30pm reservation and were able to be seated right away - the tables are very private and not crammed together, which was a pleasant surprise. The food is fantastic! We had the classic swiss cheese fondue to start (soooo delicious) and the large fondue meat sampler to cook on the euro grill - it was really delicious (this was my husband's favorite part) and then we finished off the meal with milk chocolate fondue - again super yummy. We can't wait to come back again!
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Review from Greg B.
San Jose, CA
2/5/2012
After several "special occasion" dinners here, I've been consistently impressed. It's a fail safe to go with the Fondue Feast dinner. This will allow you to get the full Fondue experience including the option of some more less common meats including Buffalo, Venison, Boar, and Antelope meat.. yummy! With cheese fondue as the first course, meat being the second and topping it all off with chocolate fondue for desert, your taste buds will be in ecstasy! Great dimly-lit modern decor makes for an appealing dining experience, just a little out of the norm.
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Review from Jayme P.
Los Gatos, CA
1/26/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal
So, I have to disclose that I was not feeling great when I went here; I was just starting to sick. When I get the opportunity to go again, I will re-review it, promise!
Anyway, we purchased a yelp deal for $99 that was good for the Le Freak C'est Chic and a bottle of champagne (worth more than $200). Awesome deal! I was worried about the waiter giving us a hard time about using it but it was way easy.
I do not recall which cheese we ordered but the other couple with us ordered the Stinky Rose and it was delish!! I could have eaten that stuff all night. My stomach would have hated me for it though. The dippers were all fresh and tasty.
Next came our main course. Honestly, I could have skipped this whole part. For one, too many meats to try. When the dish first came, it was really exciting to know we were going to be trying so many different options but after the first 5 ones, we were pretty much over it. The whole cooking your own meats has always been a little weird to me. I was feeling a little nervous about under cooking some of them, especially the poultry. The lighting was soo dim that I could not even tell if the chicken was still pink so I just ended up not eating it.
The lighting also made me sleepy. It was just too dim. I mean, I get it, the romantic lighting and all, but I felt it was a little bit much. The champagne probably didn't help either.
Anyway, the chocolate was pretty tasty too. We got milk chocolate with mint. The dippers, again, were fresh and pretty yummy. I liked that they offered additional dippers if you wanted them. At that point, we were full, so I don't think we enjoyed the chocolate as much as we could have.
In addition, our server was super friendly and helpful. He checked in on us the perfect amount of times. He didn't interrupt our convo every 5 minutes but was very attentive to our needs. He found that fine balance.
Our plan for when we return is to only buy the cheese and the chocolate and skip the main entrée That is really what we go for anyway.
I would NOT discourage anyone from going but just really decide how much you want to cook for yourself. If you are not feeling like working, then stick to just the cheese and chocolate. -
Review from Ayla D.
Santa Clara, CA
1/19/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal
As if I really need to add another review on here... Who doesn't love this place??? I LOOOOVE LA FONDUE!!! Hands down my favorite restaurant EVER! I'm addicted. I have came here for numerous birthdays and occasions and if it's been too long I make a point of coming for my La Fondue fix.
I believe, it is family owned... YES another amazing small business that I love to support! The owner is almost always at the front desk, gotta respect that.
I've been to the Melting Pot and I hate the chain atmosphere. The decor is like a chain and the menu is like a chain. Plus, I don't find it worth the drive from the south bay... the nearest is San Mateo and why bother when the Amazing La Fondue is right here in Saratoga!
I love the decor, it's eccentric and yet so classy and modern. I love getting dressed up to come here, but business casual is accepted. I always state in my reservation that I DO NOT want to be sat in the back left room... the blue medievel room. The lighting is way too dark and it is the only room where they salvaged the decor from the first location many years ago [which was a few doors down the street] and I feel I've "been there done that". Each of the rooms has such a personality, I love sitting in a different room every time.
As for their food.... here we go... I always get the Fondue Feast. It's 4 courses and worth every bite and every penny. It's not a bad a price for two people and the food is more than enough. I barely eat anything all day before coming here, the servings are so large. Some people only come for dessert, but I can't come in here and smell the amazing smells and not want to indulge in it all!
