The Melting Pot Oktoberfest Dinner, Westwood NJ
The Melting Pot of Westwood is introducing some of their new menu items by hosting an Oktoberfest Beer Dinner next week. The menu is delicious as always, yet this time, paired up with a well thought-out beer menu featuring some local and craft beers.
An Introduction beer featuring Ramstein Munich Amber Lager. In my case, I had the Ramstein Classic Wheat, but either beer is great!
Course 1 – Alp and Dell Cheese Fondue. The combination of the three cheeses are sure to please. The garlic and Riesling add a hint of sweet with a kick to the spicy mustard and nutmeg mixture. I loved the sausage and bread sandwiches that I dunked in! The Anchor Steam paired up nicely with its woodsy taste.
Course 2 – Alpine Ridge Salad and Victory FestBier. Salads and Beers really go well with each other. The roasted tomatoes, cheese and almonds atop mixed greens were improved by an awesome shallot vinaigrette. Oh my, I’m craving it again! The Victory FestBier is brewed traditionally like they do in Munich and I had to get another one!
Course 3 – Dinner Time; NY Strip Steak, Smoked Bratwurst, Hefeweizen Marinated Shrimp, Roasted Garlic Chicken, ravioli and veggies. Talk about flavor, the steak was good, the Bratwurst was great, the Chicken was fantastic and the Shrimp was unbelievable. The veggies soaked up so many flavors cooking at the bottom of our pot, I was blown away. The dipping sauces were great as well. I highly recommend their new horseradish mustard sauce. It went very well with the Bratwurst.
The beers were Paulaner Hefeweizen and Hacker-Pschorr Original Oktoberfest and they were traditional and paired well. The Oktoberfest was richer and worked out better with the meats and where the Hefe was better with the shrimp and chicken.
Course 4 – White Chocolate Apple Cobbler Fondue. Maybe restaurants should start with dessert? This fondue is not what my girlfriend expected it to be and neither did I. She doesn’t like fruit in her shit (dessert), but this was white chocolate with crumbs of apple and crunchies and it sure worked out great! Paired with Long Trail ‚ÄúBrewmaster‚Äôs Series‚Äù Imperial Porter the creamy chocolate and bold earthy and rich smokey porter ended my meal on a high note! Long Trail is also one of those Eco-Friendly breweries that we’re always rambling about on Leafygreen.info.
Enough already, I know you are hungry, so head over to The Melting Pot next Thursday (Oct. 15, 2009) and take part in their Beer Dinner. They will have a rep on site from the breweries to answer any questions you may have. However, if you can’t make it, don’t fret, many of these dishes will be available at The Melting Pot Westwood in the future. Remember, tell them you read it on Bergenation first!
If I could give a negative to the Oktoberfest Dinner, it would have to be just the bottles. I would have preferred a draft, however, overall, for an introduction to beer and beer pairing, I think The Melting Pot did a great job and I felt more German after leaving content and STUFFED!
By: Mike Kivowitz, Bergenation.com
OK, I might be able to do this one. Westwood isn’t too far so its down to what happens on the 15th @ work. Thanks for the heads-up, looks like a great time!
@Scott You should try to go. I was going to head back but I’ll be out of town.
I’m going to try like hell to get someone to watch the kiddies so my wife and I can get over there Thursday night. It’s a difficult week, but I might be able to swing it.
Wait a minute, I just realized we could bring the kids along. The food sounds a little complex for their little palates, but maybe the beer will help. Do they have kiddie-sized steins? 🙂