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That's ridiculous! (Reply to this comment)
by rainroosty
This review is absurd. The Cheesecake Factory is an excellent and FUN restaurant to go to. The food is great and the menu is very extensive. Service is excellent, too.
As for the "wait"?? We've NEVER waited to be seated, not once....maybe that's because we aren't dumb enough to go right at the peak hour?
Gee, ya think?
Nobody is "sniffing" food there...I'm not going to go on about this, the review is ABSURD and inaccurate.
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Jul 25 '09
6:31 am PDT
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Two hours and ten minutes later... (Reply to this comment)
by agentolivia
We were seated finally at 9:25 pm having checked-in at 7:15 pm. We had over two hours to wander, but not too far, because we were told the pagers only work inside the restaurant. We were given an initial wait of an hour and half to two hours. Some of us in our party were able to get a quick nap in, which was nice. But the noise level inside was almost unbearable. The service was mediocre. It took over 10 minutes to receive water and bread after we were seated. 3 out of 4 of us had a good meal. The 4th's "medium-well" "hamburger" was so tough and burnt, she had to use a steak knife to cut through it. Additionally it was flavorless and the presentation was pathetic. Luckily, others were more than willing to share. :) The dessert was delicious. If it hadn't been my birthday and we were committed to the wait, we would have never stayed.
This review applies to the Portland (Washington Square) Cheesecake Factory. I've had much better experiences at the Seattle and L.A. area locations. I'll never go to the Washington Square Cheesecake Factory again.
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Dec 04 '06
10:55 am PST
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Re: too many weird expectations (Reply to this comment)
by popsrocks,  in Restaurants & Gourmet
Good to hear your point of view and you are correct, restaurants as many other destinations are subject to "subjective" critique. That's what this site is all about.
If one reads a number of reviews and sees that some old fogies like me find the place too noisy then perhaps the other oldies like me can relate. The youngin's who find the place a cuisine delight can have it more to themselves.
Opinion is what Epinions is all about. "Objective", rarely. "Subjective" to our feeling, moods and past experience, definitely.
Thanks for your opinion.
Phil
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Nov 01 '06
6:37 am PST
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too many weird expectations (Reply to this comment)
by jonmisar
I can never understand reviews like these. Food and restaurants have to be one of the most subjective topics in the world. It's like hotels, airlines, cars, music, art, politics, religion -- all the things people have an opinion about, but everyone sees differently.
I'm especially dismayed by the folks who, for example, have never even set foot inside a Cheesecake Factory but read a review like this and decide here in personal opinionville of all places that they'll never try it for themselves now that they "know what they know". Huh?
People would stop going to see movies if everyone believed what professional movie critics say.
Some people are just victims of life -- not having any clue or direction. Then when their on-the-spot expectations aren't met they jump online to tell the whole world about it in forums like this. A little research would have gone a long way.
I live in Los Angeles -- we have every imaginable chain restaurant in the world here, including The Cheesecake Factory. This restaurant is NOT the place for authentic, old-world, Italian PIZZA like you'd find in New York City or Chicago. It's not a Cajun food place like you'd readily find in New Orleans, nor does it offer the smokey southern barbeque delights of a Kansas City smokehouse.
Instead, The Cheesecake Factory IS, like so many other born and bred southern California restaurants, a unique place to go with friends when you're out on the town and have time to spare and want someplace different, fun, and offering a wide range of choices to suit most tastes.
It's NOT the place for a cheap family dinner with a kids menu (including crayons and a SpongeBob Squarepants cartoon book). It's NOT the place for a cozy, quiet, or romantic dinner date. It's NOT the place for connoisseurs of fine International cuisine. It's NOT the right place if having more than a dozen available menu items confounds you. It's NOT the place to go when you're starving and can't wait. It's NOT the place for impeccable, white linen service. And finally, it's NOT the right restaurant for those who want a "theme" motif to go along with the angelhair pasta.
What TCF does well (so much so that they're the top grossing chain restaurant in the U.S.) is serve interesting, share-able dishes encompassing a wider variety of tastes than one can find anywhere, and do it with a sense of style unique to their brand.
The reviewer seems surprised that so many "younger people" would gather at The Cheesecake Factory.
Why? Younger people aren't as fussy about service and are used to eating processed foods out of a box since birth anyway. Eating at TCF has to be a real dining tour de force if you rely on Jack-In-The-Box and Taco Bell for sustenance otherwise.
Younger people also don't care about the noise level or who is looking at their food, much less the route it takes to get to the table. Those of us who are older can more readily relate to the Marie Calendars of the world because we grew up on home cooked, simpler meals. And no, I'm not a fan of Marie Calendars -- I can do the same thing better in my own kitchen, except for the pies.