Their salads are amazing and huge, don't eat it all and take some home. Motto of the dinner is "Save room for chocolate!"
I've tried a few of their cheese's and my favorite is the mediterrainian. On special holidays they will mix in crab! Once again, slow down... CHOCOLATE!
The meat is the biggest serving, but the chocolate is oh so worth the wait! I prefer cooking my meat in the Punsch method. It's a wine with spices, it's an absolutely amazing marinade to the meat, but doesn't overpower the flavor. I find the Punsch method to be much easier than grilling... grilling is too much work, flipping and checking, ugh. The lobster bisque is too thick and TOTALLY overpowers the meat, so I stay away. I've tried all the meats on the menu... recently my boyfriend and I experienced a Yelp Deal for La Fondue, which was their entire tasting menu! 2 pieces of every meat. And trust me, it is all divine!!! Special occasions and deals they also serve lobster, YUM! I've learned it's best to cook all your meat and then take home what you cannot finish. It's still great the next day!
Did I mention that the chocolate course is the best??? I don't think there has been a pot of chocolate where I have left any remaining. If it weren't hot I'd probably lick it clean. Dark chocolate is my favorite, I'm a choco-holic, the richer the better, but the milk is great too, I've never tried the white. My favorite dipping items are snickers and cookie dough, I always ask for more!
If it's a holiday or anniversary they will give you a complimentary glass of champagne with dessert. If it is a birthday they will put a candle in your dessert's dipping items. The perfect touch.
If you have not been here before WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR??? GO NOW!Listed in: Top Restaurants
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Review from Al C.
1/10/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal 1 Check-in Here
Ok, trying to leave six stars but I haven't figured-out how.
For a parent, the wifey and I rarely get out alone for a nice dinner. Bought the Yelp Deal months ago and FINALLY got to use it. The in-laws helped-out with babysitting.
I forgot how good La Fondue is...I've been to the one in the OC years back. I think that was before I developed a soft spot for chocolate. This place is pure gluttony...seriously. The wait staff was awesome. The mushroom based cheese was insanely good. The salad was something to dig-into. The wine was great...our Yelp Deal came with a bottle...but, I ordered a second. The main course was killer. We literally ate for hours.
Best part came the dessert when the little lady says "I'm too full for dessert." Well, I had to step-up and dip those strawberries, marsh mellows, cookie dough squares, Snickers squares, etc into that warm chocolate.
They then finished-off our Yelp Deal with a glass of champagne.
Go hungry, or don't go at all. -
Review from calvin o.
Santa Clara, CA
1/19/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal
Ummmm....wow. Just wow. If it wasn't for the Yelp deal I bought, I prolly would have never had the experience. And that would have been a shame.
first impression....should the DJ duo "Thievery Corporation" should ever open a restaurant, this place would be it. Decor, ambiance, food as well and the background music(their stuff happened to be in heavy rotation).
Food. wow. the Yelp deal was the 23 meat assortment and it was an experience for the tastebuds. Definitely didn't leave hungry or wanting.
Definitely will be going back for the experience again. -
Review from Heather Z.
Campbell, CA
2/3/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal
I've been here twice so far. Once a couple of years ago and again last December using the Yelp deal. What a fantastic deal! I loved this place before and I love it even more now. Service was excellent! We kept getting offered refills on our fondue dipping goodies which we didn't get offered on our first visit. Good to know since we will be back. My only regret is not buying multiple Yelp deals.
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Review from San Jose S.
San Jose, CA
2/4/2012
Reservations a must, easy @ open http://table.com
Ambiance is cool & unique.
Service is great!
Food--ordered La Romantique, 4 course.
1) Chef Salad--chopped salad divided into sections (just ok, the chef bacon rolls saved it).
2) Cheese Fondue--4 Cheese basic, yummy, champagne base.
3) Entree--Chicken, Filet, Lobster, Shrimp & veggies--6 Sauce selection great options; Filet was our favorite; was a little paranoid whether or not the chicken or lobster were completely cooked due to lack of light. Having to cook my entree is why I'm not giving this restaurant a 5 star rating.
