Fondue restaurant experience The Melting Pot has awarded a new Nashville franchise, according to Restaurant News. It is one of four franchises awarded this year that are currently in development across the country.
Demetrius Kelley will be one of the partners at The Melting Pot franchise. Kelley said that the new franchise will be run by the same people as the initial Nashville location, which first opened in 1995.
The Melting Pot has been absent from the Nashville community since the Christmas Day bombing on Second Avenue in 2020 that destroyed the building that housed the restaurant’s only Nashville franchise. For the past four years, the franchise location at 166 2nd Ave N has been closed as a result, awaiting renovations that have been gradually unfolding along Second Avenue, according to a post on the location’s Facebook page on July 5.
“We’re still delayed on our rebuild for Second Avenue until we can get more clarification from our landlord,” Kelley said. “So we’re in a position where once we’re given the go-ahead to start our rebuild, we will start immediately. We have looked at some alternate sites in case it just totally falls apart.”
The Melting Pot is a national fondue franchise chain with 92 locations across 30 states. Its menu features options such as their four-course fondue experience, which includes both cheese and chocolate fondue as well as an entrée.
The chain is managed by restaurant management company Front Burner, run by CEO Bob Johnston.
Kelley said that currently, there is no set timeline for opening the franchise because of the complications they have faced since the bombing.
“We’re looking to get back as quickly as possible,” Kelley said.