I'd bet dollars to doughnuts every last one of our Marines in Iraq would readily trade a week's worth of MREs for just one dinner at The Cheesecake Factory any day.
The point is, if you want the very best of something or even something specific, you have to know what and where that something is. The Cheesecake Factory obviously does most things very right for MOST people or the wait for a table wouldn't be what it is (or can be). They're also PRICED right, or they'd be out of business. Some of their menu items are fabulous, others are so-so, and a few I personally don't care for, but the same can be said by MOST people about ANY restaurant, large or small. I've had nothing but terrible service every time I've been to a Tony Romas, though I'm quite sure some folks love the place. I once met an older gentleman at the Cheesecake Factory in Studio City that said he didn't care for the CHEESECAKE of all things--said it was too "dressed up and overly sweetened". Go figure.
If you want the world's best steak dinner, go to a steak place. If you're into fabulous Thai food, go where the cooks are from Thailand! If quiet and cozy ambiance is your thing, chances are a chain restaurant isn't where you should be anyway.
And for pete's sake--stop with the "kids menu" nonsense--there are plenty of other places that will be happy to cater to junior's mac-n-cheese addiction, but The Cheesecake Factory isn't one of them. Thankfully.
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Nov 01 '06
1:55 am PST
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Re: I'm the only person (Reply to this comment)
by popsrocks, in Restaurants & Gourmet
Hey with giving them just two stars, I'm with you.
Thanks for the comment.
Phil
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Jul 18 '06
4:58 am PDT
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I'm the only person (Reply to this comment)
by susiewho
in the whole world who hates this place
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Jul 17 '06
3:50 pm PDT
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Cheesecake Factory in NJ (Reply to this comment)
by insbiz
Except for long lines..Diversified menu..helpful..nice waitstaff..good food...reasonable prices..they try to be helpful & please the customer
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May 22 '04
7:12 am PDT
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Let's Remember that the Cheesecake Factory is a Business (Reply to this comment)
by arrived
I have read a lot of reviews and find some of them upsetting. I have been in a relationship with the Cheesecake Factory for over 5 years. I can admit that some of the things noted at this site are true but others are horribly misinforming, misconstrued, and wrong.
The person with the E-ID "popsrocks" does provide the most accurate description of what the restaurant is like, but I think there is still some confusion.
When dining at the Cheesecake Factory you should be aware that thought goes into a lot of things. Maybe some things can use more thought, but apparently for 25 years they got something right. The bottom line is that it is a BUSINESS ENTITY, and things are thought of from a business perspective. These perspectives include marketing, advertising, and hospitality.
A part of the marketing/advertising is to allow guests waiting to view the food. This is why they walk food out of the kitchen. You may see something you like. This is the same reasoning behind the tables that are side-by-side. You have the ability to look at you neighbor's food, and maybe you will see something that you like. The waiting area can get crowded. Remember it gets crowded because we CHOOSE to wait inside the restaurant instead of right outside the doors.
The pagers they give DO work outside of the restaurant. As business people, the pagers have a set range to ensure that guests come back, and to make sure that when they are paged they can be seated as soon as possible. When you are given the pager, the front desk quotes you a time frame of what your wait will be; they also suggest that you come back within the range at the low end. This means that you ARE free to do window shopping.
The wait is long for two reasons: 1) there are a lot of names waiting on the list and 2) when people are at the tables, they take their time to eat (average time at a table 45-60 min).
The last thing that I want to say is that there is not a separate children's menu. Yet, there are child friendly item in the menu. To those who are so offended by this I ask you to keep in mind the ambiance of the restaurant and lets make some since of this: these restaurants have mirrors everywhere, marble floors, marble table tops, HAND-PAINTED walls and ceilings, cherry oak, linen napkins, and heavy quality cutlery. These items typically cannot be found in a child's room and usually not given to children. If you walked into a fine dinning restaurant, I doubt that you would have such expectations and make a fuss over this. Instead, you would understand. Let's be understanding shall we?
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Mar 05 '04
4:39 pm PST
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Thank you for your "preview" (Reply to this comment)
by pilarzmom
I've never been to one but one is opening tomorrow at our local, newly expanded mall. I;m sure I'll go sometime but like you I get turned off by the wait of some of these chain restaurants.
Thanks again,
Peggy
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Oct 02 '03
10:30 pm PDT
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Great Review! (Reply to this comment)
by antybean
I just visited the Cheesecake Factory during a trip to Providence, RI last week. A few co-workers raved about it so we gave it a try. We arrived around 6pm and didn't have to wait but by the time we left quite a crowd was hanging out.
I liked it - although I'm not entirely sure I'd make it a point to go back. Maybe if there wasn't anywhere better to go.
