the cheesecake factory at southlake town square

oh, yum.... i am not a regular customer of the cheesecake factory, in fact this was only my third for fourthtimeever dinning in one...and all the others were in indianapolis last year at a conference. well, i ate off the appetizer list thistimeand was not disappointed...i think had a pineapple upside down cheesecake that i brought home for dessert...everything was delicious.

this was our firsttimeat cheese cake factory. we had wonderful service from our very knowledgeable waitress. the chicken madeira was amazing. my daughter ordered the kids menu sliders and they were probably the best sliders i have tried. we will be back to try more wonderful food in the future.

i have been here on many occasions like birthdays and anniversaries, the service and food has always been up to par and their cocktails are a huge hit too. they are usually packed on weekend nights and they don't take reservations so you have to be ready to wait at least for 30 to 40 minutes unless you are having a very early or a very late dinner.

we stopped by at 6 this evening and it was already packed so we decided to just pick up a cake instead. i knew i wanted a chocolate cake and they had many varieties, the server was patient while i was making up my mind and also shared her opinion. i finally decided to buy the linda's fudge cake and like all their cakes it was delicious. my alltimefavorite still remains the dulche de leche cheese cake. i always enjoy mytimehere and look forward to dining here. it would be nice if they start taking reservations though.

sometimes cheesecake factory has a night off. as much as i like cheesecake factory, tonight only the food was good. service was incredibly off. there was only one soup tonight and my friend ordered it--the creamy mushroom. she ordered rene's special which came with a half of a sandwich. after about ten minutes our server returned and said that they had no soup whatsoever. she tried to coax her into having a whole sandwich instead. i shook my head and said take a look at the menu again which she ultimately did. the server would have rather her make a on-the-spot decision but, why do that and order something you don't really want? after looking at the menu she ordered a small appetizer.

i ordered a pit beef dip. our server looked at me and asked, "are fries okay?" i responded, "could i have a side salad instead?" she said yes, but did not give me an option of dressing. so when it cametimefor the food to come out, of course, my friends food came out first. that was fine, but they waited until my food came out about five minutes later to begin eating, even after i asked that they begin.

the side salad was big for a side salad and was refreshingly good. the pit beef dip was really good, with caramelized onions, fontina cheese and a creamy horseradish sauce. a cup of au jus came in a small demitasse cup alongside. i thoroughly enjoyed the sandwich. it's rare that i dislike anything here to begin with. i'm just sorry my friends had to wait on me.

i never received or was offered a refill on my tea. i guess my server was forced to work on st. patrick's day, and was taking it out on her customers. go figure.


-----28 sep, 2014-----

return visit. i have returned here three times since my last review. service has been great except for my most recent return which was today. corey, our server was average at best. after he took our order he mentioned that he would bring us bread for the table, but it would be about fifteen minutes. that was fine, but it never happened. after about twenty to twenty-five minutes our meals were brought out and after that, well, we were just an afterthought.

the food itself was excellent. i had "the italian" sandwich which was pure bliss. according to the menu it was composed of roast turkey, italian soppressata, prosciutto, marinated cherry peppers, fontina and parmesan cheese with lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise all on a grilled artisan roll. the outside of the bread was crispy while below the surface it was chewy goodness. the meats were high quality, equivalent to those of the best delis such as central market. this was definitely among the top sandwiches i've had in the last couple of years. the green side salad tossed with a simple balsamic vinegar, was fresh, simple and tasty. meals such as this continue to give me reason to return again and again, even if the service is at times is less than superior.


-----19 sep, 2012-----

always enjoyable,even if i seldom order cheesecake. all cheesecake factory restaurants are similar--at least the dozen or so i've been to. true, the menus are large but the kitchens are enormous and there are several chefs back there so the food comes out quickly--sometimes too quickly--like i'm not finished with my appetizer kinda quickly-what's with my entree being here? i ordered the moroccan chicken this time, not having had it before. it was very good. i don't think any of the items they create are really difficult to prepare. the meats and/or fish are seared and there seems to be a kind of sauce with a side. everything is plated real nicely and everyone lives happily ever after. my friend had the bang bang shrimp which he often has. it must be good to be ordering it that often. please see my other review for the ccf in arlington for additional information about the ccf franchises. i certainly will return.

walking into this place is an assault on my eyes. everything is overdone. it reminds me of a gaudy theme restaurant in walt disney world. the wait was 30 minutes. while waiting we looked at the cheesecakes in the case. they looked tempting. we sat at a booth with uncomfortable seats. the waiter was slow as a snail. the menu was more than 20 pages and there was a second menu of "lighter fare". there must have been over 300 items (not including cheesecake). there was american, asian, and who knows what else. that was a bad sign. never been to a restaurant that does "everything". usually that means they do nothing well. i figured i better stick to something very american. i ordered the steak diane. it's a simple dish. beef medallions with mashed potatoes in a mushroom sauce. it was extremely bland. the steak and mushrooms had no flavor. i don't know how that's possible. it takes skill to make this dish bad. the cheesecake was good but not great. supreme disappointment considering they couldn't even have excellent cheesecake. all told we spent 2.5 hours (mostly waiting on our waiter) and over $100.

bottom line, don't waste yourtimeor money.

first timer!. this was my 1sttimevisiting the cheesecake factory. i think i may have visited one years ago in calgary. i am pretty amazed at all the selections. i had the navajo sandwich. my friends order the salmon lunch special. my sandwich was amazing, i had to take half of it home. it was a huge portion. my partner's miso salmon was ok. i found the spices overpowered the salmon. i am not sure, but i think it is atlantic farmed salmon. i found the taste off. overall the food is good, i would not use the term excellent, just average. we happened to be there on a friday afternoon, the place was pretty empty. none of us had room to sample any of the cheesecake, maybe next time.

please shorten the menu!. after a few visits to the southlake location, i'm still left asking, "what style of food do they specialize in?" i know that the cheesecake is the centerpiece, but the menu is longer than some short stories i've read and the genre is all over the place! the food is good, so if they ever decide on a direction, they could really do it great! our last visit was disappointing because of the slow service. we arrived before the lunch rush, to avoid the delays but still waited...and waited...for our food, which then came out 1 plate at atimeover the span of about 15 minutes. after lunch, we waited for our checks...and waited...until our lunch turned into a two hour visit. the flavors are usually good, so i'm left to think that a shorter menu would equal faster preparation and service for all.

i can't lie, the food and cheesecake is good, but at what cost? one entree provides more calories than most people sgould consume in a day and enough fat for an entire week's diet. we know it's not healthy, but people should be able to find dietary information regarding the food they serve at the restaurant. everytimei ask they refuse.

good food, good service. it's always crowded, but the onetimewe got bad service (more like ignored), we mentioned to the hostess and the manager took care of our party himself. they never want their customers walking away unhappy. we even got dessert comp'ed! the food has never been a disappointment. once a waitress even brought me a teapot to try a tea flower.