4) Dessert--Chocolate Fondue with Dark chocolate, khalua, cream...OMG this is what I will return for! The dessert + cocktails is awesome. Fantastic little bites to dip (bananas, strawberries, cream puffs, marshmellos, snickers, choc chip cookie dough, cream cheese balls rolled in cinnamon, cookies, and more!)
Valet parking is a nice bonus too, $8 + tip. -
Review from judy n.
1/4/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal 1 Check-in Here
Used the Yelp deal with the bestie!
the deal got us: "La freak c'est chic"
each girl got her own huge salad. yummy spinach salad
we got the 4 cheese with wild mushroom, topped off with truffle oil. OMG SO GOOD!!!
2 pieces of all meats. gamey meats (kangoroo, kobe and duck were awesome) seafood and chicken 4 ways. we cooked it all with the Grill euro grill method from Munich. there was so much food, we brought home the leftovers.
for dessert we got the Chocolate. Danger mix. Milk Chocolate and toffee bits. yummy. and they added cookie dough to their repertoire of goodies to dip. yum!
great place to catch up with good friends over a nice meal.
but be warned... you're gonna smell like fondue that night! -
Review from Susan L.
1/17/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal 1 Check-in Here
I absolutely love it!
One of my fav place to celebrate an anniversary or special romantic dinner with my special someone.
.
2nd time I've been here.
Exotic pricey food with exquisite service.
We ordered the 4 cheese and mushroom fondue, Le Frek C'est Chic grill for a taste of every animal and sea creature in the world (including alligator, kangaroo, antelope, buffalo, wild turkey, lobster tail, blue shrimps, kobe beef, filet mignon), dark chocolate with toffee fondue , and topped it off with a bottle of chardonnay.
All in all- remember to make reservations, wear nice clothes that you wouldn't mind having smell like dead animals for the next week, be prepared to spend 3-4 hours on this meal!
Oh, one thing I would like to request is that for the Le Frek C'est Chic, to have a diagram given or label over each piece of meat/seafood to know what it is i'm exactly consuming. The waitress did go over each one in detail but no right person with some chard recall it all! -
Review from Anna H.
Santa Clara, CA
1/19/2012 1 Check-in Here
Went here for the first time this week to get dessert with my boyfriend. I liked the set up of the restaurant. It was nice and quiet which is great for a romantic date. We ordered the Godiva dark chocolate fondue which served for 2 people.
The chocolate given to us was alright. The fruits and desserts used for the chocolate was decent. There wasn't really anything special about the fondue in my opinion. I felt like they over priced the dessert because for the amount that we paid, I expected more. I'll probably go back to La Fondue for the meal though. -
Review from Thao V.
Had a wonderful time dining here with my boyfriend for our anniversary. The yelp deal was awesome and I'm so happy I purchased it since it comes with such a huge variety of different meats to try. The ambiance was romantic and very intimate. Went on a Sunday night and I actually saw several tables with families around as well so it seems like its a good place to dine for both families and couples.
We started off with the chefs salad, no cheese for the boyfriend since there is quite a lot of cheese. Probably touched about 1/3 of my salad before getting kind of full so I saved it for later. But after all the food came out, I never got a chance to come back to it. Next came the cheese fondue and we picked the garlic one. We're not a big fan of cheese and I didn't think I would like this course so much but boy was I wrong. The cheese was actually really good and went well with the vegetables, bread, and apple slices.
The meats came next and our server, who by the way was very nice, was really good at explaining how to grill it and helpful in helping us remember the meats. We wanted to know what we were eating so it was helpful how they divided the meat on the platter. All the chicken, then the exotic meats, and then the seafood, and in alphabetical order. We went straight to the exoctic meats first while we were still hungry so we could enjoy it more. Definitely a fun experience being able to try antelope, venison, kangaroo, and alligator tail, and more! You get two pieces of each different type which is a lot of food. I was pretty much done halfway through the seafood and was pretty stuffed to even begin on the chicken, but my boyfriend is quite the eater so he finished everything up =) We were there for close to three hours and it was a great experience!1 Previous Review: Show all »
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3/15/2011
This review is for the dessert fondue which my girl friend and I went on Saturday night during their… Read more »
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Review from Wendy T.