AntyBean
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Sep 30 '03
6:37 pm PDT
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Excellent review (Reply to this comment)
by prfstars
Your "nutshell" is the perfect summary of this place. Now if only there were a way to get that cheesecake in a quiet, low traffic setting.They had a chocolate mint cheesecake a few years ago that made the wait almost worth it.
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Sep 29 '03
3:18 pm PDT
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Like you, (Reply to this comment)
by millinocket
I've only been to one Cheesecake Factory - in Chicago. And it was cramped in the waiting area, just as you describe, and just as cramped in the restaurant seating area itself. Too bad, because the cheesecake is wonderfully sinful - but I don't think we'll go again. Great write up!
Sue
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Sep 28 '03
9:38 am PDT
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Re: Phil! (Reply to this comment)
by popsrocks, in Restaurants & Gourmet
Hey, Start traveling to all the Cheesecake factories now.
It will add quite a few reviews if you do each one. There are about 66 open at this time in the states and ten or so slated to open. And that's a fact!
I'll meet you at one of them sometime.
Phil
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Sep 27 '03
6:46 pm PDT
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Yuk (Reply to this comment)
by vodkaboy
Even the best Cheesecake won't taste so good if I know that fifteen people have sniffed it (oh please tell me nothing fell out of their noses), it has been squeezed between ten hot and sweaty bodies (please tell me it didn't....eugh....touch anyone's sweaty shirt) and ... bleaugh. Thanks for the warning Phil !
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Sep 27 '03
12:57 pm PDT
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Phil! (Reply to this comment)
by jetbluefan1
"I have been to only one of the over seventy Cheesecake factory restaurants in the USA."
Uh-oh...I think you're mistakened...there are not too many in the U.S, but I don't think there are 70! Please correct me if I'm wrong though :-)
I've been to the one in Westbury twice. Isn't it magnificent? I never had to wait at that one *and it was a Saturday both times*...wow. We also ate at the one in Boca Raton this past August and there was a ten minute wait.
My mouth is watering. Too bad I can't go there for dinner tonight - the closest is the one you are talking about. We're going to New York in two weeks (probably) so maybe we'll go then.
Great job on the review,
Anthony
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Sep 27 '03
12:25 pm PDT
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The waiting is miserable... (Reply to this comment)
by treeseed
I've been to the one on Michigan Avenue in Chicago and the wait was awful each time. I loved the food each time. The wait totally kills any spontaneity and makes this place off limits if you only want a dessert and coffee. Still, I wind up there whenever I'm in Chicago. I recently went to the Cheesecake Factory in Boston, and there was NO WAIT!!! (I went at 3PM...) The waiter was super friendly and for the first time ever I had bad food. I can't win. My omelet looked and tasted like that weird floating foam rubber that they make key chains for boaters out of. It was perfectly round which seemed unnatural.
Very helpful write-up, indeed.
Terrie
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Sep 27 '03
7:36 am PDT
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WoW (Reply to this comment)
by theresaro
So much to choose from,The spinach and cheese dip sounded yummy.. I wouldn't know wat do choose from.
I don't like those small little tables if you move the peper you spill something.The noise and the crowd shopping mall. i know my mother and stepfather went to one and yes it was busy but nothing like you have said. I think like you said it's the mall drawing everyone in..
Another thing that would drive be crazy people putting their nose near my food now that just turns my stomach..
Awesome Job on the review as always I will have to find out the one My mother went too. it sounds soooooo good. I know I could find something on that menu and of course the desert one too..
Teri :)
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Sep 26 '03
7:41 pm PDT
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I'll Add My Two Cents~ (Reply to this comment)
by ruby950
Phil~
You are right on about this place. I agree with every word. I can look out my window right now and see Chicago's Cheesecake Factory. I must tell you and everyone that here in Chicago their standards of hygiene is less than acceptable for me. I have witnessed far too many times, at the cheesecake counter/take out area (because I refuse to wait in line for dinner anywhere) staffers preparing desserts without gloves, licking their fingers, (YES)! and dropping cake and placing it back on the plate to be served. Because of this, I will only buy their whole frozen cakes to go. They are already boxed from somewhere else, and no one touches it! Be forewarned!
Absolutely fabulous review!
Deborah~
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Sep 26 '03
5:42 pm PDT
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Unfortunately... (Reply to this comment)
by aunt_bee
...you are quite right about all the cons. I hate the wait, and I hate not being able to wander around the mall with the pager. If the cheesecake weren't so darned good, I'd never go...but I do. Now that I've read your review, I just might have to stop there tonight!
Aunt Bee
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Sep 26 '03
2:07 pm PDT
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