Ready for a big night out in France? Yeah, me too. However, a leap over the Big Pond isn't in the cards. In Tacoma, The Melting Pot offers a rotating themed "Big Night Out" four-course dinner - and its dipping its forks in France right now. This gastro-excursion of appetizer, salad, entrée and dessert lets one experience the scents and tastes of France, if not the sights and sounds. 

Baby Brie, fontina, Gruyère and Raclette cheeses are blended in the appetizer Fondua a' la France. Nueske's bacon, fresh chives, onions and white-truffle cream complement the already rich combination of cheeses. Tangy shallot vinaigrette dresses the Melting Pot's version of the French salade nicoise with tomatoes, sliced hard-boiled egg, purplish-black nicoise olives and haricots verts (French green beans).

The big dance, or rather the entrée, consists of tender chicken Provencal, roasted garlic shrimp, filet mignon, peppercorn-crusted New York strip steak and duck a l'orange from Maple Leaf Farms. Goat cheese ravioli, ratatouille and fresh broccoli, mushrooms and potatoes round out the course.

To wrap it all up, The Melting Pot offers its own version of a classic French dessert, crème brûlée, for the grand finale. A pot of melted white chocolate sees tableside flambé service that creates a golden, caramelized sugar crust. Indulge your dunking pleasure with a variety of fresh fruits, brownie and cakes bites.

The cost is $88-$96 per couple, not including all the drink you'll toss back.

Bon appetit!

[The Melting Pot, 2121 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253.535.3939]