My first trip to The Cheesecake Factory – America’s Favorite Restaurant is incredible.
At the top of my list is an enormous menu to choose from.
The portions are HUGE, American size.
As for The Cheesecake Factory’s Cheesecake–the selection is mind-blowing!
The best part is that almost everybody gets their Cheesecake to eat the minute they sit down.
Except for the girl who couldn’t decide and was searching for the Oreo Dream Extreme Cheesecake.
Everyone and their mom loves The Cheesecake Factory.
America’s favorite restaurant has over 180 locations, over 250 menu options, and around 70 rotating kinds of Cheesecake to appreciate!
I remember my friend Farhana telling me that the Cheesecake Factory Restaurant was one stop we were traveling to.
My mind zoomed in on the word factory–so I had to see for myself the excitement!
Would Cheesecake Factory live up to my excitement and expectations?
I expected to go to an industrial building that makes Cheesecake. I was hoping for a Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory experience.
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Cheesecake Factory Atmosphere
The Cheesecake Factory interiors pay homage to the glitz and glamor of the 1980s with mirrors, Egyptian marble columns, wood paneling, and palm trees.
The casual chain restaurant’s interiors and enormous food portions come together spectacularly in a weirdly charming way.
I walked into the secret chambers of its gold-hued, dimly lit dark-wood opulence.
Before entering, I read its romance novel-length menu with breathless candor.
It was hard to narrow my food selection when my mind spiraled at the thought of devouring cheesecakes.
Founder David Overton started the Cheesecake Factory with one aim in mind.
Overton wanted to serve notoriously huge portions of food that appealed to the “palate of the common man.”
He preferred dark booths you can sink into and walls stained colors your home is not.
The dark interiors of The Cheesecake Factory.
The Cheesecake Factory’s lavish interior design displays different epochs–a brilliant mishmash stretching from ancient Egypt to the Victorian age, pulled together with a glorious tone.
The Cheesecake Factory illustrates how a restaurant concept repeated over decades resists the progression of time.
The interiors still have an exciting mix of design elements—a little more glitz would work well.
The one design element that people immediately notice is the Egyptian-style columns that look weirdly like palm trees with palm fronds at the top.
When you first enter the restaurant, nothing matters more to me than the bakery area.
The biggest draw was not the opulent interiors but the showcases with the same number of cheesecakes, no matter where the restaurant was.
Get a drink to go with your Cheesecake!
Part of the charm of The Cheesecake Factory is the dim, shadowy corners, where I could shield my face as I ate a 5,000-calorie meal.
For the first time in my life – I did quick math while choosing what to order for dinner.
Like my Singaporean friends, I had “kiasu” thoughts–I better order my Cheesecake if they sold it out after my meal!
We whispered to ourselves.
- Oreo!
- Lemon Meringue!
- Pumpkin Pecan!
- Pineapple Upside Down!
- Cinnabon Swirl!
- Toasted Marshmallow S’ more!
- Adam’s Peanut Butter Cup Fudge Ripple Cheesecake!
I didn’t care who Adam was, but I sure was having his Cheesecake!
The staff promptly escorted us to our table.
The Glass Showcase is what dreams are made of!
Cheesecake Factory seating arrangement
I made sure that I sat away from any mirror.
While secretly gloated inside, I figured I didn’t want to catch glimpses of me stuffing my face with Cheesecake.
Cheesecake Factory menu
The menu must have at least 20 pages.
I browsed over the “Skinny” menu.
Life’s too short, and I’ll probably never go skinny dipping, even though the cuisine has many options.
There is something for everyone!
So, if you come with a sizeable group and everybody loves to eat something different or has divergent tastes, it’s no problem.
Everyone chose their food except me.
I couldn’t figure out what I wanted to eat.
- Cheese Burgers
- Burritos
- Pasta
- Pizza
- Salad
- Steaks
- Chicken
So lovely!
I couldn’t decide.
First-world problem–an explosion of choice makes having many options sucks.
I remember listening to psychologist Barry Schwartz offer startling insight into modern life.
People find it arduous to choose with so many choices – it produces paralysis rather than liberation.
Finally, I pushed myself to overcome the paralysis and make a choice (so hard, and it’s’ just ordering from the menu).
Was I happy with my choice?
I ended up less satisfied, so it had to, say, ten items to choose from.
Yes, The Cheesecake Factory has this effect on the strongest of us glutton.
We became overwhelmed since we couldn’t order all the items on the menu.
Yes, we were inundated with food choices.
There is a first for everything in life.
Mine is ordering food.
How to resist?
Cheesecake Factory Appetizers
I could live on The Cheesecake Factory’s famed brown bread.
It was that delicious.
I looked at my dining companions.
Was I just hungry or greedy?
I was hoarding brown bread and planning to have a little of it for dessert!
I was eyeing the number of slices left in the basket as I wolfed down my bread slice.
Cheesecake Galore!
Cheesecake Factory Main Course
We had so many items to share.
It felt like we all overate at a buffet when they sent the Cheesecakes over.
At the end of the meal, I almost had no room left to eat Cheesecake!
That kind of sucks!
Since I daydreamed about my dining experience for months before my trip, I was almost disappointed.
I gave up punching on my food calculator–I knew I had already consumed far more calories than I could handle elegantly.
But I couldn’t leave without having Cheesecake at The Cheesecake Factory!
Adam’s Peanut Butter Cup Fudge Ripple Cheesecake!
Plus, a spoonful of everyone else’s slice of fabulous, decadent, delicious Cheesecake!
After that, I remember a little of the car ride back to our Airbnb.
The sugar probably kicked in, and I sleepwalked back to bed in a sugar coma.
After dinner, we had a birthday celebration and lots of Cheesecakes!
The Cheesecake Factory Review
The Cheesecake Factory is a casual restaurant that tempts customers into an excited orgy of indulgence after plate after a giant plate of calorie-dense food.
While it’s easy to poke fun at The Cheesecake Factory’s excesses, I must say that the food is fresh, the cooking spot on, and delicious.
It is only my greed that makes this borderline incident profound.
I loved The Cheesecake Factory, and given the excitement of the first adventure when the order was over the top–I would appreciate a revisit for a dinner date.
Next time, we will order a small entrée, one main, and a Cheesecake slice to share.
Appetizers $7.50-$16.50; pasta $14.95-$22.50; seafood and steaks $17.50-$32.50
The Cheesecake Factory at The Galleria
5015 Westheimer Rd, Houston, TX 77056, United States
Hours: Daily 11 AM to 10 PM
Google: https://g.co/kgs/Yq4uxpL
