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(August 3, 2004)
I am always suspicious of restaurants that
have menus longer than the white pages of small Texas cities. Thus,
it was with considerable trepidation, their 25-year reputation notwithstanding,
that I first dined at the Austin version of The Cheesecake Factory
in the Arboretum. |
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The building, which took the place of the former Arbor Theatres, is attractive
and inviting. As you walk in, you see their namesake cheesecakes presented
to your left, and the cavernous restaurant unfolds to your right. An efficient
hostess seated us quickly.
Our first impression of the Cheesecake Factory was the bread. It was stale
and burned: essentially inedible. Not a good first step. They replaced
it at our request, but not quickly enough for my taste. (And why was it
brought out in that condition in the first place?) We ordered several
appetizers, which produced varying degrees of satisfaction. The Roadside
Sliders were very good. These mini burgers reminded me of the Little Ray's
Cheeseburger Sliders at the much-missed Ray's Steakhouse. Also tried the
Chicken Pot Stickers. These were not as good. They were simply too dense
and lacked textural nuance and flavor. And why chicken and not pork, or
a mixture of shrimp and pork? Next we tried the Sweet Corn Tamale Cakes.
This dish had promise but there wasn't enough contrast with the sweet
corn and the ostensibly offsetting sour cream, salsa, avocado and salsa
verde. It all tasted pretty, well, sweet. Of course, this was just one
of 29 appetizers or salads offered at the Cheesecake Factory.
The entrees we chose were the Cajun Jambalaya Pasta and the Cajun Rib-Eye
Steak (guess New Orleans was calling to us that day). The Cajun Jambalaya
Pasta had a really nice Cajun cream sauce with shrimp and chicken over
linguini. Problem was the linguini sat in a clump at the bottom of the
dish. I had to spend several annoying minutes separating the pasta before
I could really enjoy the dish. This is a prep item that could be easily
fixed by adding a dash of olive oil to the boiling pasta. The Ribeye had
a nice flavor although the marinade was probably a bit over done. The
steak was fairly tender and tasty, and cooked to our specifications. It
should have been a bit warmer though.
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We finished by splitting
a piece of their signature Oreo Cheesecake. This was sinfully good.
The texture was smooth, the density was perfect, and the taste was
incredibly comforting and inviting at the same time. All in all,
it was one serious piece of cheesecake. |
Our server was efficient and attentive and blameless (with the exception
of the bread) for the various problems we encountered. But I'm afraid
that my expectations about TCF were confirmed. It's not bad as it is now,
but with a menu that size, it takes precision and almost seamless execution
to get everything right every time.
The Cheesecake Factory is a restaurant that could achieve much more if
it focused on less. |
