Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

My wife and I had been hemming and hawing for the better part of three years on the subject of fondue. We enjoy the occasional fondue and wanted some sort of at-home solution but were unwilling to commit to big, expensive fondue pots. The small chocolate fondue sets took up space and were often in too many pieces to keep track of in an overstuffed kitchen (bowl, stand, forks). So when I saw this product, I thought we'd give it a try. First, let's talk about the one negative I encountered: 1. I was so eager to try this thing out that I immediately tossed some (high quality) chocolate into the bowl. I went digging around my kitchen for tea lights. Unfortunately, all I found were the slightly taller votive variety. No biggie, they fit inside. It should be good to go, right? If you use a taller tea light you will undoubtedly notice that the thing doesn't stay lit. It needs the shorter candle to allow for adequate air flow. Other than that, let me tell you a little bit about the product. The bowl is (naturally) smaller than it would be in a regular mug of similar height to accomodate the little tea light hearth beneath. However, there is still plenty of space for contents. Two mugs, four forks included. This means that my wife can eat her zero sugar dark chocolate while I indulge in milk (real) chocolate. It's a beautiful thing. I had always learned that you cannot melt cheese in tea lit fondue sets owing to a higher melting point than your average chocolate bar. I, however, was able to melt cheese. It was delicious. One thing you'll want to avoid is the temptation to put this thing in the microwave. I'm not saying that there is something wrong with the mug itself being in there. However, the microwave will cause your chocolate or cheese to separate into an unpleasant goo. Let the tea light do its thing, even if it takes a little longer. When you're not using it as a fondue set, it is also a great mug. I crammed some biscotti into that little hearth because I wanted to feel like an innovator who found multiple uses for his fondue mug. In the end, I was just another idiot with biscotti crammed into his fondue-mug hearth. If I never use the mugs again, they won't take up too much space in my cabinet. Even if I lose the fondue forks, I can still use the things. All in all, I can't think of a reason NOT to have these mugs around (except that my doctor seems to think I need to dip fewer things into chocolate and cheese). Next up, I will use these for when company comes over. Two people can easily tag team a mug each. Though, I'm not sure how safe it is to get between me and melted cheese while I have a sharp fork.