1/11/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal 1 Check-in Here
Came here for a late dinner last night, and none of us has ever had fondue before.. so it was a first experience for us all!
First, I'd like to say that our waitress was super friendly and helpful! She was really patient and helped us throughout our entire experience! :) I really wish I remembered her name!
From this experience, I've found that I'm not a huge Cheese Fondue fan. We tried the mushroom cheese & the bacon with cheddar... The mushroom one was a little bitter so I thought the bacon one was much better... Overall consensus was that we were all a little iffy about the cheese fondue portion of the meal.
Next was the dinner portion in which we were given a bunch of meats (I had the Yelp Deal - and they had the "feast" -- I forget what it was called exactly) and we chose the grill option. I was not a huge fan of the sauces (as I don't like teriyaki, mustard, or sour cream) so I was limited to only the garlic butter one and a spicy one that I don't remember what it was.... But the good thing was that.. the meats were not terrible without sauce.. and using the garlic butter to help grill was a great idea (waitress recommended it).
And the final part.. the chocolate fondue! WOW.. I thought I was full.. but I still managed to basically finish this myself (we originally had a table of 5, so we had 2 orders.. but 2 had to leave.. so they took theirs to go--the other two that was left with me.. just tried it.. but I basically ended up eating majority of it!). Our waitress even asked if there was anything we'd like more of... and we got more strawberries & ice cream puff.. which also ended up in my stomach.. I was definitely high on chocolate by the end of the meal! Which I guess means... I LOVE chocolate fondue!
I would definitely recommend this place for their dessert (food dipped in CHOCOLATE!! how can you go wrong??). As for the rest.. I would definitely recommend trying the place... but I know a lot of stubborn people who only eat certain types of foods, so I wouldn't recommend it to them. It was definitely out of the box for me.. but something I've always wanted to try... and I'm really glad Yelp had a deal for this place & that I took advantage of it! -
Review from Winglo A.
Cupertino, CA
1/31/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal
Good service. If I did not had bought a Yelp Deal, I would not ordered Le Freak. There are about 1/3 of the meat I would not care for. I did not enjoy the experience of cooking at a high price restaurant. I would come back for fondue dessert. Overall good experience.
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Review from Noel M.
Updated - 1/27/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal 2 Check-ins Here
It's been something like 36 hours and I'm still completely stuffed. We took advantage of the Yelp Deal for the Le Freak C'est Chic tasting of everything offered. Waitress was excellent, food was excellent and thanks to Yelp, so was the price.
2 Previous Reviews: Show all »
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10/2/2009
To celebrate my 10th anniversary in California I grabbed my two closest and headed out for a night… Read more »
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Review from elisabeth c.
San Jose, CA
1/6/2012
Phenomenal. I went to La Fondue last year for Valentine's Day when they had a prix fixe menu. It was pricey, sure, but it was worth every dime.
Our night didn't start off great but the food more than made up for it. The place was packed and the hostess could not have been any more rude. V-Day fell on a Tuesday and according to their website, they waive the cork fee on Tuesdays. My date and I brought in a bottle of wine, only to have the hostess tell us the website was wrong. There were 3 other couples who brought their own bottle, as well. I understand why they wouldn't want to offer this service but at least take it off the website and dont be so condescending about it!
Anyway, now the food. AMAZING. The cheese and crab dip was delicious. I love that we were able to cook the proteins ourselves, just the way we wanted it. The dessert was out of this world. There was plenty of food for my date and it was soo good that I had to ask for more dippers for the chocolate sauce.
Our waitress was great. She apologized for the wine mix-up and brought us a complimentary glass of champagne.
The atmosphere was very romantic (minus the random drunk girl yacking in the bathroom) and I just had an overall great time. -
Review from Misha N.
San Jose, CA
1/8/2012 1 Check-in Here
I came here because I heard of exotic meats such as alligator tail being served, so I was sold on it as I've been on a kick to try lots of new meats.
So I had a bad fondue place experience when I was a kid and always thought fondue was bad afterward. This was my first fondue experience since and it has completely changed my mind! The 4 cheese fondue was mind blowing.
Then the meats -- I got to try kangaroo, alligator tails, wild boar, and more. It was all very good!
