07/17/08

Great Food, not so great service

by hlwolly

I live near here so I have been to the Cheesecake Factory several times. I like to go for the following dishes: Fried Macaroni and cheese (so decadent! and with the best cream marinara on the side), Boston salad, Firecracker Salmon Rolls, and Tuxedo Cheesecake. These are a few of my favorites. The food is really good 90% of the time. Once we did get an undercooked salmon roll, but my husband liked it anyway. I just don't like undercooked.

The service is the issue here - the hostesses ALWAYS try to seat us in the section where the tables are squished right next to each other and you feel like you are eating with strangers or on a cruise boat. We always asked to be moved to another table or booth now because once they sat us there and there were two horribly behaved children next to us kicking our chairs and running around (who brings kids to the Cheesecake factory at 9 at night? seriously). One time my husband ordered a drink and the waitress goes "Can I see your Id? Because you LOOK about 14." He gave her his ID but no tip and wrote a note on the receipt.

• Pros: awesome food, huge menu, nice atmosphere
• Cons: service is consistently horrible

03/12/08

My absolute favorite!

by Kelly78759

This is by far my favorite restaurant. The menu has so many options and the staff is very professional.

Decadent cheesecakes and classic American cuisine makes this a popular chain.

by Contributor

In Short
Faux-rustic finishes and colorful light fixtures abound at this almost always crowded chain. The thick-as-a-book menu features Americanized versions of worldly cuisines--Mexican, Vietnamese, Italian, Thai--but succeeds best with American classics. Burgers are a good choice, especially the ""Roadside Sliders,"" mini burgers served as appetizers. The myriad cheesecakes are over-the-top in concept and decadence. You'll leave full, with leftovers.

08/12/07

Been to better Cheesecake Factories

by spizzle

This was our third trip to the Cheesecake Factory and we were very disappointed. We didn't wait too long for a table; however, when our buzzer went off, we had to stand next to the hostess table for a long time - that was weird. They took our buzzer and said wait - I thought when the buzzer goes off, it means the table is ready, right? By the time we got to our table, it was at least 10 minutes before our server came by to ask our drink order. The food wasn't that great either for the price we paid - one dish was a pasta dish with chicken. I think we counted four little pieces of chicken in a trough of pasta. Our server never asked how we were doing nor did she refill our drinks. Once we were done with our meal, our server handed us the check assuming we didn't want dessert - wrong! The Godiva cheesecake was dry and a smaller slice than what I recall. To make the whole experience worse, we could see the manager watching through the window as we ate outside. He made no attempt to help his employees clean tables, refill drinks, etc. He could clearly see patrons having that "look" of needed service and did nothing to help. Our previous visits to the factory, however, have been great - too bad we have to go to Boulder or Phoenix to have a better experience!

• Pros: got a good parking spot!
• Cons: horrible service, poor quality food.

04/29/07

Bad orange chicken, terrible service

by hjdc

My husband and I went there for dinner a couple of weeks ago and unfortunately we had a really unpleasant experience. First, we waited for more than 45 min before we got a table. Second, the food we had was not impressive. My CAJUN JAMBALAYA PASTA was good (so were the bread and cheesecake), but the ORANGE CHICKEN my husband ordered was awful. I tried to help him finish his dish but finally had to give up. It was so bad. The worst part was their service. During our 40-50 minute eating, our waitress came to ask whether we were done already at least FOUR times. She never asked if everything was okay or how we liked our food. She just kept asking if we were done. We felt uncomfortable because we felt she wanted us to leave as soon as possible so that she could serve the next table. I understand the restaurant was busy at that time and many people were still waiting to get a table, but this kind of service was just unacceptable. We were truly disappointed and will probably never go there again.

• Pros: good cheesecake
• Cons: long waiting time, terrible service

11/21/06

My Absolute favorite restaurant

by franceebrown

I have been in love with the cheesecake factory since the very first time I ate there in San Antonio. The menu is incredible and you can't go wrong with anything that you pick. I had a friend who ate the hungarian gulash and said it was amazing. My favorites are the farfalle with chicken and garlic, the orange chicken, and the chicken madiera. Their soups are fantastic, and dont get me started on the wheat bread. absolutely love the strawberry lemonade and the smoothies are delicious. As far as desserts go you have to get one even if you take it home. My favorite is a simple fresh strawberry cheesecake, but when I'm adventerous I do german chocolate or chocolate chip cookie dough. I have never had a bad experience at this restaurant and have been to all of them in Boston, Austin, San antonio, Atlanta, Houston, and Indianapolis.

• Pros: selection, dessert, shopping is always near by
• Cons: wait

11/17/06

Love this place!

by amill123

This place has great food and delicious desserts! The setting is beautiful as well! Every waiter we've had a the one manager we've met have all been extremely polite. The service is great. The chicken madeira is wonderful and the buffalo blasters are a tasty appetizer. Highly recommended!

• Pros: Food is great.
• Cons: A little pricey - but worth it.

10/25/06

Great food and service

by lauren_76q

I decided to go to this particular restaurant with a date. We entered into the restaurant to see a very large crowd of people waiting to be seated. We did not make reservations beforehand so we waited about 30 minutes to be seated. Once we were seated we had an extremely nice waitress. The atmosphere was very nice. The only thing I did not like was the fact that all the tables are very close together and it can get very noisy at times. It's a bit pricey as well. All in all, I enjoyed the restaurant and will recommend it to friends

• Pros: fantastic appetizers, cheesecake!!!
• Cons: noise

07/15/06

It's a good place to go with a large group of people

by habitez

The menu is huge... lots of variety which will please most any crowd. The food is fine, large portions... nothing extrodinary... but its a lovely place for a late lunch date. Great service.. cheesecake is what it is.

• Pros: variety of food, service
• Cons: nothing too special

07/05/06

Seriously.

by joshandrox

For those of you who haven't lived in California and like the The Cheesecake here....you are missing out. My wife and I are transplants in Austin, when we found out there was a Cheesecake here we were SUPER THRILLED!! .....and then we went. The food in NOT the same, the portions in the recipes are wrong (I worked there for a year) and the managers are not accomidating either. Our servers were awesome, like all other stores we have been to, and the cheesecake and cakes are too (because they are made in one central location).

If any of you are out of the state it is recommended that you check one out elsewhere.

• Pros: Amazing service, beautiful decor, desserts are great too!
• Cons: Bad management in the back and front of house