Image taken from: twitter.com
I'll tell you something... its a bloody good job that The Cheesecake Factory hasn't yet made its move across the pond to the UK because if it did, forget the size of a house, I'd be the size of an industrial unit!
The portions are large, the selection extensive and the cheesecake - as you would hope - is gooooooooood.
We visited one blustery afternoon in San Francisco, looking for a place to eat in the Union Square area that would cater to the tastes of two tired adults and their jet-lagged one year old who had been up singing at 4am. The restaurant is located in Union Square, on the 8th Floor roof terrace of Macy's department store. This proved fortuitous as on arrival we were informed that their would be a 30 minute wait for a table. Looking around it appeared that there had been a recent graduation ceremony and there were a number of families eating there. The wait wasn't too bad though as we were provided with a buzzer to advise us when our table was ready, leaving us free to explore the wonders of the 7th Floor furniture department and the view over the Square.
Image Copyright: E. Upson
When the buzzer sounded, we were directed to a huge corner booth, with plenty of room for the three of us - and an additional 3/4 people should they have wished to join us. The waitress was unbelievably cheerful and attentive, but also considerate to the needs of family diners and took the order for our daughter's food first so that we could feed her and then enjoy our meal, relatively uninterrupted. I was relieved as it gave me a little more time to play 'ip dip doo' with a number of delicious sounding options on the menu.
The children's menu also offered a wide choice - from the expected burgers and chips to the salmon and mashed potato with veg that we eventually selected. The grilled salmon was delicious when it arrived (I was a bit jealous) but the mashed potato was a little bit too salty for me to want to give much to her, although there was bread at the table which she imperiously demanded with a point and then happily devoured.
After a LOT of indecision, I kept it simple and ordered an 'Old Fashioned' burger with a side salad and no pickles (urgh!) which arrived cooked to the perfect medium that I ordered. The brioche bun had been fried, rather than toasted, which was decadently delicious. My meal was delivered with a mountain of fries, but the error was quickly recognised and corrected and our long wait (due to a kitchen error, was compensated with free bottomless sodas).
Then there was a problem... The burgers were so huge (and delicious), that I couldn't even think about trying the cheesecake.
Disaster.
'Not a problem!' my chirpy server reassured me, 'Take it to go!'
My saviour!
I ordered the Key Mango Pie, a mango mousse cheesecake, topped with mango puree on a coconut macaroon base. It was light, smooth, with a deep mango flavour and a hint of coconut in the base - enough to mentally transport me from a San Francisco hotel room to a tropical island when I ate it for dinner. The only slight downside was the shredded coconut in the base which was a bit too rough and jarred against the smoothness of the cream cheese.
Taken from: www.thecheesecakefactory.com
For a convenient choice in Central San Francisco this was a great option and we all really enjoyed our meal! For my first trip to the US it was also nice to try one of the brands that we don't have in the UK and I'll definitely be back if we ever go to the States again!
To check out the menu visit The Cheesecake Factory - they ship cheesecakes too, although I suspect, not to the UK.
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