I would definitely go here again. A tad expensive at $100 for two people but it's a lot of food and really good. -
Review from jarek a.
San Jose, CA
1/8/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal 1 Check-in Here
I bit more expensive than Alexanders Steakhouse, but I did stumble away a lot more buzzed. I'm not comparing this to a steakhouse....that's retarded - merely giving a few folks in that demography an idea of the price.
Rent aside, this place kicks ass, but assuming you aren't 400+ pounds and have an entourage you won't be eating here often. Save it for the life milestones.
Not much to say, but here they are;
-Wine pairings great, no corkage on Monday-Wednesday is EPIC
-They gave me a complimentary pass for an entire bottle of for my next visit.
-Service....you get what you pay for - damn near got a happy ending as well!
-Feel free to ask for extra of ANYTHING. --that's actually what you are paying for even though its not exactly specified you won't be denied.
Don't bring your demon spawn or your Air Jordan's. I don't really care who you are, but I'm specifically paying to pretend i'm not urban garbage for the night and i'd like to keep the illusion for the time I'm here....that said, demon spawn and urban garbage would fit well with the automatic machine styles lamps....wtf is up with that? -
Review from Anya R.
12/29/2011 Purchased a Yelp Deal 1 Check-in Here
I wish I had a second stomach so I can eat all the yummy food that was at La Fondue.
I've come here twice- once at a Yelp Elite Event where we mostly just ate bread and veggie dipped in yummy cheese and this second time for nice date with my boyfriend.
When there was a Yelp deal I swooped it up without hesitation considering the savings.
Purchased for $99 but worth over $250. You got yourself a salad, appetizer cheese fondue, lots of exotic meat, delicious chocolate, and a bottle of wine.
My favorite parts of the meal:
- Spinach salad was amazing with honey mustard. So fresh. I wish I had eaten less so I could make more room for the main course.
- Great thing was that even tho we only ate half the meat they told us we can pack everything home if we cooked everything. It was Korean bbq style where we got the marinated meat and cooked in our little skillet.
- (They mixed all the fondue stuff)
- THE DESSERT- we got so much to dip- the rice krispies treat, cookie dough, fruits, etc. Just wanted to keep dipping and dipping.
I can't wait to have another special occasion come up so we can eat here again. They gave us a coupon for a free bottle of wine next time!Listed in: Fancy Schmancy
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Review from eurecurry S.
Santa Clara, CA
1/11/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal
I went thanks to Yelp's incredible Anniversary deal, back on 12/23/2011.
Coupled with a night at the Inn at Saratoga across the way, my experience at La Fondue will be hard to beat!
It was the perfect combination of romance, excitement, intrigue, flavor, and fun!
The spread of exotic meats was so tantalizing that I found it worth breaking my pescetarian diet for this one night.
I was also delighted to find that the accompanying wine was not limited to whites, as the red cuvee was an excellent pairing for the meats.
Our waitress was also very timely, considerate, and thorough.
All-in-all, I could not ask for a better time!
Were the price a closer to my range, I would definitely come back again! -
Review from vicky t.
1/3/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal
Bad place for an elite event but fantastic place to take your plus one/ small family affair/ prom dates. This place has been around for what seems like forever. I have gone for prom in high school.. and as an adult. Still stellar and delicious!
You cannot go wrong with anything dipped in cheese and or chocolate. I can go on about all of the exotic meats and how the meal for two could easily fill a family.. it is a lot (IMHO) to eat.
Service is awesome.
I got the yelp deal for my in-laws as a Christmas gift. :) -
Review from Annie W.
12/29/2011 Purchased a Yelp Deal
I bought the Yelp deal and took my husband here for his birthday. I had been here before a long time ago for dessert only, and since then they moved to a bigger location. Overall, the experience was quite lovely. The atmosphere is indeed romantic, the service is top notch, and the food is unlike any other. How often can one have kobe beef, alligator, buffalo, wild turkey, crab, lobster, and kangaroo all in one meal? The Le Frek C'est Chic was off the hook!
Had there not been the yelp deal, I probably wouldn't have gone there. So, kudos to them for hookin' a yelper up and making their most expensive feast accessible for the common folk. -
Review from Eric C.
