Opened its first restaurant in Beverly Hills, California in 1978, Cheesecake Factory has since established itself offering an eclectic menu, big portions and signature cheesecakes.
Cheesecake Factory is the restaurant that made me fell in love with cheesecake. Since my last couple of visits to the United States, I was unable to forget the delicious cheesecake flavours and texture. Also, the other unique dishes in their menu always amaze me.
I was back in the States again for a short trip and I was at San Francisco this time. There was a Cheesecake Factory restaurant at Union Square, San Francisco. I could not resist and had to dine the restaurant the moment I stepped foot on the American soil. It was Black Friday that day and there were a lot of people. We could not get a car park and also, the queue at Cheesecake Factory was extremely long. Firstly, we went to the eighth floor and left our names with them. Then, we were given a buzzer. We waited for at least an hour before we were informed that we have a table. During that time, we went window shopping within the same building.
When we got seated, we were served by a friendly and nice serving waitress. She recommended us a couple of delicious foods. More importantly, we did not forget about the cheesecakes. This time, we ordered four different cheesecakes.
The appetisers were served first. The Fried Calamari is calamari fried light and crisp and then served with garlic dip and cocktail sauce. I love the light flavour of the fried calamari. It was lightly salted and peppered. The dips were equally good and complemented the dish so well. I could not stop eating. (Food rating: 4/5)
Avocado Egg Rolls comprise of avocado, sun-dried tomato, red onion, cilantro fried in a crisp wrapper and is serve with tamarind-cashew dipping sauce. Without knowing what the ingredients are, I ate the entire piece of the egg rolls and took the second piece right after the first. I wonder why there is not a Cheesecake Factory outlet here but I do hope that they could consider here and set up an overseas branch soon. (Food rating: 4/5)
I love the Thai Lettuce Wraps since the first day my friend recommended me. The grilled chicken tenders were tender and juicy. When you eat it, you take a piece of lettuce leave and lay it on the palm of your hand. Then, you put a piece of chicken tender, bean sprouts, marinated cucumber, carrots and vermicelli on the lettuce leaves. Finally, you topped it over with three delicious spicy thai sauces. I prefer to top it with the peanut sauce to the other two. This appetiser is enough for two and you can eat it as main dish. (Food rating: 4/5)
The Buffalo Wings is fried chicken wings covered in hot sauce and served with Blue Cheese dressing and Celery sauce. So what if the chicken is deep fried. When you take bite on the chicken, you can taste the tender juicy chicken inside. It is really mouth-watering. (Food rating: 3.5/5)
Louisiana Spicy Pasta is both interesting and delicious. Made of Parmesan crusted chicken served over pasta with mushrooms, peppers and onions in a spicy New Orleans sauce, it added that ommph to the pasta dish. Once again, the pasta cooked in al dente style never fails to delight me. The Parmesan crusted chicken, similar to a chicken cutlet, was equally good. More importantly, the portion was huge. Like what my friend's three year old kid would say, it was 'Gig-normous'!! (Food rating: 3/5)
I simply love white meat and I ordered a Lemon-Herb Roasted Chicken. The chicken served with mashed potatoes, carrots watercress topped with light lemon garlic-herb sauce was simply divine. The chicken was tender and juicy. It disintegrated very easy and easy to eat. The mashed potato was also delicious. The soft mashed potato with some chunks of potato made the side dish yummy! (Food rating: 3/5)
If you like white chocolate, why not try the White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle? Made of creamy cheesecake swirled with white chocolate and raspberry, this dessert is a delight. At the bottom of the cake, you can see the raspberry bits topped with creamy cheesecake. (Food rating: 3.5/5)
Fresh strawberry is made of the original cheese cake topped with glazed fresh strawberries. It is one of the restaurant's most popular flavour for three decades. For me, it is one of my favourites. Unlike a tofu cheesecake, this cheesecake was smooth and soft. The tofu cheesecake had a slight firmness. The glazed strawberries were delicious. You must eat it with the cheesecake together. (Food rating: 4/5)
If you love Oreo, you may want to order a Oreo Dream Extreme Cheesecake. The dessert is made of Oreo cookies baked in creamy cheesecake with layers of fudge cake and Oreo cookie mousse and topped with a milk chocolate icing. One important thing to note is that the cheesecake is very rich in chocolate and extremely sinful. Though I love chocolate, I find it too rich for me. But it is superb chocolate cheesecake. (Food rating: 3/5)
Who can resist a slice of Tiramisu cheesecake? Imagine the restaurant's signature cheesecake and tiramisu combined into one superbly amazing dessert, it will definitely taste heavenly. I love the nice texture and the superb blend of the two tastes. The creamy cheesecake is definitely one of the cakes you must try if you love Tiramisu. (Food rating: 3/5)
Ever since I tried the Maine Crab Cakes from James Hook in Boston, I have been yearning to have another go with the fabulous cakes. At Cheesecake Factory, I ordered myself a serving of crab cakes. When served, I wondered how the restaurant was able to create two different textures to this simple dish. The crispy crust was delicious followed by the soft and creamy crab meat. I preferred to eating cakes on its own to dipping into the two sauces. I loved to try the original flavour as its own. The appetiser, I must say, is wonderful. Although it is not the same as the Maine Crab Cakes, it is equally good. (Food rating: 4/5)
Bang Bang Chicken with Shrimp is a spicy Thai dish with flavours of curry, peanut, chlli and coconut. It is then sauteed with vegetables and served over steamed white rice. You may be surprised how this US restaurant also serves Asian food. A fusion of Thai and Western cuisine, Bang Bang Chicken with Shrimp is an interesting dish. I cannot say that I love this dish but it is rather unique. The gravy tasted of Thai curry with a blend of peanut or something. I could not make out of it. It was normally good. (Food rating: 2.5/5)
Vanilla Cheesecake is made of layers of creamy vanilla bean cheesecake, vanilla mousse and whipped cream. I love the rich vanilla flavour and I could even see the vanilla bits in the cake. It is one of the great cakes I have ever eaten. Why not give it a shot? (Food rating: 4/5)
The Original cheesecake is the best of all cheesecakes I have ever eaten. The silken cheesecakes with rich cheese aromatic taste is the dessert you should be ordering when you are at Cheesecake Factory. The Original has been one of the popular cheesecakes since it was created three decades ago. (Food rating: 4/5)
Address: 251 Geary St, San Francisco, CA 94102
Pricing: USD $
Rating: 4/5
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