Originally from the word fondre, which means to melt in French, fondue is one of the most popular food served during special social events since its rise from being a practical necessity. The Swiss originally created fondue as a means of using dry, hardened cheese that would have otherwise just gone to waste. Years ago in their alpine villages, travelers who could bring only cheese and bread during their long journeys herding sheep and goats. Eventually their provisions of cheese would dry out. These travelers from days long ago would melt the cheese over a fire with the help of a little wine and dunk their pieces of bread in to warm their bellies and their nights. It is actually the Swiss region of Neufchatel that is recognized as the place where cheese fondue started. Originally done with Gruyere and Emmenthal, cheese fondues nowadays use and combine may different kinds of cheese, although the basis for the classic Swiss cheese fondue remains the same.

Another version of fondue is called oil fondue, whose history is actually disputed between two claims. One says that it started in Burgundy, where grape pickers were just given a huge heated pot of grape seed oil and morsels of meat so they can just spear their food, cook it in the oil quickly, and fill their stomachs while working on the fields. The other story says that oil fondue started when French-speaking chefs wanted to try other options for fondue. They ended up cooking the meat in hot oil. Whichever story is accruate, it is likewise an enjoyable gastronomical and social experience.

Nowadays, the term fondue has been used to loosely describe all food cooked in one pot right on the table and then dipping fruits, bread, or anything imaginable in it. There are however many different kinds of fondues and ways of preparing them. Fondues represent a meal shared with loved ones and kind of reflect the trust in each other for sharing everything.