Palo Alto, CA
12/28/2011 Purchased a Yelp Deal
Once again, Fondue has won me over. And, with the help of a great Yelp deal, I was able to afford a delicious meal for two, indulging on meat from every animal imaginable, while sippin' on some bubbles.
Outdoor 'patio' seating was just as warm as it was indoors, thanks to their space heaters. And of course, to top it all off, who can really turn down chocolate fondue? -
Review from Albert H.
12/15/2011 1 Check-in Here
Came for the Yelp deal - a bottle of wine and fondue dinner with ... basically every meat they have. They seem to fairly regularly offer such deals, and that would seem to be the way to go, as what we had was normally valued over $250.
I kind of like the decor - it's upscale and rather quirky. They have several rooms with different themes - worth a walk around just to see them.
The tables have induction burners in the top. Dinner included a salad, a cheese fondue, a meat fondue or grill, and a chocolate dessert fondue. The options are fairly similar to what you'd get at a chain fondue place, but a little more upscale. The meat options include some things I've never had anywhere else ( kangaroo, anyone? )
Service was friendly and competent, though our server did seem to disappear at inopportune moments. The meal is such - with a large plate of uncooked food, a couple candles, and a pot of boiling stuff - that the tables need to be pretty large, and even then it's hard to reach everything.
The salad is nothing really special, and in fact kind of old school. Lots of shredded or crumbled cheese, and a large portion of raw sliced mushrooms included.
Cheese fondue choices were many - it came with a small tray of vegetal dippers, but mostly just some good bread. We got the mushroom option, which was excellent.
We went for the grill rather than a fondue for the meat course. It comes with about six sauces and plenty of garlic butter for frying things up. The ventilation in the restaurant is such that I think the grill can be a bit distracting to other diners, though. We had to turn down the heat ourselves after things got a little ... burney ... and our server was nowhere to be found.
Dessert was generous - lots of interesting things to dip into molten chocolate. Our server was surprised that we were able to finish the whole thing. We were surprised we were still able to walk out of the restaurant ... it's a heck of a lot of food.
Apparently, if you come in after 9pm and there's room, you can just get the dessert fondue by itself. We saw a couple parties seated as our meal was winding down for just that delight.
I'd say this place is better than the chain guys in terms of quality, and it's more upscale. Not perfect, but fresh and different food with interesting decor. -
Review from Maria B.
Santa Clara, CA
12/25/2011 Purchased a Yelp Deal
I had the Yelp deal for the Le Freak C'est Chic meal with a bottle of wine. We arrived an hour early of our reservation but they were able to seat us right away! (On Dec 23rd, no less!)
Let me tell you now that it is A LOT of food.
They'll start off with the bread and (your choice) cheese fondue. I suggest munching on the other little dippers that they provide instead of the bread so you don't get too full.
Next you have a choice of the chef or spinach salad. My partner and I ordered each one so we'd have some variety. The salad also comes in a very large portion!
But that's not it. When the menu says "a taste of everything" they mean EVERYTHING.
Out came a plate of 23 different types of marinated meat from chicken to beef to seafood to the rare meat (alligator, venison, buffalo, etc). I was already getting full by the time the meat dish came out so I only ate about half of each piece of meat while my partner ate that and the other whole pieces. Needless to say, he was properly stuffed by the time we finished the meat plate.
I, on the other hand, had saved just enough room for my favorite part: dessert! They'll provide a tray of goodies to dip with your choice of chocolate fondue. We both preferred dipping with fruit since the other goodies were too sweet to dip in more sweetness. (And this is coming from a sweet tooth!)
The ambiance was night and worked well. They seated us in a booth so we could be cozy with one another. The decor was awfully strange, but nothing awful enough to render us offended. I love that there is a coat hanger next to our booth! And it's bright enough to see the food, but dark enough to feel intimate.
The service was also excellent. Our two servers (one went home during the middle of our three-hour meal), Nate and Lorissa (sp?), were quite helpful in helping us eat our meal. Nate showed us how to properly dip and where to dip in our fondue. Both Nate and Lorissa wowed us with their spectacular memory of which meat was which on our massive plate and they were just attentive enough to make sure that we enjoyed our experience.
