Permanently Closed - Fondue Fred

Loved Fondue Fred for 30+ years. Will miss it forever! Thanks for the great food and memories!

We used to live in Berkeley 40 years ago and this was our go to place on our budget. It was a great place to reminisce and remind ourselves of some wonderful memories of our then new relationship.

Sadly it is going away like so many other iconic places in the bay area.

My family has been going for years, so when I heard they were closing I thought I would go one more time to think about the old times. It did have a nostalgic flavor, not much has changed. The fondue is very good and I had a good time.

We were so excited to try something different - what a complete disappointment! It's over priced and completely LAME! Don't waste your time. The staff was pleasant but that's all the positive I can do. If it wasn't for the free 1/2 carafe of wine from the table next to us, we would have left after the salad!

This was our first time at Fondue Fred and was so disappointed to hear that they are closing along with the neighboring stores. We would have loved to return to Fondue Fred’s many times. The food was great and the experience was fun!! Too bad!!

It was...interesting.

If you want a meal that guarantees a communicable table fondue does the trick. If you have a group of five or more they have good group deal. The atmosphere is great and the food is yummy 😋

Get in before they're gone! :(. The dinner fondues are amazing. Chocolate wasn't that great, but it was good. Tough to go wrong with melted chocolate.

It was very disappointing. I’m not sure how melted cheese could ever be unappetizing but they managed it. The tray of veggies they provide with the cheese fondue were uncooked and were not presenting in an appetizing way. The bread was fine. The garlic cheese fondue was disappointing but edible. The chicken fondue option was served in a manner we weren’t expecting, but the issue was that the chicken was somehow dry and chewy, even tho it was in a broth/stew. There was only dark chocolate fondue for dessert.

Fun to eat fondue, tasty asiago cheese and chocolate.

This is definitely a hole in the wall place but it’s pretty good! Our server was super busy but still did a great job at making sure we were taken care of. It’s definitely pricey for what you get which is why I think it’s just a good one time thing.

Fondue Fred? Fon-don't.
The "Gruyere" cheese was something other than that. (Some kind of Cheddar mix maybe?) The steak fondue was pre-cooked chunks of meat in a thick brown viscous liquid over the flame. Sort of a poor quality stew. And the bread was stale.

Could be a fun place if the food was better. Trader Joe’s fondue is yummier. I think the chocolate ‘fondue’ is just Hershey’s syrup.

This is the second time we have tried a Fondue restaurant and it was not quite what we were expecting. The salad dressing had an overpowering taste of yellow mustard. The Cheese Fondues were good, the beef was a very dry stew type of cut and flavor. The side of vegetables were completely raw and would barely cook in the beef broth.

Worst cheese fondue we have ever had. It looked and tasted like nacho cheese. The bathroom was beyond disgusting.

A bit disappointing and tired.

We went with someone who had fond memories of Fondue Fred’s. I had high expectations as it has been a long time since I have had fondue. I was disappointed with the food. The cheeses were very strong and there was a heavy wine flavor to them (more than necessary in my opinion). We also ordered potatoes which did not have much flavor. The chicken had good flavor but it was over cooked and quite dry.

The chocolate fondue for dessert was fantastic though. I would go back just for that but there is a $13.00 minimum per person charge.

Food terrible, wine disgusting. Made me sick the whole next day. Poor service and very high tip included by default. Never again.

We always enjoy fondue fred's! Our kids request it for birthday dinners. The staff is always very friendly. Such a fun place for a family with kids that offers cuisine much different than the norm!

Made for a lovely and fun 16th birthday for my kid! Thank you so much for making us all feel so welcomed.

Worst restaurant (food wise) I’ve been to in a while.

Although I really like this restaurant, our visit wasn't up to par. They were out of chicken, which is the only protein on their menu that I eat. Also the bread cubes were too hard, the potatoes were cold, and with such a large group (12 people), it was nearly impossible to enjoy more than the pots right in front of you so I missed out on sampling all the fondues we ordered. Additionally, we ordered the party package at $34 per person and when the bill came it was astronomical. Had we ordered by item it would have been much, much less. The waiter/owner didn't bother to note that to us even though we are repeat customers they recognize because we've been there so many times. I'm not so sure I'll be going back anytime soon after so many problems in a single visit. For the price, I may as well go to The Melting Pot. At least it's upscale in comparison, and it goes along with the amount we were charged. Very disppointed his time.

We had the restaurant to ourselves which was great, but they don’t really offer much aside from bread and cheese-
The chocolate is not what you should be going their for either. It is very expensive considering what you get.

I had looked up Fondue near me and this one popped up. It wasn't too far away and it was still open so I made a reservation thinking it was going to be busy. Which it wasn't and that's unfortunate because the food and service were so good and the woman serving us was very kind and warm. It's a good find and we are for sure going back.

Celebrated Mother’s day with my wife, my son, and his girlfriend.

Fantastic service and super fun/social way to eat a meal!

Pass it over. The food was not good enough. This is tailored more to the college students with mediocre food and average service.

What a fun meal! We ordered one cheese fondu for my husband and I and our 2 granddaughters. It was delicious and plentiful. The cheese fondu was served with a large order of delicious bread. We also ordered the fresh vegetables and they too were good and a generous amount. For dessert we had one chocolate fondu . It came with an enormous plate of fresh fruit, marshmellows and other goodies that were yummy!

Although I had made a reservation and specified the significance of the date, it being our anniversary, when we got to the restaurant, there was no one there to greet us or sit us down. There was one server who just pointed at a table and that was that. When I mentioned the reservation and the special occasion, nothing was done. I have to say, the food was nice but, over all, I was greatly disappointed in the service, as well as, in the atmosphere of the restaurant.

It was pretty horrible. They were not ready for our 10 person reservation event though it was confirmed through open table. The bread was like stale bread. The food was pretty flavorless.

I regret to leave this review. This is the only restaurant in memory that we walked out of before eating. We are huge fans of German and Swiss food, and were looking forward to fondue for NYE dinner. When we arrived, the restaurant was still closed, but opened a few minutes later. Upon being seated, we found that the restaurant was completely disorganized and disheveled. Electric space heaters everywhere, rickety mismatched folding chairs, and old fondue stoves and other kitchen equipment piled up everywhere. I have eaten in many restaurants in developing countries and this is by far below that standard. Surprised the health department allows this place to stay open.

The food was great and our service was awesome! My only issue was that they only had ONE beer on draft and there was no music or anything playing, so it was like awkwardly quiet at times...

Wasn’t what I expected, as I’ve been to other Fondu restaurants. We were a group of 4, and there were only 1 other couple in the restaurant the entire evening.
The cheese Fondu and the dessert Fondu were excellent, however. Not so much the other items we ordered.
Service was very friendly, and courteous.
Very awkward going to the ladies room.
They need help! Pretty dingy

Berkeley institution. Glad it's still here.

Fun with friends and food. We had delicious fondue, fresh mushrooms, apples and bread.

My family and I visited fondue fred for my birthday the place was just as I remember it 20 years ago the food was very yummy The service was excellent and we all had a great time it's a wonderful place to celebrate

The food for the price was less than mediocre. Will not go back.

great little place - been there for 50 years. Very quaint. Owner is really nice and the Fondue is good. Decore is very dated, but that is part of the charm. Worth going and we will be back

Great deal and great food. It was really good fondue completely worth finding parking