I definitely love that La Fondue had this deal because I would have saved type of dinner for a much bigger occasion than a nice holiday dinner with my partner. I also saw people coming in after 10pm for what seemed like a dessert only meal, so perhaps I will end up going there for now until I have a nice occasion to celebrate.
Thanks La Fondue! -
Review from Ana T.
San Jose, CA
1/21/2012 1 Check-in Here
I have not tried a full dinner here but the chocolate dessert fondue can make for a great late night snack. Served from 9:30 -10 on m-f and 10:30-11 on f-s, you can choose from several flavors of chocolate fondue with an extensive wine list to wash it down.
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Review from Rebecca D.
San Jose, CA
1/6/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal
Awesome food and even better server. Unfortunately I forgot his name, Kyle? maybe, but he made the experience well worth it!
Awesome for a night out, but best when you have 3 hours to eat and enjoy the experience. -
Review from alastair g.
San Francisco, CA
1/25/2012
Another long overdue review. La Fondue is a great restaurant in the Saratoga hills. It offers a unique fondue experience serving over 50 different fondues. From Wild Game like Free Range Buffalo, Nilgai Antelope, Kangaroo, Wild Boar, Alligator Tail, to Savage Wild Duck to name a few. Or their Black Angus Filet Mignon to Seafood like Dungeness Crab, Colossal Shrimp, Pacific Catch, Tuna Saku, or Sea Scallops I'm sure you will find the exciting menu items to please your taste buds. With 5 different cooking methods to choose from your dining experience will be one to remember.
After doing a little research it didn't surprise me that La Fondue has one a plethora of "Best Of" categories including: "Best Restaurant, Most Romantic Restaurant, Best Special Occasion Restaurant, Best Ambiance, Most Booked Restaurant, Best Of The Bay Area, Best Of Silicon Valley, and Best French Restaurant". On this particular occasion I was with my gf and we opted to have dinner outside under the heated lamps.
The dinner started off with an appetizer Fondue which has an assortment of breads and vegetables and you choose your cheese Fondue to do the dipping with. After you dabble in Cheese Fondue and Bread your chef/garden salad will be served to you next. Salad was pretty big so try not to over stuff yourself on the first 2 courses. My gf and I opted for the Fondue Feast which is an option where you choose two delectable meats from three columns of exotic meats and seafood. I had the Chicken Japonaise, Teriyaki Sirloin, Pacific White Shrimp, Alligator Tail, Himalayan Beef, and Black Angus Filet Mignon. (Didn't want to go to exotic). Everything was great. No complaints whatsoever.
Just when I thought I could not eat anymore...dessert time comes. Without a doubt the highlight of the night. With different chocolate concoctions to choose from like The XXX (Milk Chocolate Chocolate Fudge), The Decadent One (Milk & Dark Chocolates, Espresso, Kahlua, Cream), The Flaming Tortoise (Milk Chocolate, Caramel, Pecans, Flambe), The Butter Bab (White Chocolate, Butterscotch, Pecans, Flambe), The Danger Mix ( Dark, Milk or White Chocolates, English Toffee Bits), Or The Chocotastic (Dark Chocolate, Hazelnut Mousse,Mascarpone). My gf and I opted for "The Decadent One". Two Thumbs Up. A very delightful experience with a Classic French Ambiance. The Cocktails were strong and not too overwhelming. Customer Service was good for we decided to eat outside under the heated lamps. Parking could be a little better but overall a great dining experience. Will most definitely be back again when I'm ready to liven up my pallet. -
Review from Jesse Y.
Sunnyvale, CA
1/5/2012 Purchased a Yelp Deal
It's been a while since I've come to La Fondue and will have to say that my experience did not live up to my memories.
The cheese fondue was pretty standard but felt the accouterments to the fondue lacked variety. Bread, apple, grapes, carrots, potatoes, broccoli. The apples and grapes were a great combination of sweet to the cheesy salty and slightly bitter fondue.
The meat combinations on the grill were okay, but that has never been why we come to La Fondue anyways.
The chocolate fondue was...well how can you go wrong with chocolate fondue, right?
